God is Love: Amy Odland

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Friday, December 25, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Examining the Heart of Christmas

The Heart of Christmas
A devotional by Amy Odland

“I came from the Father and entered the world;

now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”

– John 16:28 (NIV)

It’s here! The big day—December 25th! It’s Christmas Day!

The day of celebration and gifts and peace on earth. The day of hope and love. The day of believing in humanity and gathering together.

This year is different though, isn’t it? Budgets are tighter. Lockdowns are in place. Relationships are bruised or broken. People who were lost this year are maybe missing from our tables or Zoom chats or family gatherings are smaller or not happening at all. Church services have an air of sadness about them, maybe because they’re online or just not the usual intimate candlelight service we’re used to. Days seem darker this year, Winter Solstice aside, due to the unrest and hurt we’ve experienced, either due to loss (of life, of jobs, of trust, of hope) or just because of how we’ve all responded or reacted to living and trying to survive pandemic chaos and national political and social unrest these past ten months.

A few of my friends and I were joking at the beginning of the month that it would be nice to extend Christmas into January (aka leave our decorations up, continue listening to the music, make more cookies, etc.). We realized then that 28 days of “Christmas” wasn’t going to be enough for 2020 and the hardship we’ve seen so far. I was just kidding at the time, but quickly realized that whether the decorations stay up or come down, whether or not the music continues to play, and whether or not the family can gather to exchange gifts, the heart of Christmas does live past today.

One may first ask, what even IS “Christmas” really?

Encyclopedia Britannica.com defines the Christmas holiday as the “Christian festival celebrating the birth of Jesus.” While it is widely accepted that Jesus Christ’s birth likely didn’t happen exactly on December 25, the date was probably chosen because it was close to other Roman/pagan celebrations, Winter Solstice, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, other festivals, and the calculation/assumption of when Mary received the visit from the angel announcing Jesus’s conception.

The earliest Christmas celebrated dates back to A.D. 336. However, centuries later, this holiday was reconceived in the early 19th century by authors like Charles Dickens and Clement Clarke Moore to be a holiday emphasizing family, children, kind-heartedness, gift-giving, and Santa Claus. It was declared a national holiday in the United States in 1870 and thanks to capitalism and consumerism, Christmastime is a mixed-up mess of never-ending Black Friday sales and songs like Christmas Shoes that hits us every year between Thanksgiving and today.

In the midst of all the tinsel and wrapping paper, let’s not miss that Christmas is first and foremost a celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth. Its very name reflects this. This holiday, also known as “The Christ’s Mass”, celebrates the one who was born of a virgin, who came to earth to live as a human, who grew up and said he was “from the Father” (John 16:28) and used God’s name, “I AM,” to identify himself (John 18:5-6). The one who said He was the bread of life (John 6:35), the door through which to enter heaven (John 10:9-11), the light in the darkness (John 8:12), the good shepherd (John 10:11-18), the resurrection and the life (John 11:25-26). Jesus said that He is the way and the truth and the life (John 14:6).

We celebrate His birth because He said He was the hope and light of the world, the Son of God, and we can believe Him because He also said He’d die and be raised to life three days later and that happened as well. Jesus Christ is the only one who has ever claimed to be God and been raised from the dead; all other spiritual leaders/teachers of His caliber are still in their graves.

With all this in mind, how you view December 25 determines if the heart of Christmas can live on in your heart after today is done.

Is today a celebration of the changing seasons and of the days getting longer again, that focuses on feasts and gifts and decorations? Is Dec. 25 a time for human traditions or a “going through the motions” celebration? Or is today a day of giving thanks and praise to God for sending His one and only Son as a baby in a manger as a human representation of God’s love for you and a sign of His faithfulness to the world? Are you celebrating the gift of Jesus by sharing His love with those around you?

If the last one is truly the heart of Christmas for you, then the “why” behind all you do during this busiest season of the year—behind all the gift-giving, stringing of bright lights, baking of special Christmas cookies and other human traditions—takes on new meaning. The “heart of Christmas” to you holds the beauty of Jesus’s love for you and the promise of spending eternity with Him after you die and He returns to take you home to Heaven. It’s not about the gifts, the decorated tree, the festive lights, the delicious holiday food or the special gatherings with your family and friends. It’s all about Jesus and His love for you!

In John 13:15 (NLT) Jesus said “I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.” His last words to His disciples before He was arrested, beaten, and hung on a cross were filled with repeated commands of “love one another as I have loved you.” (John 13:34 NIV)

As Christians, we’re supposed to be modeling Christ’s love for us to those around us. Sure, we unfortunately tend to fail miserably quite a bit of the time, but we also do pretty good despite our shortcomings. Jesus said He had to leave so the Helper would come to be with us (John 16:7).

This spirit of help—the Holy Spirit—is the only way we are able to do things with a spirit of love, hope, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and gentleness when we don’t really want to. This a mystery too large to tackle in this devotional, but know that you can have the “heart of Christmas”—that feeling of joy and peace this day brings—whenever you want if Jesus is in your heart. It can happen long after the decorations are packed up, after the gifts are exchanged or broken or have grown wearisome, or even after the sadness has faded of the family gathering being cancelled because of a global pandemic.

Let’s review ways in which we can keep the heart of Christmas alive year-round:

When you give without expecting to receive in return, you keep the heart of Christmas alive.

When you forgive without receiving forgiveness first, you keep the heart of Christmas alive.

When you put someone else’s needs before yours, you keep the heart of Christmas alive.

When you react in a way that is better than what was deserved, you keep the heart of Christmas alive.

When you “love one another as I have loved you,” (my paraphrase of John 13:35 NIV), you keep the heart of Christmas alive.

When you “do as I have done for you,” you keep the heart of CHRIST alive.

The heart of Christmas is not in decorations or gifts or family. It’s not in remembering the poor just once a year or in donating to your favorite charity on #GivingTuesday.

The heart of Christmas lives on past today because the love and spirit of Christ lives on in those who believe in Him throughout the year. You can help keep it alive by asking Jesus to live in your heart, by continuing to learn about Him and what He said during His time on earth, and by living out His commands to the best of your ability with His Holy Spirit guiding you.

Merry Christmas, friend. May you truly find the heart of Christmas today and in the days ahead.

(Please enjoy this song by Steven Curtis Chapman, called “Christmas is All in the Heart,” as a musical reflection of my thoughts.)

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Her passion for helping women stems from her own struggles and lessons learned in her journey as a Christian since first deciding to follow the Lord in 1994.

Amy’s priorities after her faith include her family — husband Rick, and their four kids — as well as extended family who all live close in proximity and the many friends she’s made over the years.

In addition to a love of teaching and helping her husband with the bookkeeping for their many businesses, Amy has recently expanded her stay-at-home work to include leading author’s book launch teams for publishing companies like Baker, Revell, Barbour, and Lifeway.

She also enjoys teaching new authors about platform building, self-launching, and online marketing.

~*~
Connect with Amy:
Facebook: https://facebook.com/amyodland
Instagram: https://instagram.com/amy_odland
Twitter: https://twitter.com/amy_odland
Website: https://amyodland.com

Friday, November 27, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Giving Thanks to God in All Circumstances

Giving Thanks for Trouble
A devotional by Amy Odland

He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said. – Job 2:10 (NIV)

As I sat at the computer reading and researching about COVID-19 back in the beginning of March, I knew this year was going to be hard, but like many of you probably, I never could’ve imagined all the battles we have faced since then.

Shortages of supplies we used to take for granted, misinformation about COVID-19 and an election, racial injustices, political unrest, family and friends quarreling, and so many deaths – deaths experienced in isolation because we can’t mourn gathered together like we usually get to – are all things we’ve been battling on top of just trying to do daily life. We may be arguing about a lot of things right now, but one thing we can all agree on is the fact we are having quite a bit of trouble in the US right now.

Job, a man of integrity who served God faithfully, knew trouble as well. He lost seven sons, three daughters, seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred donkeys, and several servants all in one day. Shortly after, he developed painful sores from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. Then he had three friends show up who tried to comfort him by telling him it was all his fault, that he or his kids or ancestors must have messed up bad. There’s a whole book of the Bible telling his story aptly named “Job.”

After going back and forth with his “miserable comforters” and arguing his innocence, Job finally got to the point where he demanded from God a reason for his suffering. God answered and Job was humbled and realized he didn’t know everything. It is interesting to point out that like Job, most of us don’t question our faith when things are hunky-dory. We start asking the big questions when things are hard.

Jesus Christ warned us that things would be hard, even after saying his yoke was easy and burden was light (Matthew 11:30 NIV). Following Him wasn’t going to be the Disney Fast Pass religious equivalent for helping us skate through life. He said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NIV). The “things” He’d told His disciples right before saying this included why He had to leave, how the Holy Spirit would be coming to help them, and that they’d mostly likely be killed by those believing they were serving God – not exactly comforting thoughts.

Not comforting, that is, until we get to the last thing he says in that verse and also if we were to continue reading in John 17—He has overcome the world. He has overcome everything … loneliness, anxiety, depression, abuse, cancer, persecution, quarreling, war, ignorance, stubbornness, doubt, and death via his dying on the cross and raising again three days later.

Like Job, we can have doubt creep in during our difficult times, doubt that causes us to question God with endless why’s. Commentaries say that Job’s faith was stronger after his tribulation but does that mean our trials and struggles are purposed to test our faith, to make it, and us, stronger? Or are they for bringing us to God because we have been resisting Him despite all the signs of His existence all around us? Maybe it is sometimes for both but either way, Jesus says He has overcome all the horrible things we will experience.

While we may not know the “why” behind the current turmoil created by COVID-19 in 2020, we can listen to Paul’s words in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 (NIV):

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt

but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.

May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our

Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.”

Paul had been through boat wrecks, arrests, beatings, and hosts of other physical and mental trials during his ministry, yet he says to give thanks in all circumstances. He had experienced far worse than struggling to find toilet paper or wearing a mask or waiting 17 weeks for a specific part for a broken dishwasher to finally be in stock so it can be repaired. If he could say to give thanks in everything by that point in his life, we should listen carefully to his words.

Many of us have seen hardships this year far more serious than what we used to think were hardships, yet Job could still probably one-up us with his personal story of “This one time...”

Despite his suffering, Job was kept blameless because he was obedient. Giving thanks for the hardships is our act of obedience that also strengthens or renews our faith and keeps us blameless until the coming of our Lord. The one who calls you is faithful to keep you blameless and He will do it if you continue to hold on to what is good and give thanks in all circumstances.

Let’s Pray: Lord, thank you for your faithfulness to all generations. Thank you for remaining the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow no matter what is happening in the world. Help me with my doubt. Give me strength to continue believing You and Your promises. Help me give thanks for all things, even the bad, as they are things You can rework to bring about a good I don’t understand right now. Guide me and give me wisdom in all things so I may remain blameless until the time of Your return and thank you for making me blameless despite my sins and shortcomings. In Jesus’s Name I pray, Amen.

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, October 23, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Choices

Who Will You Choose to Be?
A devotional by Amy Odland

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there.

– John 8:6b-9 (NIV)

Ever been to a restaurant with a group of people and have someone in the group who doesn’t know what they want to eat?

First, they let everyone else order before them to buy more time. Then they possibly ask the waiter a bunch of questions, trying to narrow their decision by eliminating items they were considering. Or maybe they listen to what those who ordered before them got and just copycat someone else’s order that sounded tasty.

Maybe at some point we’ve all had a turn at being this person...unable to make a decision and then as the pressure mounts, we either make a decision in haste or just resort to accepting the decision someone else made and substituting it for our own. I assume many of us can identify with having moments of indecision and feeling stuck when trying to make a difficult decision in a moment of pressure...especially decisions more paramount in life than just what to order for dinner while dining out.

The religious leaders in the scripture verse above had a difficult decision they needed to make at a moment's notice. After Jesus knelt and wrote in the dirt, they decided to abort whatever scheme they were trying to carry out. Their silent, inward examinations led to the woman’s forgiveness and pardon. There was a second group of religious leaders in Acts 7:57-58 who were spurred on by their anger and rage in response to the truths and exhortations Stephen spoke in his self-defense against the false accusations they’d brought against him—their rash, impulsive, and selfish decision led to his death.

Here’s the thing: As Christians, we get to decide every day, in little decisions sprinkled throughout our day, who we stand with. Do we stand with the righteous who are trying to uphold the law and “rules” of our faith or do we stand with Him who ushered in a new law? Jesus said in John 13:34 (NIV), “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.”

In Luke 10:27 (NIV), Jesus told an expert of the law he’d answered correctly to Jesus’s question of what is written in the law. He’d said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus emphasized the idea of us loving God and loving others in both of these examples. In effect, He said to only worry about these two laws, effectively erasing all the laws man had warped or perverted over the years since Moses had brought down the stone tablets from Mount Sinai.

Just like when ordering at a restaurant, we need to each decide what we stand for, what we believe, and who we’re following. We need to decide for ourselves and not piggyback off the order/decision of another. We need to make a decision and not delay to the point of missing our chance. We need to rededicate ourselves to that decision each day and remind ourselves of this: Will we let love rule the day or will we let prideful righteousness win?

We are only responsible for our own choices. You won’t have to give account for my decisions and I won’t have to give account for yours. We have only our own sinfulness to account for.

Here’s a thought: Do you make your decisions based on the fact that Jesus will judge you for them? If you made a chart representing each day of your life, with a dot representing every day and assuming you lived to the age of exactly 85, you would have 31,025 dots on the chart. Each of those dots symbolizes a new day, a new chance to make the right decision, to make a choice like the group of religious leaders in John 8 did: to choose love and drop your stone in the dust instead of throwing it at someone.

What will you choose when you interact with other humans, Christian or otherwise? Will you choose to keep your pride, to condemn and throw stones or hurtful words, or to shut your ears and eyes to the truth when someone speaks it to you? Will you realize your own shortcomings and offer forgiveness to those who seek it or be kinder than is deserved and listen to truth no matter what it costs you? What will the dot for today in your life represent when Jesus recounts your whole life to you someday?

In closing, let’s reflect together on these words from Jesus found in John 13:35 (NIV):
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

Note to the Reader from Amy: To read more about the judgment of believers, you can read

2 Corinthians 5:6-10 and Revelation 20:11-13 or this article here ...
https://www.intouch.org/read/blog/the-judgment-of-believers

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, September 25, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Persevere

Just Keeping Running
A devotional by Amy Odland

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” –1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (NIV)

Now that we’re six months into dealing with COVID-19, I have seen more and more people commenting lately on social media about being tired and weary.

The initial anxiety and stress we all felt when everything locked down back in March has led to months of wondering, watching, and waiting.

Wondering what will change from day to day with laws, regulations, and our health as well as the health of our loved ones. Watching as political unrest grows, racial tensions widen, and natural disasters increase. Watching as leaders say one thing and do another. Waiting for a break from the stress, for a relief that never comes. People are still arguing about masks, some basic supplies are still hard to find, and distrust in the news, our friends and family, and in pretty much everything is multiplying as fast as rabbits do in the springtime.

Have you noticed the race we run as Christians has gotten a lot harder in this short amount of time? Anxiety and hardships have increased; convenience and comfort have decreased. Plans have been rescheduled, cancelled, and completely ruined. Relationships have been strained beyond what they can handle. Truths have been warped beyond recognition. We’re now running uphill on an unmaintained path, huffing and puffing and feeling a burn in our muscles like never before. We’ve maybe twisted our ankle a little on the uneven ground or lost our footing and cut our knee on a rock along the way.

We’re tired.

We’re weary.

We want to quit.

I’m tired and weary and want to quit.

Paul knew we’d be tired in 2020 when he wrote these words. He knew we’d be ready to throw in the towel and flush relationships broken by the turmoil of this year. He knew we’d want to block people on Facebook as another election approaches. He knew we’d want to just numb out and watch Netflix instead of washing the dishes, AGAIN, because our dishwasher is still broken after almost 8 weeks of waiting for the backordered part needed to fix it that can’t be found ANYWHERE due to COVID-19. (Ok, maybe it’s just my dishwasher that’s been broken, but you get the idea.)

Olympic athletes train for hours day after day, month after month, year after year in preparation for competing every four years for either a gold, silver, or bronze medal. In comparison, some of us who call ourselves Christians aren’t even willing to read the Bible for 5-10 minutes a day. How little effort we put towards striving for that eternal prize of being with God. Yet the prize we will receive for our effort is much more valuable than what the Olympians receive!

Yes, salvation by the grace of God is a gift. The “prize” we’ll receive someday is not something we can technically earn. But the appreciation of and continuing development of the grace we have received is not as apparent in our lives as some of us think. We need to be more purposeful in our running of the race, this thing we call living and witnessing and growing in sanctification.

We need to be purposefully reaching out to God, learning about His ways, and listening to Him more than we do. We need to avoid growing complacent to our surroundings and comfortable with our sins. We need to be purposeful in our actions. We need to keep going when we’re tired and want to quit.

Here are three ways to be more purposeful in your race if you’ve grown lazy in your faith:

Way #1: Plan
Long distance runners make plans: training plans, recovery plans, day-of-race plans, meal plans, equipment plans. Someone doesn’t just become a prize-winning long distance runner by accident. Make plans for how you’re going to grow in your faith. Get the materials you need. Find Bible reading plans. Get an accountability partner to help you stay faithful. Try new things too, like memorization or joining a prayer group as doing the same thing all the time creates stagnation, just as a runner who only runs without doing alternate training activities risks injury or muscle exhaustion.

Way #2: Act
Once plans are made, you have to follow through and DO them. You have to open your Bible and read it. You have to pray. You have to show up. Missing a day isn’t the end of the world! Don’t throw the plan out just because you were derailed by an unexpected crisis. Pick it up where you’re at when you can and don’t look behind you and beat yourself up for past failures. Doing something, no matter how small, is still a step forward toward growth.

Way #3: Pace
A long distance runner doesn’t run the same pace the whole race. There are times when a slow, steady speed is needed to conserve energy for the sprints that will be needed ahead to gain ground and a lead. A slower pace at different times in your walk is not bad. Don’t make rest your enemy! It is your friend and is needed between big bursts of high-energy seasons in your life. Just don’t fall into a consistent habit of rest and laziness. Even runners who have injured themselves have miraculously still finished a race. Your “injury” is not a valid excuse for always neglecting your God.

Make a specific plan to grow in your faith, act on that plan, and adjust your pace as the terrain requires. If Paul had written those words today, he may very well have added a “just keep running, brothers, just keep running” to the end.

Rest and slow your pace if needed, but just keep running, friend.

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Her passion for helping women stems from her own struggles and lessons learned in her journey as a Christian since first deciding to follow the Lord in 1994.

Amy’s priorities after her faith include her family — husband Rick, and their four kids — as well as extended family who all live close in proximity and the many friends she’s made over the years.

In addition to a love of teaching and helping her husband with the bookkeeping for their many businesses, Amy has recently expanded her stay-at-home work to include leading author’s book launch teams for publishing companies like Baker, Revell, Barbour, and Lifeway.

She also enjoys teaching new authors about platform building, self-launching, and online marketing.

~*~
Connect with Amy:
Facebook: https://facebook.com/amyodland
Instagram: https://instagram.com/amy_odland
Twitter: https://twitter.com/amy_odland
Website: https://amyodland.com

Friday, August 28, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Did you know that God has a tattoo of you?

God’s Tattoo
A devotional by Amy Odland

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hand; your walls are ever before me.”
–Isaiah 49:15-16 (NIV)

Do you have a tattoo?

Tattoos are usually a pretty taboo topic amongst Christians, especially with earlier generations.

Nowadays there is judgment on both sides, whether you have one or don’t, the reasoning behind getting a tattoo or what they symbolize, etc.

It used to be that it was the hardened criminal or biker dude kind of individual pictured when talk of having or getting a tattoo came up. Nowadays there are worship leaders and suburban moms sporting tattoos. They are becoming more and more common in the church and if you attend a hipster church, you may even feel pressure to get a tattoo to fit in.

Usually tattoos have some kind of meaning to them: a remembrance of someone lost, a reminder of a battle won, or a symbol of a new beginning. They can be small and easily hidden or they can cover a whole portion of the body. The Guinness Book of World Records holder for the most tattoos has 91.5% of her body covered in tattoos!

Here’s the thing: No matter what your stance is on tattoos as a Christian, something you probably haven’t ever heard in church is the fact that God has you “tattooed” on his hand.

The word “engraved” in Hebrew in the verse above means to cut, to set, to inscribe or engrave, as in cutting into something (picture the commandments being cut on the stone tablets) or setting something into law (as in inscribing laws on a scroll). Engraving something onto stone or wood requires tools that cut and chip away; engraving something onto your skin would require cutting or burning it badly enough that it scars.

Tattoos are a little different in that they use pigment to highlight the scarring caused by the needles, but the same result is produced: a “permanent” mark on the skin is left. Modern tattoos are painful enough they scare off people with lower levels of pain tolerance, imagine how painful the older, more barbaric forms of tattooing and engraving would have been.

Have you paid attention recently to how sensitive the palms are?

They can tell you when something is hot and going to burn you, when you are feeling the softest of textures, or when you feel pleasure by holding hands with your loved one.

The most experienced tattoo enthusiasts know the palms are one of the more highly sensitive areas of the body and thus should be avoided when considering where to place a tattoo – as an example, the world record holder I mentioned above doesn’t have ANY tattoos on her palms. God says He has placed a remembrance of you right there on one of the most sensitive and one of the more painful areas we know. He has cut and set your name right there in His palms.

When things are hard and overwhelming, when it feels like you are forgotten and invisible, remember that God has done this to remember YOU.

God has you ever before him, engraved on His Hands. He is always reminded of you and will never forget you. Isaiah recorded God’s promise of this long before the nails had been driven into Jesus Christ’s Hands. God has your name tattooed on His palms and Jesus has holes in His. Both God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son have scars on their hands for you.

Live like you are loved and remembered, friend, because you are by the One (God) who holds the whole world in His Hands!

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, July 24, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Weakness

What’s Your Weakness?
A devotional by Amy Odland

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. –2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)

How many of us would be quick to raise our hand if we were asked the question “Who would like to have Christ’s power rest on them?”

How quick would we be to raise those same hands if it was mentioned that in order for that to happen, we need to immediately start boasting about our weaknesses? And to do it gladly? I don’t know about you, but I for one don’t like to run around “gladly” mentioning my shortcomings to everyone I interact with each day. As a matter of fact, I am not happy at all to volunteer that I have a quick temper or am short on patience most of the time. How about you? Do you enjoy confessing you struggle with anger or addiction or are eyeball-deep in pride and self-absorption?

None of us like to look bad in front of others. While some of us find it easy to not care what others think, most of us spend a great deal of time and energy keeping up appearances to those around us. We cover our sins as best we can until we can’t anymore and they sneak out. Our kids definitely do this (as we did before them); they can keep up appearances for the most part while at school or with the grandparents, but as soon as they get home with us, the “real” kid shows up pretty quickly.

We learned fairly early on as parents to use the “Ask the Teacher” trick to point out this discrepancy between public vs. private behavior: when they’ve been misbehaving at home – whether by not doing chores, fighting with siblings, or just generally not listening to me or my husband – we ask them if we should talk to their teacher about getting some advice on what we could do to get them to listen better at home. We ask, “What would your teacher say we should do? Your teacher doesn’t ever say you act like this at school, so maybe we need to get some suggestions from your teacher.”

Once the threat of tarnishing their “perfect” reputation with the teacher is out there, they shape up awfully quick at home.

The fear of what others think of us controls us whether we realize it or not. What we maybe don’t even realize is how it also affects if Jesus Christ’s power can work through us or not. If we’re listening to the opinions of those around us and spending our time worrying about our image more than we are listening to and spending time with God, the power of Christ will not rest on us as it should. If we’re focusing more on outward voices and input, we have less energy and time to focus on the inner influences of the Holy Spirit. We have less of Christ’s power to get us through our day.

So how do we boast more about our weaknesses and allow God’s grace to be sufficient in all we do? Here are a few ideas:

We should admit when we’re wrong.

Apologize when we’ve messed up.

Give the benefit of the doubt more than we do.

Be slow to judge.

Be quick to forgive.

Be able to say “I don’t know.”

Focus on the needs of others.

Find ways to make others feel important or special.

Look for opportunities to help the oppressed or hurting.

Seek counsel for help with addictions or strongholds.

We don’t have to shout our weaknesses from the mountaintops for all to hear. We can share with trusted friends or trained counselors, those we know are safe and helpful. What we definitely aren’t supposed to do if we want Christ to overlook and forgive our weaknesses, is walk around with an attitude of unwillingness to overlook and forgive the weaknesses of others. His power will rest on us in great ways if we humble ourselves, pray, and seek His ways.

Do you have a weakness you feel God calling you to gladly boast about today?

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, June 26, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Reasons why YOU are God's Favorite!

You’re His Favorite

A devotional by Amy Odland

“Then an argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. But Jesus, knowing the thoughts of their hearts, had a little child stand beside Him. And He said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in My name welcomes Me, and whoever welcomes Me welcomes the One who sent Me. For whoever is the least among all of you, he is the greatest.” –Luke 9:46-48 (NIV)

As most parents experienced in March, April, and May of this year, we also had an increase of evening meals around the table with all of our kids.

Before Coronavirus hit, we usually tried to eat dinner together as much as our schedules allowed. During those weeks of quarantine meals, we were all together all the time so didn’t have much to “tell about our day” during the meal as each day seemed to be the same as the one before. So instead we enjoyed some extended devotional time, we developed some inside jokes, and we also maybe had an argument or two when we got tired of all being together so much. Our four kids, ranging in ages 20 down to 9, would frequently tease each other during these meals about which of them was our favorite. Every time they did, I would think of this passage in Luke.

Have you ever felt like God plays favorites? When we measure “favorite” by the world’s standards, we think of someone else receiving something we don’t ... like material blessings or healing or answers to prayers ... and it begins to seem like God plays favorites. Our humanness equates “ease of” as a measurement of quantity of love – whether it’s ease of life or ease of gain or ease of struggle, the easier things are, the more we think someone is loved. We begin to believe God loves them better than, or more than, He does us.

God never said things would be easy for us just because we follow Him. God doesn’t play favorites by making things easier for us while we’re alive. In fact, Jesus said in John 16:33 (NIV), “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” He has equal love for all of us, meaning those who call upon Him and continue to follow and trust Him are all favored. He loves the thief who hung on the cross next to Jesus and called out to Him just as much as He loves His beloved son, Jesus. Why else would Jesus have said to the thief, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” We are all favored because we call Him Father.

God loves all His children the same, but He doesn’t treat them all equally. A few examples of this? Abraham was richly blessed with land and flocks, but had to wait until he was HOW OLD to have a child, who was a fulfilment of a promise God had given him? Joseph became second in command in Egypt during a crucial time but only after first being hauled away from his family and sold as a slave, then falsely accused, and after spending years in prison. All the major prophets were ostracized during their lives as they warned of the coming ruin of Israel. David was anointed to be king of Israel by Samuel, but had to endure being chased around and almost killed by his boss and predecessor for years beforehand. Mary was chosen to be the mother of the Savior of the World, but she almost lost her engagement, her family’s name was scorned because she was pregnant before wedlock, and she later watched her son die a criminal’s death when he’d done nothing wrong.

Jesus talks in Matthew 7 about what we should do with this apparent discrepancy between what each of us gets from God. In Matthew 7:1-2 (NIV) he says, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

Some of us get so distracted by what others are doing or achieving or receiving, we lose sight of the path laid out before us. We are focused on whether so-and-so deserves this-or-that instead of what God has purposed us to accomplish during our lifetime. We get caught up in negative emotions and thoughts that weigh us down instead of thinking about the things Paul mentioned in Philippians 4:8 (NIV), “...whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

This is exactly what happens when our kids fight about who is the favorite. They forget about the unique gifts they have to offer the world. They forget about how God has designed each of them differently, that they were raised differently, and that they will each head down different paths in life. They forget they each have different strengths and weaknesses, character qualities that need to be pruned or watered, depending on God’s plan and timing and desire. They’re not going to all choose the same career. They’re not going to all get married at the exact same age or have the exact same number of kids...or maybe even get married at all.

God doesn’t shape his children to be factory-made dishware; we aren’t all supposed to be the same. We are unique creations created for bringing variety and beauty and love into the world. Imagine if there was only one kind of tree or one kind of animal or one kind of food. God said we were His “very good” creation, so why wouldn’t we be as multi-faceted as the rest of His creations?

Of course each of our four children think THEY are the favorite. They are not wrong; they’re each our favorite in a different way. It is amazing the difference in our children’s behavior when they think they’re the favorite, how willing they are to please us and to listen to us.

So today, I say to you: Start to believe you are God’s favorite and live like it. Do things to please your Father, not the people around you. Ask God for things like a favorite would ... and don’t act like a spoiled brat when He doesn’t give them to you right away.

Jesus Christ’s words in Matthew 7:11-12 (NIV) say, “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

Love God and love others as one who is highly favored by God. Because you are His favorite.

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, May 22, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Thoughts on caring for people a bit "too much"

Caring Too Much
A devotional by Amy Odland

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” – Luke 6:27-28, 36 (NIV)

“You care too much.”

Have you ever had this said to you? Or maybe you’ve said it to someone? Is it even possible to, as a Christian, “care too much?”

In John 15:12-13 (NIV), Jesus says “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” When you think about him saying that to his twelve disciples, including Judas who would eventually betray him, you can get a better picture of what he meant in Luke 6 when he also said “love your enemies.”

According to BibleHub.com, the Greek word of enemies is echthros, which means “someone openly hostile, animated by deep-seated hatred, implies irreconcilable hostility, proceeding out of a “personal” hatred bent on inflicting harm.”

Do you have an enemy right now, someone you have deep-seated, irreconcilable hostility towards? Maybe it’s against someone who treated you unfairly or did or said hurtful things to you or a loved one. Maybe you are someone else’s enemy because of something you’ve done or said to them.

As Christians, we’re supposed to be loving and forgiving, but we don’t always do a very good job of that. We hold grudges, have angry outbursts, daydream about revenge, and want to see justice prevail quickly. I don’t know of many people, myself included, who look for ways to “lay down their life” for their enemies. But if we only love those who love us, what sets us apart from those who aren’t Christians, those who do the same kinds of acts of kindness we do? (Luke 6:32-33)

Some of my unbelieving friends are just as kind and generous as my believing friends; the thing that sets those of us in Christ apart from the rest of the world is how we treat those who mistreat us. We become a living, breathing example of the Gospel message when we care for our enemies, which to some people, may look like “caring too much.”

Loving our enemies is only possible because of the Holy Spirit, the Helper who Jesus Christ mentions in John 14 and John 15. We love because he first loved us, because while we were still enemies of God, He sent His son to die for us. (Romans 5:10) Danielle Bernock explained it this way in one of her Christianity.com posts:

“Jesus brought up the issue of mercy repeatedly. Everyone wants mercy. The Bible tells us that mercy triumphs over judgment. Of course we want it. Giving mercy requires us to give up revenge and hand the judgment part to God. Loving our enemies doesn’t mean to allow them to continue to hurt us. That would be a failure of loving ourselves as God loves us. We can do what is in our control to protect ourselves while trusting God to step in. Loving our enemies means to see them as human beings in need of the Father’s love.”

Imagine loving your enemies in such a way you were able to say to a group of people who knew you best: “Love your enemy as I have; I’ve given you an example of how I loved mine.” Jesus Christ, in a sense, said this and then later died on the cross...even for Judas and the Pharisees. He cared about people to the point of death.

When we say to one of our brothers and sisters in Christ that they “care too much,” I wonder if we are actually meaning something else. I don’t think it’s possible, as a Christian, to “care too much” about people.

Let’s Pray: Lord, please help us care for others as you want us to. Help us love our enemies as you would love them. Give us wisdom to be able to discern when it’s time to turn the other cheek and when it’s time to “shake the dust from our sandals” and move on. Give us compassion for everyone created in your image. In Jesus’s Name I pray, Amen.

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Her passion for helping women stems from her own struggles and lessons learned in her journey as a Christian since first deciding to follow the Lord in 1994.

Amy’s priorities after her faith include her family — husband Rick, and their four kids — as well as extended family who all live close in proximity and the many friends she’s made over the years.

In addition to a love of teaching and helping her husband with the bookkeeping for their many businesses, Amy has recently expanded her stay-at-home work to include leading author’s book launch teams for publishing companies like Baker, Revell, Barbour, and Lifeway.

She also enjoys teaching new authors about platform building, self-launching, and online marketing.

~*~
Connect with Amy:
Facebook: https://facebook.com/amyodland
Instagram: https://instagram.com/amy_odland
Twitter: https://twitter.com/amy_odland
Website: https://amyodland.com

Friday, April 24, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: The difference that praying to God makes

Praying Makes A Difference
A devotional by Amy Odland

“David built an altar to the Lord there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then the Lord answered his prayer in behalf of the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped.” –2 Samuel 24:25 (NIV)

Do you find your levels of persistence in prayer lagging now and then, ebbing away as the days of seemingly unanswered prayers stretch out behind you? You ask for family members to find Christ, for healing from ailments, for thorns to be removed...for good things that should be His will. But you hear nothing and wonder if it even matters if you pray or not.

What differences do our prayers make? Could the prayers of the saints stop the Coronavirus pandemic of today if we dared to ask?

There are many instances of God “changing” His mind because of prayer. I want to look at two very briefly.

The first happened in Exodus 32:11-14, when Moses interceded to stop God from destroying all of Israel while His anger burned toward them after they’d made the golden calves while Moses was up on Mount Sinai getting the scoop from God for the tablets. Verse 14 says “Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.”

The second occurred in 2 Samuel 24 when David took a census of the people of Israel, when he knew he wasn’t supposed to, and God gave him three choices for the punishment for all of Israel. Aka, the whole country was going to pay for the sin of their king. The “three days of plague” began and 70,000 people died the first day. David built an altar to the Lord at the place where the angel’s hand had stopped. He offered sacrifices there and his prayers were answered, according to verse 25, as shared above.

Maybe you haven’t experienced this, but I have been up and down in my own prayer life. At times I’ve felt like the persistent widow in Luke 18 who wouldn’t quit until she got a yes. Other times I’ve felt like the disciples who failed to pray with Jesus the night of his capture in the garden ... I’ve been unable to see the urgency and unable to stay alert.

Examples like the two I shared above remind me that although God is omniscient and omnipotent, He wants to hear from me. He created man (and woman) in His image. He knew how this was all going to end, but He still walked in the garden with Adam and Eve because He wanted relationship. He wants relationship with ME; He wants relationship with YOU.

Do I alone have the power to change things? Most likely not if I’m praying for selfish reasons, but definitely not if I don’t even pray at all. Dr. Ralph F. Wilson says:

“You'll find a number of writers that seem to imply that prayer doesn't change God, it changes us. While, no doubt, the process of prayer does change us, nevertheless Exodus 32 clearly indicates that Moses' prayer changed God's proposed actions. If this is true – then prayer is powerful, since by prayer we an appeal to and induce God to do something he otherwise would not have done. That's the basic premise that underlies a prayer of petition or intercession.”

Keep praying, friend.

If you pray for cancer to be cured in ten of your friends and only two are healed, how thankful will those two be that you prayed? Should you have not prayed at all because only two were healed? YOU make a difference; don’t give up on prayer even when things feel hopeless.

Be encouraged by this verse found in Micah 7:7 (NIV): “But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.”

Do you want to know more about prayer? Explore this link to Dr. Wilson’s article on prayer for further reading: http://www.jesuswalk.com/greatprayers/2_moses_intercession.htm.

God bless you!

~*~
Author Bio:
Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, March 27, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Discipline

Does God Discipline Us?
A devotional by Amy Odland

“Therefore I bring charges against you again,” declares the Lord. “And I will bring charges against your children’s children. Cross over to the coasts of Cyprus and look, send to Kedar and observe closely; see if there has ever been anything like this: Has a nation ever changed its gods? (Yet they are not gods at all.) But my people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols. Be appalled at this, you heavens, and shudder with great horror,” declares the Lord.”

– Jeremiah 2:9-12 (NIV)

My, how the world can change in a week! Those of us who’ve lost someone unexpectedly or been through a natural disaster or tragedy before already understand this. But a large portion of the world is finding out all at once what it’s like to have life change in a moment.

I haven’t heard anyone preaching about this being some sort of punishment from God yet, but I’m also writing this on March 16. The Coronavirus is still pretty new to most of the United States at this time (though, our friends in Washington state have been dealing with it since January) but the numbers of cases and deaths worldwide is growing steadily right now in most places. I imagine by the time this is published, someone somewhere will be preaching the idea that this is God’s punishment on us.

So, let’s bypass the fluffy examples I could’ve used for this devotional and dive right into the deep end: “Is God disciplining us with the Coronavirus pandemic?”

I say YES and NO. Here’s why ...

YES:
Complacency, indifference, and disbelief are always present in our society to a degree, but they became more blatant as the arrival of the Coronavirus started spreading in the news. First in Italy, then in America. Phrases like “It’s basically the flu” and “the flu kills more” became common in Italy until they realized too late that it is different from the flu in that no one has immunity from it and large numbers of people were being infected all at once. We heard these phrases being said by our own citizens and leaders just a couple weeks ago.

People have become complacent as a result, and while the disease does look similar to influenza in its symptoms, there are other concerns. The clustered increase of people all getting sick at the same time will overwhelm the healthcare system like a tsunami wave hitting the shore. It has already happened in Italy and they have warned us.

Trying to educate people about this very serious concern and the benefits of social distancing before there is the evidence of a large number of cases present has been made more difficult because people don’t believe it’s true or believe it’s a political conspiracy or news media hoax. Add to that the delay from our leaders (between March 9-13) in communicating the seriousness of this and you have a recipe for indifference, disbelief, and conspiracy theorists...which made speaking truth during this time much more difficult.

Yes, God can allow a new virus to sweep the world to show people He is still able to wipe the earth clean. It’s not a flood of water like He’d promised Noah He would never do again, but it can still be an effective wake-up call to many who haven’t considered eternity before now.

NO:
If Christians die because of this pandemic, is God punishing them? If my loved ones get sick and die because of this pandemic, do I believe God is punishing me (or them)? Definitely NO. This world is evil and filled with people who do evil. Rape, murder, theft, and destruction are just the result of living in a fallen world and having evil reside amongst us. People by nature are selfish, greedy, and stubborn...even the good ones are not perfect all the time (Romans 3:12). I have seen many on social media selfishly choosing to still go on vacation or still gather in large groups. They will affect us all more than they realize right now.

Psalm 91 says that “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1) and “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.” (Psalm 91:14) Yes, we can pray the words of this Psalm in times of trouble and we can pray it would be the Lord’s will for us to be protected from the calamity that lay before us. But this Psalm isn’t the guarantee of safety that some would interpret it to be. It is not a force field or protective shield to turn on and off when we need protection. The words in this psalm are a promise of eternal salvation, a promise that no matter what evil comes before us or is successful in destroying us, God has sealed our eternity.

God has only promised us we will someday be completely free of sickness and death and evil. But he did not promise that we would be trouble-free in this life. John 16:33 tells us to take heart, though, because Jesus has overcome the world.

We are not living lives of fear if we “see danger and take refuge” (Proverbs 22:3) and take extra oil along for our lamps as the virgins did in the parable in Matthew 25:4. We are being prudent and wise, just as God has told us to be. It is an act of love to be quarantining ourselves right now in order to protect the lives of others who are more vulnerable, who are at high risk for complications from this virus, just like it is an act of love when we speak up for the unborn or when we help the widows and orphans.

We can do our part to still love others during this hard time and have peace because Jesus has told us He is preparing a place for us and will take us there to be with Him (John 14:2-3). We can have peace because He has promised He will care for us and while it doesn’t mean He’ll care for us on our terms or based on our parameters, He WILL care for us. Let us be encouraged to rest in the shelter of His shadow and acknowledge His name.

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, February 28, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: Discipline

God Disciplines Us
A devotional by Amy Odland

Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies. So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him. Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’” The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died. Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.”

– Exodus 32:25-29 (NIV)

“Your name is going on the board.”

If you’re as old as I am, you probably remember the dread you felt when your teacher said this.

Back in the 1980’s, if you were acting up or, as was the case with some teachers, if you were just talking when you weren’t supposed to, the teacher would write your name on the board. Your next infraction resulted in getting a check behind your name, and if you got enough checks behind your name, you “won” a trip down to the principal’s office.

If you were like me, you tried to avoid getting your name on the board at all, if ever. I think I could count on Mickey Mouse’s hand how many times I got my name on the board in elementary school. I was a hardcore people pleaser and usually did my best to stay out of trouble.

Nowadays, teachers don’t use such “barbaric” methods of keeping their classrooms on task. Writing kids’ names on the board for ALL TO SEE is apparently too damaging to the self-esteem, too harsh, or too whatever other excuses we’ve come up with over the years. Which explains why my kids responded the way they did – with eyes wide and gasps of horror – when I was trying to explain this concept to them on the way to school one day.

I imagine the Israelites’ response to the Levites going through the camp randomly killing people would’ve been similar to my kids, but turned up a notch or two (or ten). I also imagine there was a bit of chaos until everyone in the camp found out what was going on.

I think we sometimes get so caught up in the love and grace and forgiveness of God that we forget about His wrath and punishment. But the times when God unleashed His discipline are right there in the Bible, written in black and white (and bloody red). There are many examples of God disciplining His followers in the Bible, but especially so with the Israelites and their journey into the promised land. One may ask, WHY did God discipline them? Does God discipline us today?

Most of us who are parents don’t want our kids to grow up to be entitled, spoiled, and/or selfish non-contributors to society. God is the same in that He wants us to grow into the wise, giving, loving, discerning people He sees us to be, the creation He designed us to be. He needed the Israelites to enter into the promised land by HIS might, not by their own. He needed them to do it a certain way so they didn’t take all the credit and have their egos blow up. They were acting like knuckleheads and God wasn’t going to have it. His discipline doesn’t always make sense when it’s happening to us, and it may seem super harsh at times. But, just as we want our children to trust us when we say the stove is hot, God wants us to trust His ways and thoughts.

Lets read Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV): “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

God needs us to learn to live by HIS might, by HIS ways, not by our own.

So yes, He still disciplines us today. God disciplines us because He loves us, because He wants us to experience a little of Heaven while we’re still here on Earth, just as we did in the garden.

God does it so we don’t “burn ourselves on the stove” or worse, make Him a laughingstock to our enemies. Now, HOW He disciplines us is also a whole ‘nother post for another day...stay tuned!

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

Friday, January 24, 2020

Devotionals for the Heart: A Miracle

The Miracle That Almost Didn’t Happen
A devotional by Amy Odland

“When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.”
– John 11:43-44 (NIV)

I have been meditating on a different verse lately and thinking how it applies to this story about Jesus and Lazarus. It’s Ephesians 3:20 (NIV) where Paul mentions God is “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.”

When we read about Larazus’ death, we have the benefit of hindsight, of looking back and saying "Wow! This amazing and miraculous thing happened!"

They didn’t have this benefit back then and because they couldn’t even fathom it, almost stopped the miracle from happening.

When Jesus got to the tomb, he said, “Take away the stone.”

Martha’s reply was (my paraphrase), “Are you SERIOUS? He’s gonna stink something BAD, oh MY, Lord.”

Poor Martha was worried about the stink! She probably thought Jesus just wanted to pay his respects to the body because he wasn’t there when Lazarus died. Keep in mind, this was even after she and Jesus had just had a conversation about life and death and him being the “resurrection and the life.” Martha still had no expectation of Jesus raising her brother from the dead before her very eyes. She could not even imagine such a thing.

I don’t know that I have any awesome personal examples to share. No earth-shattering miracles happening over here like people rising from the dead. My dad died of a sudden stroke almost 19 years ago at age 50 – he’s still dead.

I still have family members who don’t believe in Jesus – they haven’t changed their minds and believed in an instant. I still have thorns in my flesh I wish God would take away.

But I have seen bucket loads of little things happen over the years: Protection from evil I wasn’t even anticipating. Guidance and wisdom given when I’d asked. Healing — albeit slowly — physically and spiritually from sicknesses and wounds.

Individually these things would maybe not move me to expand my imagination of what God can accomplish, but the culmination of them together over my lifetime makes where I am now in life feel like a miracle. I tend to be like Martha and worry about the stink, a.k.a. the here and now or the circumstances, but reflecting on all God has done in my life can renew my hope and revitalize my prayers just as seeing and interacting with a LIVE Lazarus in the days that followed probably did for all who knew him.

Martha and Mary and the other people mourning Lazarus that day had no idea what they were going to see. Their imaginations couldn’t create something so astounding, something they’d only heard about in the Scriptures up until that point. But after seeing Lazarus walk out of that tomb with the burial clothes hanging off of him, I would imagine the self-inflicted limitations of their prayers and beliefs were expanded greatly.

Do you feel ridiculous asking for a crazy thing, just as Mary and Martha would’ve felt asking for Lazarus to come back from the dead? Have you noticed when hope dwindles, our prayers become limited?

God really can do immeasurable things, beyond what we can even think to ask for.

Lazarus’ resurrection was for a purpose … so those who witnessed it would believe God sent Jesus.

What big prayer should you be asking Him in the midst of your hopeless situation?

We can know to pray for something crazy, something we’d never imagined before, because God has done crazy things before and He could very well choose to do them again in your life to show His power to those around you.

Your big prayer being answered could have a purpose too. God can’t say “yes,” though, if you don’t ask. Don’t let the title of this devotional be the title of your prayer life. Make the big ask. Move beyond what you can imagine or think. Move into God’s immeasurable power that is within you. Don’t be the miracle that almost didn’t happen.

~*~
Author Bio:

Amy Odland has been serving in church ministry as a volunteer leader for over 16 years, in various worship, prayer and women’s ministry roles.

~*~
Connect with Amy:

Facebook: https://facebook.com/amyodland

Instagram: https://instagram.com/amy_odland
Twitter: https://twitter.com/amy_odland
Website: https://amyodland.com