Wednesday SHINE.....
Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 16
Happy Worship Wednesday SHINE girls! I love Wednesdays! Today we have the opportunity to intentionally worship our King in all we do!
My heart is overflowing today because of His Word and His Love for us! Little bitty, itty bitty US!
As we read 1 Samuel 15 yesterday, the Lord did some talking to me about "partial obedience".
He showed me areas in my life where I did not fully obey Him. I cringed a bit.
I have been like Saul at times. Doing it "my way", in "my time". Instead of immediate obedience, I often have delayed obedience. Which isn't quite the same, as we see in the life of Saul.
My sweet friend, Christa Rooks, is posting on this very topic today.
Get ready to be blessed, friends. Grab your coffee, and curl up to God's Word and this awesome post by Christa.
Lesson Learned
by: Christa Rooks
Don’t you just love how God speaks to you through a
combination of His Word and your children? Sometimes it takes a while for me to
get it … but when I do … Man! It pierces me.
So I’m sure you can imagine, or for those who have several
children already, you know full well the challenges of disciplining children. Not to mention, three boys under the age of 8
and a sweet, yet walking and exploring, 14-month-old baby girl. We definitely have days where the children
are especially well-behaved. But most
days, they test and push to see how much they can get away with (particularly
with all the rain we’ve had this summer which equates to being cooped up).
James and I have tried many different plans of discipline
(charts, strike system, etc.), all while praying for the Lord to show us His
plan. What will work for our family? And
I know you are familiar with how difficult parenting can be, no matter how many
kids you have! It’s a tough job! No joke! But it’s also the most precious gift
from God. A privilege. A reward.
Recently, while hanging out with some dear friends, we
started discussing what the bible says about discipline. This family is so special to us. They are godly and wise. And they have some children who are older
than ours, so we glean from them. In
talking that evening, we all agreed that first-time obedience is what children
need to accomplish. The motto at our sons’
previous Christian school is: “Obey – right away, all the way, everyday, in a
cheerful way!” And I love it!
When James and I debriefed after such a good talk with our
friends, we decided to try things a little different. Our children have never been crazy bad, per
say. But we so desire to achieve
complete obedience with them now so that later on in life, when there’s a lot
on the line, they will be trained in obedience.
This is huge to us! So we explained to our children that we expect them
to obey us, and that going forward, we are doing things differently. No more warnings. No more threats. We give the direction and expect their direct
obedience in respect. Anything less than
a simple yes ma’am or no ma’am (or sir) along with obedience (such as talking
back, whining, asking WHY, disregarding what we say, or dare I say – telling us
NO) is direct disobedience, and we will no longer tolerate it. Zero tolerance in the form of immediate
discipline. Yeah, spelling all that out
seems a little harsh, but once they ‘get it’ – oh my goodness – things are
grand! We have seen a huge difference,
especially in our spunky and active three-year-old! (I could go into the whole
spill about why children need boundaries, why they need to learn direct
obedience early in life, and so on and so forth. But that’s another post for another day.)
As I was drying my
hair, I was praying about the scripture I read in 1 Samuel 15 that so
ministered to me. I’ve been chewing on
it and thinking about it, trying to let it sink in to my spirit and mind.
But Samuel replied, “What is more
pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to
his voice? Listen! Obedience is better
than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.”
-1 Samuel 15:22 NLT
Saul didn’t directly and completely obey God. He did what he thought would be okay, instead
of exactly what God commanded.
Sure. Sacrifices and
offerings seemed good. God has asked for
those before. But God gave specific
instructions for this specific time, and he expected direct and complete obedience.
So back to praying while drying my hair … as clear as day,
God said to me in my spirit, “Christa, do you directly obey me? You have been
enforcing this with your children at home.
But are you also obeying me the first-time I ask and completely?”
Wow! Talk about His words being sharp! He cut to the core
with that one. There are several things
I’ve been thinking and praying about that require God-sized answers. I need to hear from Him before I do
anything. And I feel like He is causing
me to evaluate my own obedience to Him from the past, present, and what He
expects of me in the future, no matter how difficult or daunting the task may
be. He expects full obedience and
submission!
Friends, as you seek the Lord, His word will change you. It requires
action. And when He speaks, He expects
us to listen and obey.
God, today I desire to completely and directly obey you
right away. Show me all the ways that I
have been disobedient. I repent for my
disobedience, Lord. Make me right with
you, Father, so our fellowship is unobstructed.
And help me to walk forward with you leading me that I may be a
faithful, obedient follower. I love you,
Lord! Amen!