“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. … John 15:1-7

Often I desire to be able to focus on one thing at a time. Everyday I feel like I am being pulled in a million different directions. Mental exhaustion at the end of the day is pretty typical for me, everything on my to do list seems too important to cross off.

I find myself playing catch up in almost every area of my life including laundry, money, housekeeping, bible study, and grocery shopping. Finding the best way to divide my time seems almost impossible.

Often I will go to God with my overwhelm, begging Him to please help. Help lessen the financial burden by helping us get caught up or help me to be able to manage it all. I want it to be OK to not have a clean organized home, or to eat fast food everyday. But none of this is good for my family so I work to change it.

I work to try and do everything on my to do list only to have stuff left on it and I end up playing catch up the next day. Or I try to work more in order to meet our needs and I avoid sleep so I can finally try to get caught up.

But no matter what I do the disorganization and the overwhelm that is in my mind and life never seem to be resolved…until I put my complete focus on God.

When I focus on His promises, or I focus on His provision, I’m not overwhelmed anymore. Or when I focus on the individuals and the relationships that’s when I’m not overwhelmed by the big numbers that equal success.

When I focus on God I take life one moment at a time. Of course my flesh wants to be the center of attention, but my focus needs to be on God and not on me.

I desire to be able to focus on one thing at a time and when I focus on God I am truly able to go throughout my day without being overwhelmed.

And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” Psalm 50:15

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for this beautiful day. Everyday I wake up to a list of things to do and it is truly overwhelming at times. Often I have no idea where to start because they all are important. I am so thankful to be able to turn to You and put my focus on You. When I do You are always there to guide me. Lord please continue to guide. Show me where to pour my heart into. Guide me in when I should say no, and motivate me when I say yes. Thank You for always being there even when my heart is resistant and selfish. I pray this in Jesus’ name. – Amen!

Copyright © 2012 Heather Bixler, All Rights Reserved

“One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” Psalm 27:4

Is the Lord your delight or is your relationship with Him more of a chore? Do you desire and seek to be in His presence or are you just going through the motions?

When our faith is brand new, it is exciting to be in His presence. Like a young couple in love, we can can’t bear to be apart from God. We read His word, drink it in, and can’t seem to get enough of it.

But then the details of life get in the way. Our private and corporate worship becomes dry. We put all our energy into our responsibilities in our daily life and little is left over for God. Half hearted prayers are spoken. Like a couple who have been married for years and have forgotten the joy they once had when first dating, our relationship with God can become dull and boring.

How to return to our first love?

The psalmist knew how to find joy in the Lord–by saturating himself in the Word. David says in Psalm 119, “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.” (vs. 97) Focusing on God and His Word each day brings Him front and center. When God is placed at the center of our daily life, He becomes the focus and purpose for all that we do. We can then delight in Him while folding laundry, doing dishes, taking care of kids and all the other responsibilities of day-to-day life. These activities can in fact become an act of bringing glory to our Creator because we do it for Him.

When we soak up His word, we come into His presence. God speaks directly to our souls through His Word. A soul saturated by the Word of Truth will ooze joy from its pores and the aroma will sweeten everything that we do–including laundry, cooking and cleaning.

The Word is powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword (Hebrew 4:12). It changes us from the inside out. The more we read, the more we desire to read. The more we are exposed to His Word, the more we see the grace of God, and the more we delight in Him. This transforms our personal worship, our corporate worship and our day-to-day lives.

For more opportunities to taste and see: Psalm 42:1, Zephaniah 3:17, Psalm 100 and Jude 1:24.

Copyright © 2011 Christina Fox, All Rights Reserved

“Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards.” Song of Solomon 2:15

There is an invasive weed in the South known as kudzu. It was once thought to be a useful plant; it’s planting even encouraged by the government following the Depression. Originally introduced to our country by the Japanese, this plant takes over everything it touches. Driving down any country road in the deep South, it can be seen covering every tree and surface it can find.

What often may seem harmless at first, can grow until it takes control and causes great havoc. Fox’s are cute to look at but they can cause a lot of trouble if left alone to do their mischief. This passage in Song of Solomon is a warning against those things that can hinder our relationship with Christ, our marriages and other relationships.

When we let little things about life aggravate us, it can grow and escalate until everything upsets us. We often look at the animals that visit a garden as cute (like the rabbits), but sooner or later we realize they aren’t so cute when they’ve eaten all the plants. Those little aggravations in our life are like a new plant introduced to a country as a way to help struggling farmers, but once it spread, it was hard to control. When I get irritated over the little things my husband does, the clothes dropped on the floor or the mail spread over my kitchen counter, it can grow to create a barrier in our relationship. This happens too with my children. When I get annoyed by their frequent messes, loud noises or inattention, I find the annoyance grows throughout the day. By the end of the day, I’m really struggling with everything they do.

The interactions with my family that may seem insignificant at first, can have a cumulative effect that causes hurt to those I love most. I can say, “I’m just having a bad day,” but that bad day can trigger deep wounds to my family if left unchecked. It may be that I am stressed or worried about something and it comes out as irritation to those around me. Simple irritation can grow to outright frustration and anger in a short time. I need to remember that Jesus died for those sins of anger and frustration. He has given me both a new heart and the Holy Spirit who helps me extend kindness, patience and love toward those around me.

As the verse says, I need to “capture” the little foxes. With the Spirit’s help, I need to hold captive those thoughts, worries, and irritations that can ruin the peacefulness of my own vineyard. I need to pray and repent of those thoughts and asked the Spirit to help me respond in love to my family. I need to take each little fox seriously and not allow them to get anywhere near the vineyard.

For further reading: Proverbs 30:30, Proverbs 12:16, 1 Thessalonians 5:14, Romans 15;1

Copyright © Christina Fox, All Rights Reserved

 ”Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.  Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”  Deuteronomy 6:4-9

I read this passage in Deuteronomy quite often because it’s a passage that is foundational for me in my parenting.  As I was meditating on it recently, it struck me that the command to love the Lord with all your heart,soul, and strength precedes the verse to “impress them on your children.” Is it because effective training of our children in the Lord comes as a result of our love of the Lord?

Some days are real struggles for me as a parent.  I’m tired, irritable, and impatient.  The kids seem to fight more and it takes numerous instructions before they do what they are told.  Exhausted, I come to the end of the day and I can’t figure out what went wrong.  I open the word and this passage in Deuteronomy pierces my heart.  The Holy Spirit points out to me that I can’t teach, disciple, train and discipline my children in the Lord if he is not the center of my heart.

I need to be daily connected to the vine to receive my sustenance and strength.  Loving God with all my heart means that all of my being lives for God and God alone.  He doesn’t just want outward performance or attempts to perfectly obey him; he desires my heart.  “My son, give me your heart and let your eyes keep to my ways.”  (Proverbs 23:26)  He wants me to seek him first in all things; nothing else should replace him in my heart.  When we are deeply in love with someone, it’s painful to be separated from them.  The same should be true of our love for God; the very core of our being desires to be with him all the time.

In order for me to be effective as a parent, I need to immerse myself in the word and drink from the fountain of life found there.  I need to pray and feed on his word each and every day or my soul will become hungry.  I don’t know about anyone else, but when I’m hungry I become irritable.  Our soul needs its daily nourishment as does our body.

When my heart is fed each day and is full of love for God, then it overflows as I pour it out in my children.  I can effectively teach them about his love because it fills my heart, I can adequately disciple them in the word because my soul has been fed by the Bread of Life, and I can impress them with the truth of God everywhere and in all situations because he has strengthened me through prayer and the word.

For further reading:  Psalm 119, Matthew 18:1-6, Mark 12:28-34, Psalm 51:16,17

Copyright © Christina Fox, All Rights Reserved

Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-42

There are many things that cause us to get distracted from taking the time to read the word of God.

As moms we have busy lives dealing with cars that are broken down, cleaning house, financial worries. All of these things are used as distractions from the enemy to get us away from fellowship with the Lord by reading His word and being in His presence.

Even good things like serving God, Bible Studies, friendship, and spending time with your family can become a distraction in your walk with the Lord if you find yourself doing these things instead of spending time with God everyday.

If we don’t take the time to read and study the word then we are missing out on the one thing that can help us to get through the day. In this scripture Jesus says that Mary had chosen the “good part” that will not be taken from her.

But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:42

How can we serve the Lord if we don’t have His word in our heart? His fellowship? How can we train up our children if we don’t know the word of God? How will we know if we are being a godly wife, friend, or mother? How will we be able to discern false teachings from teachers who teach Biblical truths?

The Word and the Lord’s revelations is the one thing we can take with us, and use, throughout life, through any and all trials and triumphs we may face.

Spiritual maturity comes when we learn to discipline ourselves to read and study the word on a daily basis. When we learn to do this we will then be able to maneuver through the daily distractions and the busyness of life more efficiently and effectively.

Being a Christian mother means we are teachers. In order for us to teach our children effectively, and help our husbands, we must first have an ongoing relationship with the Lord and His Biblical truths provided within the Bible. As we grow in our realtionship we will begin to discern the distractions in our life that may be causing us to put the Lord on the back burner.

Pray today for God to reveal the distractions that are keeping you from His word and fellowship with Him.

Prayer:

Father God, thank you for another day. Life is such a gift, however lately I have been overwhelmed with everything that has been distracting me from seeing just how wonderful life really is. The distractions have also been preventing me from truly enjoying life and moving forward with the plans you have for me and this family. Lord I just pray for the distractions in my life to be evident. I also pray for your guidance on how to eliminate these distractions all together, or help me to manage them properly, and to keep everything in it’s proper place and time so that I can better serve you and grow in your word. I’m just so thankful that I can come to you for help…thank you for loving me, being there for me, protecting me and my family, and for guiding me. I pray this all in your might son Jesus’ name. – Amen!

Copyright © Heather Bixler, All Rights Reserved