SAY IT SLOW .... K I N D N E S S

 SAY IT SLOW ..... K I N D N E S S

Anyone who knows me well knows I'm inclined to say to myself, "LYNDA, GET A GRIP!" I prefer Jane Austen's, "I will be calm, I will be mistress of myself". But I never remember that one as easily! (I dug it out of "Jane Austen's Little Book About Life" just now.)

This week, I have read two passages about kindness, gentleness, and patience. 

Matthew 12:7: "But if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless."

Matthew 12:20a "A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench,..."

Proverbs 15:4 says, "Gentle words are a tree of life;..."

Have you ever thought that these are not just encouragements to be gentle and kind but words that express who God Himself is towards us?

He is kind, patient, gentle and faithful.

Our words and our natures are harsher than He is.

Our words and our natures are harsher to the people around us than He would be to them.

Our words and our natures are harsher towards ourselves than He is.

I want to be gentler and kinder than I'm inclined to be, just like Jesus. 

Not be quick to write people off, my words withering people's souls. But be so kind and patient that the bruises heal and the fire burns brightly again.

I should do the same for myself...

You should, as well.

With love,

Lynda xx

ADAPTABILITY

Well, here we are in a brand new year!  The last couple of weeks has been a whirl of happy chaos mixed with the simple pleasures of family life. 

Now as I have come out of that in between zone between Christmas & New Year where I'm not sure whether its last year or this year, it is clear to me that one thing is not working well.

For many years I have had a favourite spot for morning prayer. Some of you will have heard of our 'green room'! 🤣  But as our lives have changed so dramatically and Jeff is retired, this space is no longer working for my morning prayer because it is an open space.  Instead of telling Jeff to leave me alone which isn't good for a happy marriage, I have set up in our spare room.  

It doesn't have the same chair, nor the ambience of being close to our back garden, but it is private.

Now I realize that many of you may not have the luxury of spare rooms, but my point isn't that.  

My point is that sometimes we hold on to our favourite way of doing things way past their use-by date.

Is there a 'one thing' that you need to change as you embrace the new year?

With love,

Lynda xx

THE POWER OF HUMILITY

A while ago I was confronted with an 'ouch' moment in my soul when I found myself serving another leader in a process that I had initiated some time back.  I know... another embarrassing admission! 😳

I'm not into navel gazing, but when ugly attitudes springs unbidden from within, they can become powerful teaching/growth moments.

As I thought about this painful feeling, I was reminded of Jesus.  Have you ever thought about the fact that The One Who created everything and holds everything together, became a baby within that very creation.  Well yes Lynda, that's why we have Christmas!    

Have a thoughtful read of Colossians 1:15-17 - it's mind blowing!

As I contemplated this, I realized that the One who holds all creation together, willingly put Himself in a position where he needed to be held... and even by sinful humanity.

The One who created our body systems allowed himself the experience of being shown how his body works.  Think, toilet training, eating, walking, talking, reading, writing.  The Great Architect of it all allowed Himself the experience of having to be taught how his body should work.

The miracle of Christmas is not just, as I said last week, that The Eternal One entered time, but the All-Knowing, All-Powerful One allowed Himself the vulnerability of need, to be taught what he already knew!

I think the response to this mind-blowing truth should be first of all a heart of thanksgiving to God that He would do such a thing.... to walk in our shoes; but also embrace humility as a treasured value for ourselves.

Let Christ himself be your example as to what your attitude should be. For he, who had always been God by nature, did not cling to his prerogatives as God’s equal, but stripped himself of all privilege by consenting to be a slave by nature and being born as mortal man.  Phil 2:5-7 (JB Phillips)

If Jesus can yield to the humiliation of putting aside what He already knew, to enter into our humanity, I can happily and willingly take the position of being shown what maybe I already knew.. and as a side note, being shown a better way to do it!

Just imagine the effect on our relationships if we willingly adopt this beautiful characteristic of God Himself!

As this will be my last offering until after Christmas, may I wish you a beautiful Christmas season and fruitful 2025!

With love,

Lynda xx

A MIRACLE!

I hope this post finds you well and happy!  Today I want to share a journal entry made this week.  It has to do with the miracle of Christmas.

JESUS!

Micah 5:2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me, The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting."

Here out of Bethlehem, a little town, was born Jesus. We know it, we sing it. But this little baby from even before time is Ruler and is eternal.

He's been happening, moving, 'going forth' throughout all time and eternity! Amazing, all this packaged up in a new born baby. What a miracle and what a miracle of humility!  The One who holds all creation together, now being held by His mother.

Lord, two things...

1. May THIS be my point of contemplation and wonder this Christmas. Wow! think of Genesis. You were there right at the beginning of creation, you were there, passing through Abraham's sacrifice - alone!  You were there in the burning bush. You met with Joshua, and were seen walking about in the fire with Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. You were there with Daniel in the Lion's Den, You kept 'showing up' and then in the ultimate act of humility - as a baby!

2.  Can you please 'come forth' and work in the situations I am praying for?

My prayer for you this Christmas season that you would, just as the wise men did, recognize this precious baby as King of Kings, and bow the knee to Him.  My prayer for you is also that He would show up in your world, your home, your family and in your own heart.   

Much love,

Lynda xx

HELD

Today I want to share something precious that I stumbled on earlier this week.  I wrote it two years ago and had completely forgotten it.  It was written at a time of huge turmoil and grief. And this week I read it from a position of restoration and joy.

May it encourage you no matter what you may be experiencing right now.

                        

                     HELD

Sometimes I feel like a leaf in the wind
Unable to determine my way
Tossed and blown
This way and that.

But I'm at peace,
because The One who holds
the wind in His hands
Holds me.

The One who rides on the wings of the wind
Holds me.

The One who speaks to the wind to be still
Holds me.

I'm safe in the wind...
Whichever way it blows,
Because I am held in the hands of God.

Lynda Hammond, April 2022

With love,

Lynda xx

PROMISE, PROCESS & PROVIDENCE

I love that God is The God of Promise.  What He says, He will do.  In Christ Jesus, the promises of God are YES & AMEN!  We can absolutely rest, yes, even throw ourselves and our lives on His character and His word.  I recently found a date in my Bible where The Lord had promised me something that seemed impossible, and here ten years later, I sit amongst the promise which normally takes multiple decades to come, fulfilled. He is The God of healing, deliverance, provision and blessing.  

    He is The GOD OF PROMISE, and He has never lied.

I love that God is the God of Process and journey.  What He says, He will do.  But He has innumerable ways to do it.  The God who says, "I will", also says that He will walk with us in every season, the good, the bad, and the absolutely devastating.  He is The God of Healing, and He is also, "The Man of Sorrows", who STAYS WITH US in the dark.    

    He is The GOD OF PROCESS, and He will never forsake us.

I love that God is the God of Providence.  Scripture tells us that He works ALL things together for the good of those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose.  We need to understand the Sovereignty of God.  It doesn't mean that everything that happens He has initiated, or is pleased about.  But it does mean that He can work with whatever happens, especially when we bring those broken pieces to Him.

I love the old song, "Something Beautiful, something good, all my confusion He understood, and He made something beautiful out of my life."    

    He is The GOD OF PROVIDENCE, and He is working on your behalf!

Don't be discouraged when the promise seems long in coming, embrace the process with Loving God, knowing there are treasures laid up in that darkness of process that He will give you.  He is working on your behalf and you will come out richer for the journey, with Him by your side.

With love,

Lynda xx

YOU'RE NOT POWERLESS!

Have you ever looked at your circumstances, the trouble your loved ones may be in, or even the general grief and anxiety that pervades society, and felt totally powerless?

Do you sometimes resort to reactionary behavior, harsh words, anger, or trying to maneuver the circumstances around?

Do your prayers seem impotent and reduced to simple "help Lord!" (which is perfectly valid, and He hears that).  Sometimes though it feels like we are up against something darker and more maleficent than just hard circumstances. 

Well I'm happy to share today that it need not be like this!

We have at least three things at our disposal.

1. Praise

2. The Word of God

3. Obedience - yes, you read that right!

Psalm 149:6 "Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand."

James 4: "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."

Lets talk about praise... something that can be hard when we feel overwhelmed with anxiety.  But praise is the best way to navigate anxiety. It works like a raincoat in rain.  The rain is still coming down, but you are dry because of the raincoat!  Praise will keep you upbeat when everything around you works to bring you down.  Praise is a weapon against the enemy because it makes God BIGGER than everything else, and it brings God into the situation in a tangible way. God inhabits the praises of His people, and the enemy cannot hang around where He is!

Lets talk about the two-edged sword.  You'll be so glad I'm not recommending you swing around a literal sword!  We don't fight people, we fight the devil.  So that two-edged sword is the Word of God. (Ephesians 4:17)  I have been in the habit when confronted with anxiety over one of my children, of asking for a specific word for them.  Then when I am praying for them, I actually pray, verbally, that very promise over their lives.  I have four children and I can tell you without fear of contradiction, that as I have prayed over them in this manner, God has answered.  So I have wept, complained and prayed desperately, "HELP LORD!", but I have also prayed strategically.  Can I encourage you to pick up the Word for those situations or people in your life that you have no answer for?

Now, lets talk about obedience.  I remember once thinking about spiritual warfare and the Lord spoke so clearly, "Obedience IS warfare". We can praise with all our voice, we can praise beautifully, but if we don't walk in obedience to The Lord - its powerless.  We can whip out the Word and declare it till we are blue in the face, but if we are not obeying Him, we may as well put that Bible back in the bookshelf.

Hosea 5:23-24 "Take away from Me the noise of your songs, for I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments. But let justice run down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream"

Jesus told us that if we love God and others we are fulfilling all the law. I don't know about you, but I
find God easier to love than some people.  

So bringing this to a close, we all need to sing our praises, and pray the Word ... but lets make sure we are intentionally loving the people in our world.  And let's examine our lives to see if there isn't some part of that Word that we are not obeying?

"And this is such an encouragement to prayer; because from our knees we may affect the balance of power in the heavenlies by the weight of our intercessions."  FB Meyer, "Our Daily Homily - Isaiah to Malachi"

YOU ARE NOT POWERLESS!

With love,

Lynda xx