Ellen Chauvin | Soaked & Sprouting

Soaked in God's Word, Sprouting Seeds of Faith

The Key to Peace in Your Life

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Are you ready to experience God in fresh new ways? Then you are in for a treat today!

I Know His Name: Discovering Power in the Names of God is a new Bible study written by my friend Wendy Blight. Wendy teaches how the very names of God reveal His character and heart.

I’ve invited Wendy to share with you today about Jehovah Shalom: The One Who Brings Me Peace. Here is her story:

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A few years ago I found myself in one of those busy seasons of life. You know, the kind where your calendar is void of white space. Where you spend your days trying to balance the daily tasks that have to be done with the fun events that keep you a well-adjusted, delightful-to-be-with co-worker, girlfriend, wife, and/or mom.

Mentally, I felt like I was balancing it all well. Reading my daily devotional and praying my neatly ordered list of prayers.
But physically, my body said otherwise.

My spirit felt uneasy. Anxious.

My heart beat erratically.

My symptoms escalated with each passing day.

Night after night, I lay awake counting my heartbeats, faster and faster they came. Lack of sleep led to exhaustion. Exhaustion to withdrawal. I felt disconnected from everything around me.

One morning I stepped into the shower.  Within moments, I struggled to breathe. Inexplicable panic ensued. I flung open the shower door, enveloped myself in a towel, and collapsed on the tile floor. Tears poured forth uncontrollably.

What was happening to me? I felt as if my life … my faith … the very core of who I am was unraveling. I felt like a failure.
I mustered what little faith I could find and dropped to my knees. It was weak faith, but it was there. I needed more. More of Jesus. More of His peace.

My sweet Savior met me right there on the carpet. He turned my eyes to my bedside table where my unopened Bible lay.
My heart ached. I had not opened that precious book in weeks. I had been reading my daily devotional. Reading what another woman had to say about the Bible. But I had not been in my Bible, listening for what Jesus had to say about His Word … to me.

I had been spending very little time with Jesus.

I crawled over to my precious Bible and opened it. With each turn of the page, truths spilled into my empty, thirsty heart … truths to cling to … to pray … to quench my empty, thirsty heart.

Truths I want to share with you today.

From the Old Testament:
“For to us a child is born … And he will be called … Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 (NIV)

“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.” Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)

From the New Testament, not forgetting our verse for today (John 14:27):
“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)

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

Jesus is our Prince of Peace, and His Peace is ours. It’s a fruit of God’s Spirit that lives and breathes in those of us who are children of God.

Believe it.

Claim it.

Now let me share the key to believing and claiming it:
Personalizing and praying these truths. When we pray God’s Hebrews 4:12 living and active Word, His Word comes alive in us. It infuses every part of our being.

So, how do we go about personalizing and praying God’s Word?

Here are a few of my prayers:
Wendy, I will keep you in perfect peace when your mind is steadfast, because you trust in Me. (Isaiah 26:3)

Peace I leave with you, Wendy; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be anxious, troubled or afraid.
(John 14:26-28)

Wendy, when you stop being anxious, when you give everything to me in prayer, My peace, which transcends all understanding, will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

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Want to learn more about Jehovah Shalom: The One Who Brings Me Peace? Wendy teaches about this Name of God in Chapter 5 of her newest Bible study, I Know His Name: Discovering Power in the Names of God. I invite you to visit Wendy’s blog to get a sneak peek of I Know His Name and also sign up for her FREE companion devotional, “5 Days to Knowing God More Intimately.”

Grace be with you,

 

How Studying Scripture is Like Preparing a Steak

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Memorizing scripture is like a preparing a good, juicy steak.

Yep, that was my thought a few days ago. I had purposed in my heart to memorize scripture this year. AGAIN. I’ve tried and given up a hundred times. I couldn’t for the life of me understand why it was so hard hard for me! Other than the fact that I’m, well, not getting any younger. And you know, at this season in my life, if I can remember anything it’s miracle.

As I was pondering memorizing God’s word, I realized I had been approaching it all wrong. I had arbitrarily chosen a verse, and tried to remember it. I wrote it down several times over the course of a few days, then moved on to another one. That just wasn’t working for me. One day, a friend on Facebook posted about her life changing scripture memory experience. She was using the Beth Moore Siesta Scripture Memory plan, which is one verse every two weeks. Hallelujah! I think I can do that!

Choose a method

I bought a set of spiral index cards (recommended by Beth Moore). It’s small enough to fit easily in my purse. I prop it on my desk at work. It literally keeps me going during the day. I glance at the cards often, close my eyes and recite the verse. Sometimes I will write it down several times. Making progress! Another suggestion was to begin with a verse that is meaningful to you. By starting with a scripture near and dear to your heart in this season – but one you haven’t memorized – you’ll feel like a rock star at the end of the first two weeks, because you know it up down and sideways!

Begin with a verse that is meaningful to you

Next, I chose an arbitrary verse that I didn’t really know. Hmmm, getting a little harder! I realized if it isn’t a scripture that has personal meaning for me, I had to get to know it. I needed to marinate in it like a good steak, soaking in the seasoning. (Did you think I had forgotten about the steak analogy?) I needed to spend time with this verse.

How can you get to know a scripture? Read it in several different translations. Chose key words and look at their meaning in the original Hebrew or Greek. Check out the cross references. Do a little scripture mapping.

Ask questions. Psalm 61:2 says “From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” Where do I have to be when I call to Him? Anywhere, from the end of the earth. When do I call? When my heart is faint, and I’m feeling alone, afraid or abandoned. Who do I cry out to? God, my Rock and my Refuge.

Marinate in the verse

Just like that wonderful juicy steak I devour, I also need to ingest the scripture.

Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth. Ezekiel 3:3 (NIV)

What happens when we eat good food? It provides nutrients and keeps us healthy. Food fuels our energy and keeps us going all day. When we add God’s word to our daily diet, it provides nutrients for spiritual growth. It keeps me going all day long.

But you know what? Don’t get comfortable there. Dig into scriptures that challenge you (and possibly give you indigestion).
Perhaps you’ve eaten food that didn’t agree with you. Same with God’s word. Sometimes we find His revealed will in scripture hard to digest. How about that scripture that tells us to love and pray for our enemy (Luke 6:27). Oooh, heartburn. What about the one that says pray for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Anybody need some Tums?

One of the verses I memorized was 1 Corinthians 13:5:

Love…”does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered”

As I memorized, chewed on, scripture mapped and got to know the verse, it began to make me uncomfortable. Because you see, I was failing at all things “love” each day at work. What an eye opener. By marinating in the verse, I realized I was blatantly ignoring what it said to do. I was rude, selfish and irritable.

Choose a scripture that challenges you

If you are having trouble persevering in your quest to memorize God’s word, please don’t give up! You can do it, and there are so many online resources to help you. My friend Kristi Woods has a Scripture Memory System that you can check out here. Jana, over at Sweet to the Soul has a beautiful Scripture Memory Journal and Verse Mapping Pages.

Don’t give up!

The Holy Spirit will bring to mind the scriptures for you. But we have to do our part: we have to put the words in our minds!

Grace be with you,

 

This post originally appeared on More Than Yourself, the blog of Kristine Brown.  Hop over for a visit – you’ll be glad you did!