Ellen Chauvin | Soaked & Sprouting

Soaked in God's Word, Sprouting Seeds of Faith

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Keep on Movin’

June 11, 2020 by Ellen 8 Comments

He was plodding along in the mud. You could see the route he’d taken, straight along the bottom of the ditch. Slow, but determined. Focused on his destination. As so often is the case with turtles, he was taking his dear, sweet time getting wherever he was going. He wasn’t focused on how long the journey would take, but on moving in the right direction.

I’m kinda like that turtle. I’m just slogging along, dragging my feet. Unlike him, I suddenly realize I’m not getting anywhere, and I get in a hurry.

I’m like that in my walk with Christ. For goodness sake, I’m sixty-one years old. Shouldn’t I be further along than I am? Shouldn’t I know His word better, pray harder and longer and with passion? Shouldn’t I realize that not focusing on moving forward will derail my pilgrimage? As long as I’ve been walking with Christ, shouldn’t I be more like Him by now??

Sadly, I often let the circumstances of my life distract me. I focus on them, not Him. And I get stuck in the mud. I throw my hands up and say “What’s the use?”

How about you? Are you bogged down, baffled and beaten up? Are you ready to “be there”? Do you feel like stopping to rest indefinitely, instead of continuing on?

Paul tells us in Philippians to work out our salvation⁠1. This means to carry out a task until it is finished, to produce, or to put something into effect entirely or thoroughly.

Warren Wiersbe explains it this way: 

In Paul’s day it was also used for “working a mine,” that is, getting out of the mine all the valuable ore possible; or “working a field” so as to get the greatest harvest possible. The purpose God wants us to achieve is Christlikeness, “to be conformed to the image of His Son” (Rom. 8:29)⁠2.

[tweetthis]Sanctification is a marathon, not a sprint.[/tweetthis]

Sanctification – becoming increasingly more like Jesus – is hard work. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.  The good news is, we don’t have to do it alone or in our own strength. 

“Because God is always at work in you to make you willing and able to obey His own purpose.” Philippians 2:13 GNT

God is working in us to energize us, creating the desire and the power to work for His good pleasure. 

Remember that, when you’re plodding along, feeling like you aren’t making headway. We have the Holy Spirit of Jesus in us. Even though it seems like we’re stuck in the mud, not making progress in our Christian walk, God is working in us to give us the strength we need. His strength. Like the turtle, we are moving forward, because it’s God doing the work. It may seem slow to us, but it’s His timing. 

‘The essential thing “in heaven and earth” is . . . that there should be long obedience in the same direction.’ Friedrich  Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil.

God is at work in you. He will complete the work He began.

Don’t give up.

Keep moving forward.

Lord, Forgive our impatience! We just want more of You, and are in a hurry to get it! Bring to our minds Your words “Cease striving, be still…⁠3” so that we can rest in You, learn from You and become more like You each and every day. In Jesus powerful name, Amen

Grace be with you,

 

 

anImage_2.tiff

1 Philippians 2:12

2 Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 77). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

3 Psalm 46:10

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The Journey

May 2, 2019 by Ellen 4 Comments

The scripture stopped me cold. I knew EXACTLY what the Israelites were feeling. 

“Then the people of Israel set out from Mount Hor, taking the road to the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient with the long journey” Numbers 21:4 NLT

That’s me to a tee! Impatient! Ready to BE there, wherever there is. Ready to be done with the journey, and get on with life.

Take writing, for instance. It’s hard work. It takes TIME. I’d love for the Lord to grant me divine revelation so that a post I’m working on would literally write itself. But I have to take the long road. Do the work. Put one foot in front of the other and write the words. Then comes editing and arranging them, so they make sense, tell a story. I have to dig deep to figure out my emotions and why I’m writing this particular piece. It’s hard and slow work. I want to be at the destination! Why can’t I write because of His creative revelation in me, instead of practice, practice, practice? 

And studying God’s Word. Why can’t I understand God’s Word through divine revelation from Him, instead of hours, days, years of studying? To really dig deep into God’s Words takes time. It takes dedication. It takes patience. And I’ve always been in short supply of patience. Anybody else?

 

I glance out the window and see my beautiful lemon and orange trees. They are full of blooms, promising a bumper harvest of fruit this year! Those blooms fill me with anticipation of fresh oranges plucked straight from the tree, juice dripping on the grass while we eat them outside. The lemons remind me I’ll be able to bring fresh lemon pie to our Christmas gathering. But not now. I’ll have to wait months to enjoy all the fresh fruit. 

Fast growth fizzles out too early. One year, I accidentally over fertilized my gladiolas. Instead of tall, elegant stems with bright fuchsia flowers, I had greenish brown stumps, stunted and wrinkled. Already finished, before they even began. Their leaves were scorched from the chemical. Burned out. 

Don’t burn out. Grow slow!

That’s how God wants to grow us. Slow and steady. Growth that lasts! While we are impatient with the long journey and not seeing instant results, He is patiently and slowly growing us to bear fruit. 

What are you rushing through? What shortcuts are you taking? How can you slow down and enjoy the journey you are traveling with the Lord?

Grace be with you,

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Torrential rains had been pelting us for weeks. With the rains came weeds growing tall in the flower beds. But I noticed other new growth, too. It wasn’t colorful flowers. It was teeny, tiny little oak trees! Squirrels had been working hard, burying food for later. The rains had soaked and softened … Read More...

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