February

Lauren Fletcher

February

February - Giving, Receiving, and Enjoying His Love

Week 1 - Love Yourself Wisely
Week 2 - Receive His Passionate Love
Week 3 - Love Others Practically
Week 4 - A Love Story with a Surprise Ending

Week 1 - Love Yourself Wisely

The shower drain was clogged and the washing machine had stopped working, so I arrived home from work early enough to meet the service technician and the plumber. I sat down to rest for a moment, only to notice something that would require a different service call. The doorbell signaled the arrival of the technicians and the three ring circus began. I went upstairs to check on the plumber. While he was informing me of the resolved problem, I caught a glimpse of my special scented soap in the soap dish of our large, luxurious bathtub and promised myself that I would unwind with a nice, warm bath when everyone left. The combination of the warm water and the fragrant soap always seemed to leave me feeling relaxed and refreshed. And then, to my horror, I saw the plumber’s hand, completely covered in grime, pick up my expensive scented soap and take it to the sink to wash his hands. When he finished, my dainty bar of soap was much smaller, brown , and covered with dirt. So much for that idea! Once the kids arrived home from school, the pace of activity and responsibility quickly surpassed that of the afternoon, so the planned soak in the tub was just a fantasy anyway. How often do we have good intentions of taking care of ourselves physically, spiritually, and emotionally, but for one reason or another, days, weeks, and months pass and it just doesn’t happen?

1 Kings 19 reveals the events in Elijah’s life left him fatigued - body, soul, and spirit. After Elijah had killed all the false prophets with his sword, Jezebel sent a message that she would do the same to him by the next day. What did this mighty, courageous man do? He became afraid, ran for his life, went a day’s journey into the wilderness (not the best place for a discouraged person), asked God to take his life, and then went to sleep. He was depleted and exhausted. At some point, an angel woke him and told him to eat. Elijah then noticed a container of water and a baked cake on the nearby coals. If you have ever dealt with stress by eating a cake, you will be encouraged by this passage. After his time of nourishment, Elijah rested some more.

^“Then the angel of the LORD returned a second time and touched him. He said, ‘Get up and eat, or the journey will be too much for you.’ So he got up, ate, and drank. Then on the strength from that food, he walked 40 days and 40 nights to Horeb, the mountain of God” (1 Kings 19:7-8 CSB). (emphasis on underlined words mine)

Though Elijah certainly didn’t pray a model prayer, he did cry out to God in his exhaustion and discouragement. The help he received was very practical and not what most would expect. As it turned out - those basics we take for granted are not so optional after all.

Do you need some relief? Turn to God for practical answers and provision, or you may find that “the journey will be too much for you” as well.

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Week 2- Embrace and Receive His Passionate Love

Several days before our first Valentine’s Day as a married couple, Hal brought home some flowers and a bag of assorted candy. We were completing our senior year in college and living on a very meager budget, so this token of his love was especially meaningful. The attached note said, “I could not wait until Valentine’s Day to give this to you, . . . “ I was very touched by his spontaneity and eagerness to celebrate our love, but he almost ruined it when he proudly added, “I almost bought you a cactus because it would have lasted a lot longer than these fragile flowers.” He began to draw a comparison between the cactus and the enduring love we shared. I really can’t remember what he said after that, though, because my young, shallow mind became preoccupied with the horrific thought that I had come so close to receiving a cactus for Valentine’s Day. (He read this and reminded me that, to his defense, the cactus he considered purchasing did have some beautiful flowers on it.)

I do not personally know each of you, but I do know Someone who loves you very much. He could not wait for Valentine’s Day to eagerly share His deep, passionate, and enduring love for you. Though in our humanness, we often show a marked preference for fragile, romantic tokens of affection, I think you’ll agree that God’s everlasting, enduring love gift to you is far superior to any token of love you have ever received, for it involved the sacrificial gift of His only Son.

Are you anticipating His message of love? Here it is:

“. . . I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with loving kindness I have drawn you” (Jeremiah 31:3 NKJV).

^“ . . . I am with you always, even to the end of the age." . . . “ (Matthew 28:20 NKJV).

^“ You shall no longer be termed Forsaken, . . . For the LORD delights in you, . . . (Isaiah 62:4 NKJV).

"It is I who sweep away your transgressions for My own sake and remember your sins no more” (Isaiah 43:25 CSB).

He has pursued us, loves us with an everlasting love, delights in us, and promises to never leave us or forsake us. What security, confidence, and comfort His love provides! Does His message leave you feeling loved? It should. Happy Valentine’s Day.

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February - Week 3 - Love Others Practically

During a particularly busy season in my life as a mother of three boys, a teacher, and a pastor’s wife, I was overwhelmed by the prospect of trying to do it all. I began getting up earlier and going to bed later, but soon found myself not only overwhelmed, but exhausted as well. And then, I asked God for some practical answers for my situation. The answer came much sooner than I expected when a woman in our church approached me with a most unusual offer. Totally unaware of my prayer, she shared that she had decided to dedicate one day of each week to anything I needed her to do. I had to pinch myself to make sure this was really happening and, to my delight, found that it was. In the weeks to come, she came as promised, one day each week. Whether she was doing laundry, putting together handouts for a Bible study I was teaching, or running errands for me, she was always looking for ways to minister to our family, and seemed to enjoy doing it. She is in heaven now, but I often think of the tremendous blessing and encouragement she was to our family. What a difference she made!

I still have many role models who actively practice an awareness of the needs of others. One friend recently purchased some sewing machines in order to begin a sewing ministry at her church. Another friend sets aside one or two hours on the same day each week to send cards to those who are sick, grieving, or discouraged. And yet another friend takes her little dog to the nursing home twice a month. The residents who love pets but no longer have one look forward to her visits.

Maybe you are in the “overwhelmed season” right now and ministries such as the ones I just listed are not even on your radar. Even in this season of life, make an effort, however small, to be conscious of the needs of others. As I was busy meeting the needs of my family, students, and church members, God sent someone to minister to me.

Here are some practical ideas for encouraging others. Regardless of your stage in life, everyone should be able to find at least one that can be used this week.

Send someone an e-card to let them know you are thinking about them. Try www.dayspring.com or send someone a handwritten note or card.

Go to www.imb.org and click on the e-mail subscriptions link. Then, click on “Daily Missionary Birthdays.” You can sign up to receive a daily e-mail listing missionaries who have a birthday that day. Take a moment each day to remember them in prayer.

Commit to pray every day at the same time for a person’s situation or circumstances until it is resolved.

Take a meal to another church member who is having a busy week. Very little time to cook? Buy a roasted chicken from the deli and prepare some frozen vegetables to go with it.

Offer your babysitting services in order to give a young couple an evening out.

Take a friend who needs encouragement to lunch.

Offer to sit with an elderly person so his/her caregiver can get out for a few hours.

"Then the righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? And the King will answer them, 'I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me' “ (Matthew 25:37, 40 CSB).

Have a great week loving others practically!

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February - Week 4 - A Love Story with a Surprise Ending

What makes the story of Cinderella such an appealing fairy tale? I believe we all enjoy the good fortune of a girl who appears to have no hope of attending the ball or meeting the prince, but who, in the end, becomes the princess. A child hears this story and thinks, “It could happen!” Unfortunately, the events of life often turn optimistic, starry eyed girls into bitter, empty women. The love story below will encourage you to never stop believing that God sized things can still happen to you. As the title indicates, this is a love story with a surprise ending.
After the death of her husband and two sons, Naomi experienced a bitterness of soul so deep that she asked people to call her Mara, which means bitterness.
“But she said to them, ‘Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the LORD has brought me home again empty'” (Ruth 1:20-21 NKJV).
Naomi, along with Ruth, her daughter in law, returned to Bethlehem where Naomi’s relatives lived. While there, Ruth married again and, to her great surprise, life began to change for Naomi as well.
^“Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife . . . and she gave birth to a son” (Ruth 4:13 CSB). “Then the women said to Naomi, 'Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel! And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; . . . Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to him. Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, ‘There is a son born to Naomi.’ And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David'” ( Ruth 4:14-17 NKJV). (Emphasis on bolded words mine)
Did you notice the praise, the words of blessing, and the prayer these women (verse 14) spoke to the Lord on behalf of Naomi, whom they refused to call Mara? Who were these women? Verse 17 identifies these women as the “neighbor women.” Wow!

When God blessed Naomi with new friends, he really blessed her with friends! These neighbor women also apparently took it upon themselves to name the child Obed, which
means “serving”, because they saw this as a son for Naomi. They believed this baby would be a “restorer of life” to her. The word “restorer” means “to return or turn back.” They also said the child would be a “nourisher” of her old age. “Nourisher” means "to seize or contain."  It appears that their desire was that this child’s birth would provide the type of emotional fulfillment that would halt the accelerated aging being produced by grief in Naomi’s life. Obed not only served as a means of blessing to Naomi, but he would have a child named Jesse who would have a child named David, who would be in the earthly line through which Jesus would be born. Naomi eventually became the great great grandmother to the king and a descendant in the earthly line of the King of Kings! It’s starting to sound like a fairy tale of sorts, isn’t it.
Are you feeling empty, bitter, lonely and without hope? Don't ever stop believing that "it can happen!" - that God can provide emotional nourishment, love, and restoration for your lonely, empty, or bitter soul as well.
Maybe you can be the “neighbor woman” (or man) in someone’s life today - the one who praises God for His great love and then speaks words of encouragement and prayer on behalf of another’s emotional emptiness. God’s ability and desire to meet emotional needs undoubtedly exceeds anything we can imagine.

Great ending, wasn’t it!
©2008 Lauren Fletcher all rights reserved
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