Karen Moore's Blog, page 17

Help Me with My Unbelief!

Most of us believe in God with our whole hearts. We trust that He is with us through the ups and downs of life. We hold on to Him when things get shaky. Most of the time!

What happens though when something is beyond our ability to simply keep believing? What happens when the events we’re facing, or the current situation strikes us as simply not possible? I’m reminded of the father in Mark 9:24, who goes to Jesus because his son is being tormented by demons. It’s a tough situation. Even Jesus’ disciples can’t seem to help the boy. In desperation, the father says something like, “If you can do anything, do it!” Of course, Jesus never doubts what God can do and so he tells the father to simply believe!  The father sighs, “I do believe, but help my unbelief!” That may seem like an odd thing to say. Either he believes or he doesn’t!

But I’m also reminded of Abraham and Sarah who prayed for a baby for years. They believed in the promise God had made to them that Abraham would be the father of many nations, but still Sarah did not conceive. By the time Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90, they had every reason to be doubtful. After all, there was no biological possibility for them to have a child. But you know what happened. The Angel of God paid them a visit and told them they would indeed have a son. Poor Sarah laughed. You and I probably would have laughed too. We would have struggled to believe it could still be possible. Help my unbelief might have well been Sarah’s prayer. Her baby boy arrived a few months later. 

What do we struggle with that causes us to lose absolute trust in God’s promises? What would cause us to say with the father from Mark 9, “I believe, but help me with my unbelief!” 

Of course, we’ll all have different answers, but here’s the thing. When faced with something that challenges our faith, we can do exactly what the father in the story did. We can go to Jesus and tell Him we are not sure we believe as fully as we need to, and so we need help. We need more faith. We need more courage to believe in the promises of God. 

God loves that you start any approach to Him with “I believe!” That’s really all it takes for Him to respond, “Then stick with me and I will help you get through this.” 

God is bigger than your situation. Even when you don’t receive the answer you want, God will not leave you empty handed. He will hold you up and give you strength you never imagined you could have. He wants to help you with your unbelief!

 

The post Help Me with My Unbelief! appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

A Cup of Faith

Some years ago, I wrote a book for kids that I called, “Faith for Sale!” In my imaginary world, people could pass by a store front that offered “faith” in any quantity. If they were running low, they could pop in and get a cup of faith to go, just enough to recharge and help them get through the day. Most people came by with a box or a basket, one guy even had a ten-gallon hat, to put his faith supply in. The owner of the store was always happy to fill up their containers, but he wondered why they never seemed to want a bigger supply.

I didn’t actually publish that story, though I always loved the idea, because I feel like most of us are walking around with our faith meter on fumes. We may have a bit to keep us going, but it’s hard to get our tank filled up with any regularity. It seems to me that one thing that is not in short supply, at least from the One who gives it, is faith. In fact, we could come in with a moving van and He’d fill it for us. The question is, why are we satisfied with so little, when so much is available?  We run to God with our little cup and hope He’ll fill it, but He has an ocean of possibility and wonders why we don’t ask for more?

So, here’s my thought. The year is still new. We still have a chance to open the floodgates, to ask God to fill us up with more faith so that we can become more, do more, enjoy life more and give more to those around us. We just need to believe in a bigger God who wants more for us than we even dare to ask. We need an attitude adjustment about our faith. We need to know that God is still with us, still pulling for us, and is ready to pump up our faith any time we ask. 

What happens when we don’t? We feel defeated by the confused state of the world. We feel uncertain about who we are and what we can do to make things better. We feel overwhelmed and lonely. All the while, God is waiting for us to stop by and open up our heart-vessel so He can fill it. His supply never runs out. His door is always open. His signs are up everywhere to help us know we can have bigger faith tomorrow than we have today. He just wants us to stop by and ask Him. 

In my children’s book version, some people ignored the “Faith for sale” sign because they assumed they already had enough. Trouble is, God had so much more for them than they could imagine. I think I’ll stop by HIs place today. Want to come along?

The post A Cup of Faith appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

Are You Still There?

As the New Year gets underway, I have a deep desire to send encouragement and love to my friends. You’ve blessed my life in so many ways, I can hardly count them all. You gave me support when things weren’t going as I hoped they would. You listened and didn’t judge my thoughts. You offered kind advice and prayed for new possibility. You were awesome. 

Somewhere over time, I’ve lost track of some of you. I’ve left you in some other city, some other place, drifting away into my current life. If you’re still out there somewhere, I want you to know that you have not been forgotten. You have not been abandoned. The gift of friendship you gave me still stirs my heart and brings joy to my spirit. I believe God put you in my life for just that point in time, so that we could be there for one another, growing and learning and becoming more of what we dreamed we might be.

If we only met briefly, then I am grateful for the special moments we shared. If we had more experiences together, than I hope we both have more than a few fond memories to carry in our hearts. The main thing is simply to be able to tell you that you still matter to me and to everyone around you. You make a difference in the world simply by being the person you are. So, forgive me if I’ve been out of touch, because as the saying goes, “out of sight, is not out of mind.” You’ are part of who I am, part of what I needed to learn, part of the grace and mercy God has shown me.

I just wanted to share this message with you today, because I don’t believe anything really happens by chance. We were meant to share a portion of our life journey and I’m so happy that we were able to do so. As we go forward, I pray we will have many reasons to celebrate all that God has done for us. 

Thank you for being you and for the special part you’ve played in my life. And to those of you who’ve only met me through the pages of a book, I pray big blessings and great joy in this year. God has not forgotten you.  

Thanks for being my friends.

The post Are You Still There? appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

Success Made to Last

Recently, I had the opportunity to be a guest on the author corner of Rick Tocquigny’s Success Made to Last podcast. Rick is a long-time friend and an amazing human being who finds success in nearly everything he does. It was fun to catch up with him a bit and try to answer some of his more challenging questions. I posted the link for you at the end of this blog, if you’d like to listen to it. It’s about thirty minutes long. 

Doing the interview made me reflect on what it means to be successful, and more than that, to have the kind of success that is lasting and sustainable. Over time, I’ve changed my views on what success means to me. I once thought success was all about capturing a big share of the market and having a book that everybody everywhere wants to buy. Well, that is success of a sort, but as good as it is, it is difficult to maintain. I also thought success had something to do with getting people to know my name as an author, getting them to want the next Karen Moore book. It turns out that as a devotional book writer, people seldom buy a book because of the author’s name. They buy it because it has a title that somehow speaks to their hearts and minds. So, even though I’ve written well over one hundred books, few people have ever heard of me. 

For the first time in my life though, I feel successful. Here’s why. God has given me a chance to do work that I value and love. He’s inspired my thoughts and my writing. He’s filled me with a sense of purpose. In my heart of hearts, I want to give readers another perspective about what it means to have a living faith. I want to give them another opportunity to get a glimpse of the God who IS, who created them and adores them. Though I may not be on the best-sellers list every time a new book appears, I know that somebody somewhere reads the words written with love and humility and feels God is still in control and that they can be at peace. I love it when somebody is reenergized, inspired by what they read. I love to share with readers the things I most need to hear because we’re all in this together. We’re all learning and struggling to get through this life business with as much dignity as possible. We want to find the joy that makes it all worthwhile.

When I get a brief note from a reader that says something like, “I really needed to hear that today!” or “Thank you for giving me good things to think about,” then I feel successful. 

So, I hope the same for you. Whatever you do for a living, whatever good you try to offer this world, I pray you will feel that you’ve created a kind of success that is meant to last. 

May God bless the work of your hands and bring new joy to your heart as you consider how successful you already are.

The post Success Made to Last appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

You Always Make a Difference

I got a very kind note from a friend the other day. She told me how much she enjoys reading my devotional books, and also sharing those books with other people. She said she wanted me to know I make a difference. I don’t know about you, but I consider that the ultimate compliment, the sweetest words anyone can say. I think most of us want to be legacy builders, people who make a difference in our time, inspiring those who come after us. 

This thought made me consider some of the people who have made a difference in my life, perhaps helping to shape me into becoming a better person. I remember my second-grade teacher who always seemed to believe in me, who trusted me and told me I would be a great teacher someday. It turned out she was my dad’s teacher as well. Oddly enough, when I got to eighth grade and began to plan my course work for the next four years, my guidance counselor, tried to dissuade me from going to college. She made a difference. She caused me to work harder to achieve my goal and when I finished my master’s degree, I thought of her. In an odd way, she had strengthened my resolve to be a teacher.  Even though, I don’t do much classroom teaching anymore, that spirit still exists within me.

I remember when I was first drawn to reading the Bible. I didn’t know anything about it, but I joined a group of young people who were already seasoned Christians. They answered my questions, encouraged my efforts and made a huge difference in my life. They planted seeds that caused me to consider what it could mean to make a difference for God.

I suspect we each have memories of the difference makers, the ones who helped guide our choices and our life direction. You have made a difference in the lives of people around you. You believed in someone’s dreams. You told someone to take another path. You shaped someone’s faith, or sense of self, or their desire to try harder. You were there at just the right time, giving them the gentle nudge to keep them moving forward. You have made a difference in a lot of people’s lives, and you still are doing so. 

You’re creating a legacy of those who will come behind you and remember what you’ve done. They’ll thank you for equipping them to recognize what God designed them to be. 

For all of you who make an incredible difference in my life, and you know who you are, I give God thanks and praise today.

Make a difference to someone today!

The post You Always Make a Difference appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

Let’s Keep Dreaming

Most of us remember the now famous speech of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as he declared, “I have a dream!” His dream for his children, and let us say all children, was that they would live in a world where they are not judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. It’s a dream because we so often lose sight of what it means to love one another as God asks us to do. It’s a dream because we’ve forgotten how to love our neighbors, all of our neighbors, as ourselves. It’s a dream because we no longer look to our leaders to be people of character. 

I wonder what happened to our desire to be kind and loving human beings. What happened to our sense that character, individual character, corporate character, standards of goodness matter? One of those key character traits is honesty. Honesty is marked by truth-telling and promise keeping. I have a dream that we would be honest in our dealings with one another. The Old Testament declares that God hates dishonest scales, those that tip the scale in favor of cheating someone else. 

Compassion awakens our sense of kindness and generosity. It is a heart thing, a love thing, and one that seeks the good of others whatever the circumstances may be. I dream of compassion driving the actions of every thinking human being. 

Of course, there are many character traits, but perhaps another one that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. might also dream of is courage. I dream that more of us would have the courage of our beliefs, the desire to tell the stories that God gave us to tell, and the willingness to surrender our own challenges to meet the needs of those around us. 

As we take note of the amazing leadership of this one man who stood up courageously for what he believed in, showed compassion for people everywhere, and served as an example of incredible character, I pray that we might dream along with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. because with the help of God, our dreams may yet come true!

The post Let’s Keep Dreaming appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

Resolutions for Two

Since we’re just getting into the New Year, I thought I’d share a personal story about making New Year’s resolutions. It’s always good to reflect on those things you accomplished in the old year and consider things you might want to do differently now. Many of us actually find that doing a little personal inventory is beneficial to our hearts and minds. Often, we are reminded that there were certainly some blessings in those days gone by, and there were unexpected moments that we’re glad are over. So, what now?

This year, my husband and I decided to do some New Year’s resolutions as a couple. We sat down with a business-sized yellow pad and we talked about the year that had just ended. We reminded ourselves of those moments when we actually did triumph, with God’s help, and those moments that we hope will never come again. We talked about some of the things we had worried about that never happened, and some of the things that helped us grow stronger together.

Then we turned our attention to this New Year. What do we want to do differently? What do we want to do more of or less of than last year? What would make this year feel fulfilling and happy to us as a couple? It was a great exercise and we sat and talked about it for a couple of hours. We’re still thinking about it and musing about those things we’d like to do better. Of course, our real goal is to be good marriage partners, to support one another in the work we do, and to bless our families and pray for our loved ones. We want to keep life interesting and encourage each other in every way possible.

Our friends will laugh when they see that we also wrote, “We will not move this year,” as part of our list. In our brief eight years of marriage, we’ve moved six times. We both think it would be good to stay put for a while. We’ve actually caused people to stop changing our address in their files because they know they will just have to change it again. Of course, we listed some practical things that we need to do for health and family reasons, and then we drifted into where would we like to travel, would we still enjoy a road trip, and what can we do to make our days count?

I feel certain that God has some plans we’re not aware of, but we’re planning to chat with Him often enough to hear what He has to say. We’re always up for a little heavenly advice.

So, just for fun, you might consider sitting down with your beloved partner in life and exploring the things you’d both like to see happen this year in your home life, in your work life, and in your spiritual life. You might even surprise each other with things you still want to do. 

May God hear all the prayers of your hearts this year.

What will you be in 2023?

 

The post Resolutions for Two appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

Deep Knee Bends

You may not remember the last time you did some deep knee bends, at least not intentionally! After all, your knees aren’t quite as young as they used to be. Bending in any way may come with assorted creaks and moans, but that’s okay. God appreciates your efforts, especially when you get down on your knees to pray. Of course, He’s actually happy for you to pray in any posture you might prefer. Head bowed, hands clasped together, disruptive thoughts pushed aside, heart ready…that works for Him! Standing, sitting, driving, walking, those work too. The point is that God wants you to pray…always, as long as you put your whole heart into it. 

When you think about it, you’re a pretty amazing design. You’re flexible, agile, able to move in a lot of different ways. The whole idea is that you can bend without breaking. Getting back to praying then, it’s comforting to know that God bends down to meet you when you come to Him in prayer. He inclines His ear to you, totally committed to hearing all you have to say.

Sometimes the world invades your space in ways that are disconcerting. You’re overwhelmed by crazy comments on FaceBook and other social media sites.  You don’t know whether to believe half of what you read.  You find yourself bending way past your comfort zone in order to support the people you love or to do the job you’ve been asked to do at work. You can get pulled in so many emotional directions, everything feels unbelievable. Though you may have the soul of a ballet dancer, all this twisting and turning is more than you can handle. You can feel on the edge of breaking. So, what do you do…you stop!

Be still and wait. God sees you and He will send people to help you, lift you up, and nurture you. He will remind you of all that He has done when you’ve been stretched too thin before. He will offer you a helping hand, bending down to be near you, to forgive you, and to guide you. He never forgets about you. He wants you to be resilient and happy. So, the reminder today is to pray. Pray about everything that effects your life. Pray about the things that break your heart and pray about the things that make you feel strong. Ask God to help you trust Him like you’ve never tried to trust Him before, leaning on Him, and giving Him the chance to draw near to you. 

If you really want to do some deep knee-bending, then ask God to anoint your spirit and give you greater flexibility in all that you do for Him this year. That’s sure to inspire a happy dance.

Prayer keeps your heart and soul flexible!

The post Deep Knee Bends appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

Prayer: It’s Not about the Words

So, when it comes to praying, I’m fickle! Sometimes, I’m caught up in the moment, lost in God’s warmth and Presence, and feeling awed at our amazing connection. At those times, I don’t want to stop praying at all. I just want to hang out there and bask in the moment. We’ve talked. We’ve understood each other. It’s been glorious. 

Other times, perhaps most other times, I’m stumbling through the prayers, hoping God gets what I’m trying to say. The words are anything but precise and beautiful. I’m confused, uncertain and not quite tuned in the way I wish I could be. It’s frustrating because I want prayer to fix things, but if I can’t say it right, how can God know what I want Him to fix?

Ah, there’s the thing! God doesn’t need me to come in with an articulate report on the state of my life, heart, mind and soul. He already knows exactly what is going on. He doesn’t need my words to be fancy, or loud, or whispered. In fact, the delivery is not important to Him. What’s important is that I choose to pray. He wants me to come to Him and share my heart. It’s as simple as that!

As human beings, we like to be good at what we do though. We hear those amazing prayer warriors at church who could out-pray the Saints and we imagine our prayers are nowhere near that good. We have friends who always seem to know the right words to say, and we are happy when they pray for us. It seems good to hear those perfectly crafted words going from our hearts to God’s ear. 

One of the beautiful things about God though is that He listens to our hearts. He hears what we say and even what we don’t say. He receives our intentions and our focus knowing how sincerely we seek His help. He inspires us through prayer, by prayer and with prayer to rest in Him and to trust Him to listen with love. This is important because we can get frustrated by our sense that we did not pray well. Chances are good that you seldom use the right words, but all you need is the right heart.

God doesn’t have a naughty and nice list. He’s not checking to see whether you deserve His help. He is only interested in the reason you’ve come before Him. When you seek Him with all your heart, He finds you. He hears you and He honors what you came to say.

This year, surrender your heart to God and He will receive every word you say with love.

(A thought from my new book, Prayers to Strengthen Your Soul, coming out in February.)

The post Prayer: It’s Not about the Words appeared first on Karen Moore Author.

Time to Do a New Thing

Isaiah 43:19 says, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”

At the beginning of each year, we all like to create the opportunity to do a new thing. We look at what we’ve done, where we’ve been, and we try to see what we should hold on to, and what we should give up. After all, we want the coming year to be better than the last. It’s not easy though, because the world is complicated and unexpected things happen to all of us. Sometimes those things throw us off course, and so we start looking for answers to solve our issues. A hymn writer named Frances Ridley Havergal wrote, “In perplexities, when we cannot tell what to do, when we cannot understand what is going on around us, let us be calmed and steadied and made patient by the thought that what is hidden from us is not hidden from God.”

We like to be equipped with the answers, able to see around corners, ready to take on the storms of life without fear. We do our best to stay ahead of the game so we can weather anything that comes along. The problem is that we’re not in control. We’re not alone in the everyday happenings of our lives. We are walking arm in arm with the only One who is never surprised about what happens to us and who has all the answers. All we have to do is seek Him and look for the clues He posts everywhere to help us move through life. He wants to know that we are trying to perceive the good things He’s doing so that we can appreciate them more fully. In fact, He is always doing a new thing in our lives because we change, and we get in trouble, and we doubt and wander off. Even so, He doesn’t lose sight of us, or get tired of picking us up and dusting us off. He just asks us to keep looking for Him because He will do a new thing to make a way where there was no way before.

As you start the New Year then, perhaps you can give up your need for the answers. At this point, you don’t even know the most important questions. Simply remember that God has gone before you, preparing the way for your good, making a way for you to follow Him each day. The one who can make streams in the deserts, can surely bring refreshment and nourishment to our parched souls. May your heart be filled with calm assurance as we begin another new year.

Blessings and joy to each of you in 2023, my friends!

 

The post Time to Do a New Thing appeared first on Karen Moore Author.