Beth K. Vogt's Blog, page 78

In Others’ Words: The Power of Truth

This quote gives me hope.

There are times in my life when lies prevailed — when I even willingly embraced lies, believing them to be true.

But what I’ve learned is that ultimately, a lie must bend to Truth. Even more, Truth will break a lie until it is nothing more than crumbled dust that you can hold in your hand and blow away.

Poof!

Just like that.

“Then you will know the truth and the truth will set your free.” (John 8:32 NIV)

There’s nothing in that verse that says knowing the truth is easy. Sometimes it takes years to recognize and to stop listening to a lie. But the beautiful, hope-filled promise is truth will prevail.

In Your Words: How has truth prevailed in your life?

The Power of the Truth Click to Tweet 

Truth: Powerful & Prevailing Click to Tweet 

Entire “When Life Doesn’t Go According to Plan” blog series archived Click to Tweet

 

In Others’ Words: Waste Not, Want Not

It all comes down to response, doesn’t it?

I can’t always control what happens in my life — the joys or the sorrows. Even when I make a decision that I’ve determined is right and best, that doesn’t mean I control other people’s responses. What I see as leading to healing and wholeness, someone else may interpret as wrong.

And in the act of creating joy in my life … I experience sorrow.

What I must choose to do … what I have chosen to do … is accept that sometimes joy is laced with sorrow. It reminds me of when we were a military family and Uncle Sam would decree it was time to move. The goodbyes stained the transition with tears, even as I knew that God was in the move. He was going before us and there would be a place for us. Friends.

A reason for joy.

In the midst of troubles — changes, being told what I am doing is wrong — I can choose to trust or to doubt. I can choose to be brave or to be fearful. I can choose to have confidence (my word for 2013) or to question who I am and why I did what I did.

One wastes my time.

One reaps wisdom.

In Your Words: How have you not wasted your sorrows?

Don’t Waste Your Sorrows Click to Tweet

Troubles: It All Comes Down to Your Response Click to Tweet

Read the first chapters of Catch a Falling Star and Wish You Were Here! Click to Tweet

In My Words: Rest

My 2nd Round edits are turned in . . . and yes, I’m tired. Happy — but tired.

See you on Monday.

 

In Others’ Words: Grasp (Guest Post by writer Pepper Basham)

 

Just the Way You Are, my work-in-progress (WIP), is the story of a single mom whose ex-husband not only left her for a younger model, but also left her with a wealth of insecurities. Throughout the story, she’s constantly struggling with being good enough to be loved, and certain she’s one breath away from failure.

So she’s in a constant state of turmoil. Sounds like a horrible way to spend an afternoon, much less every day of your life, doesn’t it?

Insecurities are the worse sorts of dream killers. They hold this amazing ability to cause inertia — to squeeze our effectiveness out of us like a sudden rush of cold air to our lungs.

Insecurities keep us from seeing God’s work in our lives, and particularly God’s goodness, because we are plagued with self-doubt.

So let’s break down “insecurity.” In all honesty, it’s just another word for fear, stemming from an inner worry that if we become vulnerable:

We’ll fail
We’ll be rejected

The only cure for insecurity is the right perspective: to realize we are loved by God. This is true in my WIP — and it’s true in real life.

Christ became vulnerable for us. He was rejected so we don’t have to be. His love defines who we are, so that even in our weaknesses, we are made strong.

When we let go of our fears and trust in His love for us, we reap the beautiful rewards of peace and joy. Not only that, but our vision clears so that we can see other gifts that God has for us too.

In Just the Way You Are, my heroine realizes God loves her just the way she is — because of Christ. She can never fail too greatly or fall too far. His love will hold her, heal her, restore her, and strum a song of praise within her soul.

God encourages us to ask, seek, knock. Why? He longs to give His kids great gifts. To shower us with His love in tangible and intangible ways. Letting go of our fears opens our hands to the blessings — His strength, courage, faith, hope — and so many others.

It’s amazing to know that you are loved . . .  Just the Way You Are.

In Your Words: How have you experienced God’s love in tangible and intangible ways — knowing He loves you just the way you are?

God loves you Just the Way You Are Click to Tweet

Are you holding on to fear? Click to Tweet

Pepper Basham writes romance peppered with grace and humor. You can find her on her personal blog, Words Seasoned With Salt, or at her group writing blog, The Writers Alley.

In Others’ Word: Bold (Guest post with Reba J. Hoffman)

Reba J. Hoffman and her trusty “steed,” Dakota.

 Meet my friend, Reba — truly one of the most unique individuals I’ve ever met! She embraces the challenge to “live life out loud.” We met at the inaugural My Book Therapy Storycrafters Retreat in 2009. Last Saturday, Reba embarked on an amazing cross-country journey. I’m so excited for you to hear why she made this bold choice.

 

There is no feeling like freedom. It is as grand a gift as the air we breathe. I don’t believe it can be fully experienced unless you do something daring and bold.

Experiencing freedom is at once exhilarating and terrifying. Facing the fear head on empowers us to boldly go where we’ve never gone before. We change the world when we step forward into fear and liberty is oh so sweet.

Unfortunately, for untold numbers of women, they believe they’ll never be free. They are imprisoned in their own homes by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). They were bold enough to survive a violent attack but now hide from the world within four walls. If they do venture out, anxiety and panic paralyzes them.

That’s why I’m doing something bold. I’ve left behind comfort and familiar, climbed onto my bicycle and set off on a solo, self-contained tour from Appalachia to the west coast of Oregon or Washington. Why? Because I want to help set these women free from their past.

Through following my journey on what I’ve come to call the Road to Freedom, I pray these women will muster the courage to face that fear and take back their lives!

I know the grip of fear. On November 5, 1984, I survived a violent attack. The broken bones healed but the fear grew. I had to take a bold step: I sought help. God used a team of professionals to help me overcome PTSD. Taking that frightening step resulted in experiencing a freedom like I’d never felt before.

I want every woman who has been victimized by a brutal assailant to muster the courage to take that bold step for themselves and their future. I want them to know what it’s like to stand at the top of their own Everest and gaze out from the pinnacle of their own world.

Reba hits the Georgia line on Day 2 of her cross-country journey.

That’s why I’ve mounted Dakota, my Waterford touring bicycle, and set out for places unknown. I’m going to blog the whole trip and share my insights, experiences, and bold moves as I go.

I’ll also be writing a book about it along the way. This journey is bigger than me and by far the boldest move I’ve ever made. I’m ridding myself of all the things I thought I needed in life, and will take essentials with me on my bike.

I invite you to take the journey with me. Follow my trip on my blog at www.RebaJHoffman.com. Use the wisdom it brings to do something bold in your own life. I promise you that freedom lies in being bold.

Take the journey with me on the Road to Freedom.

 In Your Words: How have you been affected by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) — do you know someone who suffers from PTSD? How have you discovered that being bold leads to freedom? 

Follow Reba’s journey by “liking” her FB page.

How being bold leads to freedom Click to Tweet 

The road to freedom from PTSD Click to Tweet 

Be Bold: Dr. Reba J. Hoffman cycles cross-county to support women who suffer with PTSD Click to Tweet 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In My Words: Turning Back from Turning My Back on God (Part 3)

I’ve found that when I hope to encourage others, God often prompts me to share my less-than shining moments.

This is one of those times. On Monday & Wednesday, I shared the circumstances that caused my faith to founder — and the choices (mistakes) I made along my way to doubt.

Welcome to Part 3 (the final installment) of a less-than stellar season in my faith journey. It ain’t pretty, but it’s honest.

Why Did I Turn Back?

While my silence toward God pervaded all my other relationships, two friends faithfully prayed for me. Even though I stopped voicing all my uncertainties, Faith and Pamela knew.

They prayed when I couldn’t — about the burden of Rob’s job, about the financial stress of Rob living in Wyoming while I lived in Colorado so our girls could stay at their high school, about my health problems after our “caboose kiddo” was born, and about my unrelenting months of doubt. I’m certain their prayers — and the prayers of others — were a spiritual buffer that kept me from running further aground.

I turned back because I missed God. Month after month, I ignored God. I didn’t open my Bible. I didn’t play worship and praise music, which so often lifted my spirits in the past. I took down the handwritten passages of Scripture taped to my bathroom mirror and my kitchen cabinets.

And yet … I missed God. I missed leaning on him when life was hard. And it was. I missed thanking him when life was joy-filled. And it was. Somewhere, buried beneath my doubt, I still desired to live my life as a believer.

Five years after I told God I no longer believed he was trustworthy, I wrote these words inside the cover of my Bible: Lord, please forgive me for doubting that you were trustworthy. I’m sorry. I want my relationship with You to be restored. I know I don’t deserve it — but I’m standing in your grace and asking for you mercy.

I heard no celestial choir. Time didn’t stand still. But I felt as if God moved closer to me — as if he’d only been one tiny step away all those long, miserable months of my silence.

It was an almost tangible expression of God’s grace. When I turned back, I figured he’d say something like, “You can do X months of penance and then we’ll talk.”

Instead, I instantly felt restored to intimacy with God.

I learned a hard lesson during the years I turned away from God: If I focus on the circumstances of my life, I can easily run aground — brought to my knees by discouragement and doubt. Instead, I need to keep my eyes trained on God and his provision during the tough times so I am not pulled off course.

I made agreements with the enemy

And lost my heart.

Oh, God

Forgive me when I agreed with the enemy when he said,

“Maybe God isn’t trustworthy”

and I thought,

“I don’t think I can trust You, God.”

I am driving a stake in the ground.

God is trustworthy.

He is trustworthy.

He is trustworthy. 

In Your Words: How has God revealed his grace to you during times of doubt? 

What helps you trust God in times of doubt? Click to Tweet 

Grace, grace, God’s grace … Click to Tweet

In My Words: Turning My Back from Turning My Back on God (Part 2)

I’ve found that when I hope to encourage others, God often prompts me to share my less-than shining moments.

This is one of those times. On Monday, I shared the circumstances that cause my faith to founder — and the first mistake I made along my way to doubt: I lost sight of the truth of who God is.

Welcome to Part 2 of a less-than stellar season in my faith journey. It ain’t pretty, but it’s honest.

***

I made another mistake after we moved to Colorado: I isolated myself from other believers. Have you ever fallen prey to the “I’ll go it alone mentality”? From the moment we crossed the Colorado state line, we had problems. Major problems. I didn’t want to introduce myself to someone and say, “Hi, my name is Beth and my life is a mess.” So I went the “I’m okay” route, pretending life was fine.

I taught women’s Bible study — for a while. I attended church — for a while. My prayers became litanies of “What now?” complaints and cries for help that dwindled into “Oh never mind, God, you’re not listening anyway.”

And then I stopped praying altogether.

My closeness and passion for God were replaced by a heart-numbness. I avoided church, using my husband’s absence and my new baby as excuses.

As Proverbs 16:18 warns, my pride led to my downfall. I didn’t want to disappoint my close friends back in Florida. I wanted to “do them proud” — to prove I could walk all of these situations out in a manner worthy of the Lord. (Colossians 1:10) Ashamed and embarrassed, I stopped calling my girlfriends. If they called me, I kept things light and breezy.

My sin was nothing original. Satan’s lure was as true for me as it was in the Garden of Eden: Is God trustworthy? Just as Eve bit into the fruit, I took the bait and doubted God’s trustworthiness too.

The words the serpent whispered in Eve’s ear — Did God really say? — caused Eve to question God. I listened to the whispered lies of the enemy too: Look at what God’s allowed to happen to you: marital and financial strain, health problems, loneliness, unanswered prayer. If God really loved you, he wouldn’t let all of that happen, would he? 

And I doubted God too.

To Be Continued 

                                                                                                                                                   In Your Words: How has adult peer pressure — either perceived or actual — caused you to make wrong choices?    

When sin is nothing original Click to Tweet  

The danger of self-inflicted adult peer pressure  Click to Tweet

Entire “When Life Doesn’t Go According to Plan” blog series archived Click to Tweet

In My Words: Turning Back from Turning My Back on God (Part 1)

I’ve found that when I hope to encourage others, God often prompts me to share my less-than shining moments.

This is one of those times. Today I’m sharing the first part of the story of when my faith foundered,  part one of a three-part series recounting a less-than stellar season in my faith journey. It ain’t pretty, but it’s honest.

***

God, you are not trustworthy anymore.

I wrote those six words, closed my journal — and turned my back on God.

My faith didn’t sink in some catastrophic storm. It ran aground on a series of seemingly minor sandbars. A niggling doubt grew into the absolute belief that God didn’t care about my heartaches.

My doubt hindered my relationship with God for more than five years.

The “Why”

I did a slow “about face” rather than a sudden turning away from God. Months before my faith failed, I wrote these words in my journal: Will I let the circumstances of my life obscure the truth of who God is? 

I hate to admit it, but that’s exactly what I did: I lost sight of the truth of who God is. My spiritual vision blurred as I focused on the day-to-day, month-to-month obstacles. I no longer saw God as my refuge or strength, much less as a very present help in time of trouble. (Psalm 46:1)

What caused my faith to falter?

A cross-country move from Florida to Colorado — I grieved the loss of heart-to-heart friendships.
My husband’s Middle East deployment three months after our move — Rob ran laps around  a tent city in the desert on Christmas Eve while I ate dinner with our three kiddos in a Chinese restaurant in Colorado.
The rigors of my husband’s air force job once he was back stateside — It was as if Rob never came back home. Sometimes the distance between us stretched as wide as the Persian Gulf.

The unending stress went on for 18 months — and all the while we parented three teens. Then I found myself unexpectedly pregnant at 41. My recovery from the birth was complicated, both physically and emotionally.

A month after our daughter was born, Rob’s work situation imploded and, within weeks, he was stationed two and half hours away in Wyoming.

Could life get any more stressful?

Worn out I scrawled these words in my journal:

You know what, God?

Life stinks.

Did I do something to deserve this?

Is there some grievous sin I’ve left unconfessed?

Do I have a “Kick Me” sign pasted on my back?

Despite all my tearful prayers, despite all the prayers of family and  friends, my life was an utter mess. All my pleas for help, for something other than struggle, went unanswered.

I was exhausted.

I was lonely.

Wouldn’t God help me?

After almost three years of persistent disappointment, I knew the answer to that question: No.

To Be Continued

In Your Words: When has life overwhelmed you? Were you able to hold on to your faith, or did you lose sight of who God is? 

Have circumstances obscured the truth of who God is? Click to Tweet

Turning Back from Turning My Back on God Part 1 Click to Tweet 

Entire “When Life Doesn’t Go According to Plan” blog series archived Click to Tweet

In Others’ Words: America

Happy 4th of July!

Tomorrow I’ll be celebrating with family and friends! I’m thankful for this country — and am especially thankful for the men and women who have served in the armed forces, defending our country’s freedom.

What are you doing on July 4th?

 

I’m taking off Friday, so I’ll be back on Monday with a week-long, three-part series. See you after the holiday!

In Others’ Words: Education

Not all of my friendships have lasted.

That’s not surprising, I know.

It’s rare for a friendship to span elementary school through high school on into college and everything beyond: a career, a marriage (or not), kiddos (or not) life choices that draw us further apart than a geographical move ever could.

But there are times when I have closed the door on a friendship. I’ve never slammed a door in a friend’s face, but there have been times — just a few — when I packed up and moved away emotionally. When I left no forwarding address. When I didn’t return calls — and when I didn’t pick up the phone to be the first one to call either.

Why would I pursue the end of a friendship?

So many reasons.

Emotional and spiritual exhaustion. I could only carry around “should have saids” in an attempt to “live at peace” with a friend for so long

I was worn out from all the trying … all the maintaining the relationship required. After all, is friendship about maintaining?

I taught these people it was okay to treat me certain ways. I hadn’t spoken up. I hadn’t expressed hurt … or disappointment … or an honest opinion in years.

And friendship begins and ends with honesty — that whole “What, you too?!” emotional honesty that anchors hearts from here to eternity.

In Your Words: How have you taught people to treat you? 

Are all friendships anchored to the heart from here to eternity? Click to Tweet

How have you taught people to treat you? Click to Tweet

Read the first chapters of Catch a Falling Star and Wish You Were Here! Click to Tweet