BLOGWORDS – Sunday 30 October 2022 –BOOK LAUNCH EVENT – FRONT PORCH FELLOWSHIP – SUNDAY DEVOTION
BOOK LAUNCH EVENT – FRONT PORCH FELLOWSHIP – SUNDAY DEVOTION
* This post delayed due to fatigue.
The name of Sunday’s feature, Front Porch Fellowship, came about… “Because sometimes you can’t make it to church. Or, what the world commonly thinks of as church.” And Father God meets me where I’m at, often on the Front Porch.
SUNDAY DEVOTIONThis Christian walk is often mistaken for a religion. But it’s not so much “religion” as it is relationship. The very reason Father God created man was for relationship. He gave us rules, sure, and with good reason. Adam and Eve walked in the “cool of the day,” and I believe they walked with God. I believe we were never meant to leave the Garden of Eden.
Then Satan entered the picture. And lied.
From the moment Adam and Eve disobeyed, everything Father has done has been to restore us to relationship. All the rules and commandments are there for this reason. And when we focus on God and our relationship with Him, our lives are fuller, richer.
AND, we are less influenced by the enemy.
It’s hard to do in this swirling, dazzling world. So many distractions. So many temptations. That’s why He bids us, “Be still.” Shut out the noise and the chaos, and listen for His voice.
Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! (NKJV) Psalm 46:10
Like seeking the wisdom of a trusted friend or spouse or parent, He asks us to seek Him, not the wisdom of the world, which is riddled with conflicting and confusing—and deceiving—answers and direction.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (NKJV) Matthew 6:33
Father has created each of us with our own special gifts and talents and abilities. But also with desires and longings that only He can fulfill. I believe He has placed particular desires within each of, and when we look to Him—and only when we look to Him—will we truly know the fullness of those longings.
Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. (NKJV) Psalm 37:4
* All mention of God, other than specifically Father God, I am referencing the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
DEVOTIONAL EXCERPT – FORGIVING GOD“Meredith, you need to forgive God.”
“Do what?” I was enveloped by a super wide faux leather chair with extra cushions in Tina Vanderlyn’s den. It felt like I was sitting in a hug.
“Have you forgiven God?”
“Ehmmm…”
“You’re mad at Him, yes?”
“Well, yeah.” I squirmed and choked on the words. I was massively ashamed to be mad at God. Admitting it aloud was mortifying. “But…”
She lifted her ruby colored coffee mug and took a dainty sip but said nothing.
“He’s holy and perfect and…” I lifted my own ruby mug and gulped. Clutching the mug as if I could hide behind it I managed my voice. Sort of. “He does no wrong. How do you forgive someone who never makes a mistake?”
“That’s a good question.” She reached for my hands, her neatly manicured hands suggesting her age but giving nothing away. “What does it mean to forgive?”
“It means that even though someone did something that hurt you, you can’t hold it over their head.”
Her head tipped sideways. “And…”
I stumbled for words. “I don’t understand.”
“Who benefits from forgiveness?”
“Well, the person who did whatever it was that was wrong.” Duh.
“Are you sure?”
I knew how a deer in the headlights must feel.
“Meredith.” She released my hands and sat back, crossing her long legs at the ankle. “My father was not a nice man. He was dishonest in his business and was a tyrant at home. He never struck me but we all lived in fear.”
I listened, sad about her childhood so different than mine. But I didn’t get the connection to our discussion.
“He died when I was fourteen and I was glad. We all were. My mother caught my sister and me doing a happy dance after the funeral. She brought us all down to the den, my brothers and all three of my sisters to ask us these same questions.”
“She was upset that you were glad your father was gone?” I was so confused.
“No, Meredith. That she understood. She was relieved herself.” Mrs. Vanderlyn leaned forward in her chair, crossing her arms on her knees. “She explained the true meaning of forgiveness.”
I waited.
“Forgiveness is giving the offender over to God. Justice is His, and His alone. Judgment is His—not ours. Your definition of forgiveness suggests that you, we, have the power to judge and mete out justice. Mother asked us if we had forgiven Father. We all snickered because, like you, we thought it ridiculous. ‘Why forgive a dead man,’ my oldest sister asked. ‘It won’t help him.’
“Mother caressed her Bible in her lap. ‘Forgiveness doesn’t set the offender free, Darcy. It sets the wounded free.’”
My brain was spinning. Forgive God? “But…” Mrs. V stood and took both our mugs over to the kitchen to refresh our coffee.
Forgive. Release. Let it go. Thoughts swirled in my mind. And Papa God’s voice—Be free. Forgive and be free.
Mrs. V returned with fresh coffee and I gladly received the warm mug—to hide behind. We ended our session with her walking me through the mechanics of forgiving… God. It still seemed inside out but at the same time made perfect sense. Of course it makes perfect sense, dumb butt. It’s God’s plan.
We ended our afternoon visiting and chatting like old friends. (I still wondered how old she was but would never ask.) And I left her house feeling freer than I had in three and a half years. I let go of the dream, the plan I thought my life needed to be. Picturing myself when I was little and my Etch-a-Sketch quit sketching. I let Daddy have it to fix it; of course, I didn’t realize at the time it was beyond fixing. So when he brought me a new one, my five-year-old self thought he was the most “amazingest” daddy ever; I just knew he had fixed my favorite toy.
Now, I visualized myself handing my grown-up favorite thing—getting pregnant and giving birth—into Daddy God’s hands. He could fix my broken toy. Or He could give me a new one.
But it was up to Him. Me, whining and begging and pleading—and ranting—was poisoning my own heart. That afternoon, I knew that I had all I needed or could ever want. Me and Jere had a passel of kids—we were so blessed. I didn’t need to get pregnant anymore. God held that dream; it wasn’t mine to hold onto.
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