Trust is a Choice

Trust.

It’s not always easy. Being human, we very often like to have “control” of our lives. Funny thing is that it’s only a façade. True control of circumstances is not ours to have. But something we can control is our perspective during anything we face.

Will we be afraid and angry and aggressive and violent?

Will we choose kindness, encouragement, compassion, mercy, forgiveness, and faith?

Will we choose to trust God even when life falls apart around us?

Memory Work Techniques {Focus on Jesus}

The best part about a challenge like the Focus on Jesus Scripture Memory 2020 event is that it gets us digging deeper into the Word of God. Our personal devotion time is where we will discover our newest verse to study, and this quiet time with God will uplift our hearts and renew our joy. We will discover peace and comfort in the pages of our Bibles as we listen for God's direction for our daily lives.

The Focus on Jesus challenge also brings back memories of studying for spelling tests back in grade school.

Do you remember writing your spelling words ten times each day leading up to the big test? Or maybe you were one who was quizzed audibly by siblings or a parent. Perhaps you did a combination of things to learn the trickiest of words.

The repetition and focus of that study time are what helped your young mind to learn the words so that on the day of the spelling test, the correct spelling would come back to you so you could score a decent grade.

The same study techniques apply well to Scripture memory work. Writing your verse down in a notebook several times a day is a great way to practice the correct order of the words. Repeating the verse aloud can help train your ears and mind to "hear" the verse in your head as you're trying to recall it when you look away from your notes.

Run Well

We all have choices to make along life's journey. Some are as easy as right verses wrong. Others are more complex with no clear right or wrong answer.

The most important thing about making these choices is to make sure whichever one we make is lined up with God's will. Prayer and time spent in the Bible are crucial for hearing God's direction in our lives.

Lessons Learned From... Naomi (Part 1)

Scripture reference: Ruth 1

Ruth is one of my favorite books of the Bible, so I’m sure I’ll come back and write more articles about this book. For this article and the next one to appear on Stones on Fire, we’ll be focusing on only the first chapter of Ruth.

When Naomi went with her husband and two sons to live in a foreign land (Ruth 1:1), I’m certain she never thought all three of the people she loved most in the world would perish there in Moab, leaving her alone in a land that wasn’t her home (Ruth 1:2-5). Yet, that’s exactly the situation in which she eventually found herself. How devastating would it be to first lose her husband and then, ten years later, have to bury both of her sons as well? Her tender heart must have felt wrenched from her chest and filleted into a trillion pieces.

A Whimsical Adventure

Have you visited your childhood lately?

Neither has Christopher Robin, but in the new Disney movie that shares his name, he’s about to.

If you enjoyed Winnie the Pooh at any time in your life, this movie is a must-see. It’s a fun bit of whimsy that will transport you on an expotition (expedition, for those non-Pooh fans out there) into the sweet Hundred Acre Wood… and your childhood.

There were mischief and adventure, stubbornness and grace, family and heroics, danger and encouragement. It was everything that Winnie the Pooh always stands for… plus lots and lots of honey.

Pardon my gushing (or join me, if you like). Christopher Robin, starring Ewan McGregor, is one of my top two favorite movies of this year (tied with Tomb Raider, starring Alicia Vikander). It’s everything I think a movie should be. Sweet, funny, sorrowful, happy, family-oriented, and full of adventure and hope. Did I mention whimsical? That isn’t necessary for every movie, but it never hurts.

If I'm Honest

There’s a song by Francesca Battistelli that speaks of being honest, laying our fears and secrets down at the cross, and finding healing in God’s love. It’s what I’m borrowing the title of this article from, and it’s part of the inspiration for what follows. If you like to listen to music while you read, be sure your volume’s turned up and click the below video before moving on to the next paragraph.

“Not one to wear her heart on her sleeve—at all.”

~ The Heart Between Us by Lindsay Harrel ~

Wearing one’s heart on one’s sleeve is all about being vulnerable and sharing the deepest part of oneself. I’m not always great at either. Yet, here I am, typing up this gut-deep article. The way I see it, if I can’t be honest with myself and with you, then what’s the point of writing at all?

Oh, trust me: All the rest of my articles prior to this point (and afterward) have been (and will be) honest. But I haven’t always dug very deep. I haven’t always made myself be very vulnerable with you.

It’s hard to put myself out there, to say what’s moving my heart in monumental ways. It’s even tougher to admit what’s holding me back.

Those Who've Come Before

by Andrea Renee Cox

As I'm working on the Bible study God's called me to pen, I've been thinking about those studies I've worked through and appreciated that were written by other authors. I only got into Bible studies and nonfiction books about biblical topics a few years ago. While I've collected enough of them to keep me busy for a decade, I've only read through a a handful or so in the last three or four years.

Stay tuned to the end of this article. I'll be asking for your advice!

Here are some of the books that have made a positive impact on me. They are written by authors I admire, ones I've gleaned knowledge from as I've read their books. It is my hope that the Bible study I'm working on will someday make a similar impact on the hearts and lives of my fellow nonfiction readers.

Merry Christmas!

by Andrea Renee Cox

As we gather with our families to celebrate our Savior, Jesus Christ, let us remember our heavenly Father's divine design to bring us back home to His Presence.

The Fellowship

"So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him;

male and female He created them."

Genesis 1:27

"And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day."

Genesis 3:8a

See: A One Word Update

by Andrea Renee Cox

Recently, I read an update on Cara Putman’s One Word. It’s an interesting article, and I hope you’ll give it a look.

After reading that one, and recalling that I was planning on updating you guys on my own One Word for 2017, I am here today to share how God has opened my eyes this year.

My word is "see." One of the things that God whispered to me pretty early on was, "See what I'm already doing in your life." Okay. So I thought I was appreciating them as they came along, but sometimes life sweeps us along too fast if we aren't being deliberate about it. God has done some pretty amazing things in my life this year. Here are just a few:

Why Not Ask for Patience?

by Andrea Renee Cox

This article began by my reading a guest article on Tricia Goyer’s website. (Stay tuned for a link to that article.)

There was a line in the article that said, “It’s kinda like praying for patience. Never do that either.”

My hackles went up on that one, to be completely honest. Who was this woman to tell me what my faith journey should look like? How could she possibly know what spiritual lesson I need to learn? And why do people keep telling me not to ask for patience?

(The rest of the article was amazing. Amy Matayo had some great points, and I appreciated her insight on faith being hard sometimes. So true!)

Why should I not ask for patience if that’s what I truly need to learn?

Half-Empty? Or Half-Full?

by Andrea Renee Cox

There's a glass sitting on a table. The water inside kisses the midpoint.

Would you consider that half-empty or half-full?

Is the glass half-empty or half-full?

There was a time when I argued with my cousins about this very thing, and I kept insisting that the glass was half-empty.

Half-empty?

Why was I so insistent upon that?

Martin Luther King Jr.

by Andrea Renee Cox

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. day! May we always remember to do what is right no matter who tries to stand against us. I like that Dr. King spoke for freedom in a peaceful way. I think the world could use more of that style of progression even now. But it begins with each of us.

One Word 2017

by Andrea Renee Cox

For many years now, I’ve seen One Word floating around on various blogs. It’s a movement to focus on one word per year rather than do resolutions. I was not interested in this movement because it seemed restricting. Only one word for an entire year? Wouldn’t that limit what God could do if I only focused on one word?

Well, this year, before seeing anyone’s blog about it, One Word floated through my mind in a new way. I’ve been struggling with focus lately, and the more I thought about One Word, the more it made sense for this particular year. Perhaps that singular focus is exactly what I need in 2017.

So I’ve jumped into One Word. I’m not really sure how to do it, but I trust that, since God’s brought me to it, He will show me the way through it. He has already shown me how to choose my word for the year. I had been praying over a few different words when a completely different one came into my mind. I quickly realized that was the way God was giving me the word He wants me to focus on.

Therefore, my One Word for 2017 is…

A Little Church

by Andrea Renee Cox

Since I'm on a tight deadline (due on Monday!) and I've worked late tonight (Sunday), I'm cutting this article way short. So sorry about that, but this was the one thing I could put on the back burner this week and get away with it.

So, in lieu of a full-blown article, let's do a little church this evening (or morning or afternoon; whatever time of day it happens to be for you).

What do you think of when you see this picture?

I think of a couple of verses I recently read.

Spiritual Battles

by Andrea Renee Cox

Asking for patience (as I talked about last week) or to better see what God is doing in my life might be easy prayers to say, but the living out of the answers that come is hardly ever easy or comfortable. I knew that going into those prayers, but it didn’t dissuade me. The answers are coming now, and boy, are they ever hard. But still I am not discouraged.

Even when the lessons are hard and break me, I refuse to give up the fight for God’s will. He is always worth it. My prayer through those toughest moments is usually, “God, help me.” But I’m finding out that I may add a little something else to that prayer. My prayer is becoming, “God, help me. I cannot do this without You. I need You. More than that. I want You. More than anything or anyone, I want You.”

When the answers God sends aren’t what I thought or were harder than the “hard” I imagined, the choice is mine. Will I decide to give up and settle for less than the best God has in store for me? Or will I choose to step out in faith, no matter how difficult things get, in order to walk in the will of God?

Patience is the Key

by Andrea Renee Cox

Have you ever heard that you should never pray for patience?

I have. Many times.

But I’ve ignored that suggestion every time.

Why?

Because I knew in my soul that I needed patience. And that I wouldn’t receive it if I didn’t ask.

Grace Wins

by Andrea Renee Cox

“For you are saved by grace through faith, and

this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift”

Ephesians 2:8 (HCSB)

Grace has been on my mind lately. The need to receive it. The call to give it out.

According to dictionary.com, grace is “mercy, clemency, pardon.” It could also be said that grace is giving someone the benefit of the doubt. The most important definition of grace I’ve learned through personal experience is that it is receiving kindness and compassion when you don’t deserve it at all (or giving kindness and compassion to someone who doesn’t deserve it at all).

Perfectly Beautiful

by Andrea Renee Cox

Hello friends! I’m writing this on Sunday evening, at the tail end of an extra busy weekend. I hope you have had a productive weekend and found some rest as well. My weekend has included copyediting, seeing War Room with one of my best friends, and spending time with my family. The most important time I’ve spent, though, was with God. He gives me rest and refreshment when I bathe in His Word. I’m currently working through Beth Moore’s Breaking Free Bible study workbook, along with the accompanying audio CDs. I’m not very far into it yet, but I’m already learning a lot. It’s amazing how quickly God starts moving in your heart once you get into His Word. Gives me goosebumps every time.

Drawing Prayer Circles

by Andrea Renee Cox

Recently, I read a book called The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson. I’d heard great things about it on Facebook, so I thought I’d give it a look. Goodness, I’m glad I did! If you want to see revival in your relationship with God, I highly recommend you check out this book. One person’s prayers really do make a difference.

Memory Verses

by Andrea Renee Cox

Have you ever tried memorizing Scripture?

When I was younger, I memorized a few fairly simple verses for Bible class at school (private school and homeschool). But I didn't feel like I was that great at memorizing the verses, so I gave up trying after those classes were over.

At the end of last year, one of my dearest friends asked me to participate with her in Beth Moore's Siesta Scripture Memory Team. Boy, did my nerves jangle! Could I memorize twenty-four verses in a year? Could I even memorize ten?