On Independence and God's Love

I've been thinking about independence a lot lately.  There is something new happening in our household, and it has a lot  to do with independence.

The more Kayleigh learns, and grows, and does, the less help she wants from me or her daddy.
While I'm happy to see her becoming so capable of doing many things by herself, it also makes me a little sad that she doesn't need me as much as she used to.  What makes me even more sad is when she actively pushes me away.

I know that it's good for her to experience things, but at the same time, it's scary.  Right now in her precious innocence, she doesn't know that experiencing certain things can bring her pain.  She has no concept of heights, and is always milliseconds away from launching herself off of the edge of our bed, falling from the couch, or pushing out of our arms.  She's also the kid who wouldn't believe me that the stove was "hot" until she felt it for herself.

If I try to catch her, stop her from doing something that could lead to her harm, she grabs my hand with both of hers and thrusts it away as quickly and forcefully as she can, shaking her head and trying out her new favorite word: "Nuh!"

This is a stage that all children go through, I know.  But at the same time, how different are we as adults and children of God?

I'm certainly not going to compare myself to God, but I can say that I've come to a better understanding about the sadness God feels when His children don't listen to Him.  When Kayleigh pushes away from me and doesn't listen when I try to keep her from doing something that will hurt her, I am sad.  But when I push away from God and don't want to believe that His way is best, how much better am I at listening than my 11 month old daughter?

I laugh at my little girl's determination when she thinks she knows better than I do (i.e. climbing up the elevated brick hearth and crawling straight off of it is a great idea!), but then I go and rebel against God when things aren't working the way I want them to.

O, you of little faith.

Kayleigh's stubborn, independent nature is not going to stop me from loving her.  And I'm sure thankful that those traits my daughter inherited from her mother don't keep God from loving me, either.

No matter how many times my little girl falls down after pushing me away, I'm always going to pick her up and wipe her tears and kiss her owies until they're all better.  God does the same for all of His children, but now that I'm a mom, I'm ever so thankful that He's a much better healer, comforter, and parent than I am.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39

Worth Fighting For

Handsome Man and I went to the most beautiful wedding on Saturday.  I'm looking forward to sharing some of our pictures with you later this week, but today I want to tell you about my favorite moment during the ceremony.

Paul and Bethany wrote their own vows.  They were beautiful, unique, and heartfelt.  Something that I found very striking was that they both ended their vows with the same phrase.  I wish I had it word for word (I'll ask them in two weeks when they get back from their honeymoon!), but it was something to this effect:

I promise to put God first, to love you with His love,
and I promise to fight for our marriage.

I love that.  These two aren't coming into marriage all starry-eyed expecting that it's going to be easy.  Four years in, I can tell you that it isn't.  Marriage takes work.  It takes commitment, perseverance, and more love than you could ever think it would.  The promise to fight for your marriage shows that you know that it's worth it.  This couple has many growing days ahead of them.  Days when they will be stretched, days when outside elements may leave them shaky.

But when you know that something is worth fighting for, you protect it with everything you have.

Paul and Bethany weren't expecting that their vows would be put to the test before their wedding ceremony was even over, but during the lighting of the Unity Candle, something beautiful happened that everyone in attendance will remember for years to come.

Wind was swirling around the beautiful hill above a vineyard, and the Unity Candle wouldn't stay lit.  The pastor tried over and over again to light the wicks, but as soon as he backed away for the bride and groom to do their part, the fire would extinguish.  Paul and Bethany tried to shield the candle from the wind with their hands, but it was no use.

Next, Bethany picked up the hymnal that was beside the candle and used it to protect the fire, but the wind still blew out the flame before they could do anything.

They were at a loss.  As hard as they tried to shield their wedding candle from the wind, they couldn't do it on their own.  The wind was too strong, coming from every angle, and the two newlyweds couldn't protect their precious candle by themselves.


It was getting to the point where we were starting to feel sorry for them.  Every wedding has its little quirks, the things that don't quite go as planned.  And it was looking like  the story of how their Unity Candle wouldn't light at their wedding was one that Paul and Bethany would be telling for years to come.  


Just when I started thinking that they were going to give up and continue with the wedding sans candle, the bride motioned to their wedding party, "We need to huddle!"

And with that, ten bridesmaids and ten groomsmen encircled Paul, Bethany, and their Unity Candle.  They formed a tight circle, linking arms and huddling close.  They were not about to let the wind blow their friends' candle out.

Everyone let out a chuckle when they saw Bethany's "two thumbs up!" from behind the wall of friends, but the beauty of what had just happened didn't disappear.

When the wind threatened to extinguish this bride and groom's symbol of unity, they did everything they could to protect their candle from it.  And when the two of them were not enough, twenty of their best friends stepped in to create an impenetrable barrier, protecting it for them.

Isn't that beautiful?

Too often, we try to do things by ourselves.  We're this world of lonely people floundering around thinking no one else can understand.  But when we are surrounded by loving, supportive friends, even the worst storms in life won't be able to take us down.

I'm glad that Paul and Bethany have that figured out.  With a love founded in Christ, invested in each other, and surrounded by friends, their marriage is off to a beautiful beginning.

Delight

Every good and perfect gift is from above.

James 1:17a

I wish you could see the way my daughter delights in creation.

She loves to be out in nature, crawling around in the grass, picking up leaves and twirling them between her fingers, pointing to birds and clapping as they fly overhead.  Touching every flower she sees and laughing as it dances in her chubby grip.

Every time I take her out to play, I am reminded that my attitude should be more like hers.  Her reaction to nature is the one that puts a smile on God's face.  Don't you think He loves to see us take joy in His creation--His masterpiece?

It's funny to picture a world full of adults stopping to touch every flower they see, or laughing whenever a strong wind makes all of the leaves quiver on their branches.  So we all grow out of this pure joy of nature at some point in our lives.

But I'm promising right now to delight in God's creation with my daughter.  We will laugh at every flower, watch every snail, wave to the clouds and sink to our knees in the warm grass.  I will encourage her to be curious, I will show her that Mommy is in awe of God's creation, too.  I will remind her that she is cherished by a God who loves her enough to create all of this for her.

My love for her reminds me of God's love for all of us.  I can only give to my daughter the beauty that is around us.  But God knew just what would make her giggle over and over again, so He created it.

A Growing Morning

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This morning did not go as planned.

What Jesse and I had looked forward to as a morning spent together searching for a new computer for me turned into a morning of unexpected hiccups.  The property manager called to tell us that the repairmen we had requested two weeks ago would be arriving today sometime between 9am and 2pm.  Suddenly, our computer shopping time was taken away from us, the printer refused to print out the pages we needed, and somehow, instead of banding together against these seemingly annoying-but-harmless inconveniences, we let them reduce us to two selfish people overwhelmed by the things not going our way.

How does this happen?

I'm feeling especially convicted about my attitude right now.  Yes, it's very frustrating to be at home all day in  a house where the floor doesn't meet the bathtub and you can't shower without the risk of mold growing underneath, or where the counter tile hasn't been laid yet so the contents of your bathroom have been in boxes for the past two weeks, or where something's wrong with the ventilation system in your laundry room so that even if you run the dryer 4 times, the clothes still come out damp.  It's stressful, frustrating, and a little too out-of-my-hands for this control freak.  But that doesn't mean that I should lose it at the thought of going one more day without a computer.

I've been studying Proverbs 31 through Good Morning Girls, and through my time in the Word this morning after Jesse left, I realized with disappointment that I have not lived up to being a Proverbs 31 woman this week.  I have let the state of our home overpower my desire to be a loving and selfless wife, and have instead allowed it to fuel my selfishness and make demands of my Handsome Man that are too much for him on top of everything at his new job.

She will do him good and not evil

All the days of her life.

Proverbs 31:12

All the days.  That means I don't get to take good attitude timeouts when things don't go my way.  I can't flip out over the fact that there are no pictures hung up on the walls and oh-my-gosh-we've-lived-here-for-two-weeks-already.

She opens her mouth with wisdom,

And on her tongue is the law of kindness.

Proverbs 31:26

Ouch.  I have allowed the circumstances around us to take every word of kindness off of my tongue this week.  I have whined, badgered, and complained.  There is no wisdom in that, and definitely no love.

No, things didn't go as I had planned this morning.  But God had a different plan for me today.  Instead of getting what I wanted, God showed me that I wasn't doing what He wanted me to do.

Jesse left me this morning with a kiss, and the gift of his computer for the day.  He loves me enough to lay down what he needs to satisfy my selfish desires.  A man like that is a gift from God, and worth learning every difficult lesson for!

Thanks, God, for making me grow this morning.

A Purposeful 2012

My Handsome Man and I welcomed in the new year with an incredible hike to Cascade Falls near Lake Tahoe today.

It was a wonderful time to refocus on our "oneness" as we left our sweet Kayleigh behind at the cabin with a Grammy, Papa, and two doting aunts to fight over her :)

We talked about everything from past trips, engagement memories, future vacation dreams, and our hopes for 2012.

Jesse asked me what my New Year's Resolutions were. I don't have any. I've never really done "resolutions" because I see them as kind of a way to set up for failure. Sorry to be pessimistic.

I had goals I wanted to achieve in 2011, but a lot of them got set aside in anticipation of our baby girl. I'm happy with that, and I don't feel like I failed anything because my goals weren't resolutions set in stone. 2011 wasn't anything like I expected, but I wouldn't trade it for the world!

Over the past month, though, I have been thinking of things I hope to be and do in 2012. Nothing huge, nothing monumental. Just ways that I can use the time that God has given me as a stay at home mom to be more purposeful. So here's my list of purposeful goals that I've set out to accomplish in 2012:

Encourage Others (Hebrews 10:24)

Now that I'm at home, I don't get to interact with people as frequently as I did when I was working outside of the home. It's easy to become an introvert and think only about my own little family. This year, I want to purposefully focus on being an encourager to others. One way I can do that is to write letters of encouragement to those in my life. I want to write encouraging letters to my grandparents, church friends, far away friends, and family.

My goal is to write one letter a week.

Cherish Each Day (Luke 2:19)

A lot of people scrapbook, take a photo a day, or do something to preserve memories for each day of the year. I love to scrapbook, but totally fail on faithfully archiving memories. I love taking pictures, but never actually print them out. My solution to this is the index box calendar that I found on Design Sponge. This is something I can actually do! And I love the idea of seeing daily reminders of what my family has done through the years. It's exciting to think of writing "Kayleigh took her first step today!" and then a few years down the line, writing "Baby #2's first ultrasound!" on the same index card.

My goal is to purposefully treasure each day of the year by writing down one line per day.

Blog with a Purpose (Matthew 25:14-30)

I'm excited and honored with the interest in this blog. I haven't done a good job of cultivating it into something purposeful, but that is a big goal for this year! I want to be more organized in my blogging, share more craft ideas, invite more guest bloggers to share their posts, and eventually get to where I can have sponsorship on my blog. This is an exciting goal for me!

My goal is to spend more time learning about how to create a successful blog, less time just bumming around on the internet. Work with a purpose.

Teach Kayleigh about her Savior (Matthew 19:14)

Yes, she's only three months old, but she's growing so quickly and learning so much each day! She loves looking at brightly colored picture books and being sung to, and I'm going to be purposeful about using her interest in these things to read the little children's Bible stories we have, and sing her songs about Jesus. Babies understand more than we give them credit for, and I want my little one to be aware of her Heavenly Father's love!

My goal is to read to Kayleigh every day, pray for her with Jesse each night, and sing to her.

Love My Husband with Everything in Me (1 John 4:7-8)

It's alarming how easy it is to move from "wife" to "mother" and forget that my calling now is to be both. There are so many times that I place Kayleigh's needs first, mine after that, and then give Jesse whatever energy, love, and strength is left in me. That's not fair! I want to love him with a purpose--to rejoice in every triumph, comfort in each sorrow, and be there to listen to each detail of his day. I love our Kayleigh--and she is a precious gift--but I wouldn't have her without my Handsome Man. Spending today with him alone reminded me that I need to be more purposeful about finding time to spend alone with him.

My goal: more date nights, love notes, good conversation, hand-holding.

So there they are. Nothing earth-shaking, but things that I want to work on this year.

What are your goals for 2012?

With a Thankful Heart

Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and song.

  For the LORD is the great God,
the great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to him.
The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.

  Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
   for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.

Psalm 95:1-7

Dear Heavenly Father,

What a year it has been!  So many changes, and all of them wonderful.  I praise You for leading us through and providing for us all the way.  I've been thinking all day about the theme of thankfulness, and while there are many things I'm thankful for, these are the ones on my heart.

Thank You, God, for bringing Kayleigh into our life.  She's only two months old, but her smiles and interactions with us melt my heart.  Thank you for the joy that she is to us, for her safe delivery, and that she is growing healthy and strong.  Part of me wishes I could freeze her this way and keep her tiny always, but the other part of me is excited to see the girl you created her to be.  Please guard her and keep her safe always, Lord.  It may be only a short time that she's been with us, but I can't imagine life without her.  Thank you for entrusting her precious heart to us!

Thank You, Lord, for my Handsome Man.  Our love for each other deepened this year as we prepared for the birth of our little one.  The way that he cared for me while I carried Kayleigh made me feel so loved, and the way he coached me and cheered me on during Kayleigh's birth made me realize even more that You chose the perfect teammate for me.  Seeing him with Kayleigh fills my heart with love to the bursting point.  He is such a wonderful dad!  What a blessing he is to me.  Thank You for the 5 years that we have loved each other, and for the 3.5 that I have been his wife.  It's a wonderful life!

God, I'm so thankful for family.  Thank You for the family that I grew up in, for the family I married into, and for the additions to our family this year.  I love seeing Kayleigh with her grandparents, uncle and aunts.  They adore her so much, and it makes me so thankful that she is surrounded by so much love!  Thank You also for the addition of Megan, my brother's beautiful bride of three weeks.  We have all loved her ever since the first time Jon brought her home to meet us, and we praise You for finding the perfect helpmeet for him!  Thank You for my newest sister.  She is a blessing to us!

Thank you, God, for our new home, and the friends that it brings us closer to.  It was really hard to leave the beautiful yellow house that Jesse and I lived in for the past three years, and even though it's been a challenge to go from such a big house of blessings to an apartment that is half the size and twice the price, we know You've worked wonderful things through that change.  Thank You for the blessing that house was for our first three years of marriage.  Thank You for the friends who provided it for us, and for all of the memories Jesse and I cherish from our days of living there.  But thank You, also, for giving us the ability to move closer to our church, and for the fact that Jesse can ride his bike to work and come home for lunch sometimes.  We are so happy to be so close, and have been so blessed to be closer to our friends!  Thank You SO much for having Tyler and Stacey, and Jon and Kayse within walking distance of our home, and for having Chris and Jenny, Emanuel and Cassandra, and Matt and Emily all within a five minute drive.  It's so wonderful to be able to call them up and have them over any night of the week instead of having to factor in the 30 minute commute to our old house.

You are always so good to us, God, even when we don't deserve it.  Thank You for providing for us, for keeping us safe, and for surrounding us with so much love.  We praise You for it!

Your child,

Bethany

Breakfast with Paul

Take some time to pause for a moment..and remember... 

When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.  I pray that from His glorous, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit.  Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him.  Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong.  And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is.  May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully.  Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.  Glory to Him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever!

 

Amen

Ephesians 3:14-21

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A Letter from my Father

I found this almost a year ago, and it's been on my bedside table ever since.  I love picking it up and reading it when I'm discouraged, lonely, or needing reassurance.  It's a constant reminder of my dad's love for me, but also, of my Heavenly Father's.  (That's why "A Letter from my Father" can be taken both ways.)

My dad gave it to me six years ago.  I don't even remember the occassion, but since it's dated "13 VI '04" as only my dad would write it, I know that it was given to me right after graduating from high school.

I love that he used Scripture, paraphrasing it so that the God-inspired words in the Apostle Paul's letter feel as if they were written directly to me. 

Sweet Princess B,

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you, from the first day until now.  For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. 

For it is only right for me to feel this way about you, because I have you in my heart.  For God is my witness, how I long for you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!  Let your patient spirit be known to all.  The Lord is near.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.

Finally, Bethany, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good reputation, if there is any excellence and if anything is worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things.  The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, pratice these things; and the God of peace shall be with you.
Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

Princess,
Your mother and I pray for you daily.  We look forward to hearing the details of your journey.  We will miss you, but our joy will be intensified when you come home.  It is my joy to remain your Daddy, always.

The Lord bless you and keep you;

The Lord make His face to shine 

Upon you, and be gracious to you;

The Lord turn His face toward you,

and give you peace. 

There is Nothing

Lord I come before You


To honor and adore You

For who You are and all that You have done

Lord I am not worthy

My heart is dark and dirty

Still somehow You bid for me to come




So clothe me in humility

Remind me, that I come before a King




And there is nothing

There is nothing

More precious, more worthy

May I gaze deeper

May I stand longer

May I press onward to know You Lord




May our time be sweeter

May I be a keeper

Of the promises I make to You in song

Lord may I remember these moments of surrender

And live my life this way from this day on




So clothe me in humility

Remind me, that I come before a King




And there is nothing

There is nothing

More precious, more worthy

May I gaze deeper

May I stand longer

May I press onward to know You Lord



--Laura Story

Like Visiting an Old Friend

Jesse and I went to the high school baccalaureate service tonight at church. We sang How Great Thou Art, which--I don't believe--I've sung since attending a Lutheran church.

I love this song! I still remember the page it's on in the beloved Trinity Hymnal that I sang from all of my growing up years, and the way the voices of the church members blended together with the piano's melody. Jesse's always surprised when I know a song by heart. I don't just memorize them. I feel them in my very being. I love this one! Singing it tonight just made me want to share it with you.




O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.


Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!


When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.


Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!


And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing;
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin.


Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!


When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart.
Then I shall bow, in humble adoration,
And then proclaim: "My God, how great Thou art!"


Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!

Joy in Hard Times

I led the Bible study for our college and career group at church last night, and thought I'd flesh it out here for you (I didn't write anything down other than quick notes for myself, but here's the gist of what I said). In these times, everyone needs a little reflection and encouragement!

While I'm not a fan of using The Message as one's sole version of Scripture, I found it helpful to quote for you here so that you wouldn't be side-tracked by words that you are probably overly familiar with. Read the words below and see if you can recognize who wrote them, when, and for what purpose.

Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer. I find myself praying for you with a glad heart. I am so pleased that you have continued on in this with us, believing and proclaiming God's Message, from the day you heard it right up to the present. There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.

It's not at all fanciful for me to think this way about you. My prayers and hopes have deep roots in reality. You have, after all, stuck with me all the way from the time I was thrown in jail, put on trial, and came out of it in one piece. All along you have experienced with me the most generous help from God. He knows how much I love and miss you these days. Sometimes I think I feel as strongly about you as Christ does!


If you can cypher through all of the modern-day language (surely the Apostle did not say that his friends "stuck with him"), you will recognize the words of Paul in his letter to the Philippians ("I thank my God every time I remember you." Is that a little more familiar?)

Here's the whole section from the NIV:
I thank my God every time I remember you. 4In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

7It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God's grace with me. 8God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:3-8

Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians while he was in prison for preaching God's word. Knowing this, there are some key words and thoughts in the first few verses that stick out to me.

Right from the beginning, Paul says that he prays with joy. How is someone who is in prison able to pray with joy? The first emotions I think I would be praying with would be sorrow or desperation that the Lord would deliver me. But Paul finds joy in praying for others--not even himself. Later on in Philippians, Paul tells his friends "but I want you to know, brothers, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel." Philippians 1:12

The way that Paul can find true joy in the midst of such difficult circumstances is a demonstration of his Christ-founded peace.

Oh, that I had that peace!

Everywhere you turn today, someone is talking about the economy. It makes headlines in the news every day, you hear people mention the hard times as you pass by, and as the recession continues, it's not something you just hear about--it's affecting everyone.

Jobs, sales, morale, so many things are hurting. In the midst of it all, with no prospective immediate rebound, where do we find joy?

The Bible is full of examples of people who trusted in God yet still saw great suffering. There's your classic Job figure, but let's go past him and think of others whose sufferings are more like our own.

There was Daniel, who was punished for obeying God's authority instead of the government. He was thrown into a den of lions, and when his friend, King Darius returned to the den in the morning, he found Daniel on his knees praising the Lord.

There was Hannah, the beloved wife of Elkanah, who was unable to have children. She prayed to the Lord and promised that if He would give her a son, she would return him to God when he was of age. She raised him and took him to the temple when he was old enough and put him in the care of Eli, the priest, where he continued to serve God.

Joseph suffered for many years after being betrayed by his brothers, but he didn't turn any of it to evil. He befriended one of the Pharoah's officials, became his right-hand man, and soon held one of the most influential positions in Egypt. When a great famine hit the Canaan, Joseph's brothers came to the city to buy food. Joseph recognized them, and instead of punishing them as he had the power to do, he forgave them and invited the whole family to move to Egypt to escape the famine.

Then there was David. Although at first I could only think of the suffering he had as direct result of disobeying God, I was reminded of his suffering while he was in Saul's pursuit. Many of the Psalms depict the true turmoil that David was in, yet he trusted in God to protect him from his enemies.

I won't type it all out here, but these are the verses I had the group turn to to get a better picture of putting our joy and hope in the Lord in the midst of strife:

Psalm 16 (The hope of the faithful)
Psalm 34 (Happiness of those who trust)
Psalm 40 (Faith persevering in trial)
Psalm 71 (God is my hope)
John 15:9-17 (Love and joy perfected)
Philippians 1:12 (Suffering -->furtherance of the Gospel)
1 Peter 3:13-17 (Joy and suffering for righteousness' sake-->model godly behavior)

Lastly, I want to share with you an excerpt from "Devotions for Renewal and Joy" by Warren W. Wiersbe:

The world talks about happiness, but God talks about joy. There is a difference, and when you learn what that difference is, your life will be different.

Happiness depends on happenings, what goes on around you. When your plans work out right, when you feel good, when problems are at a minimum, then you're happy. But
when you wake up with a headache or the boss rearranges your schedule or somebody
you love is hurting, then that happiness fades, and you’re left feeling discouraged and defeated. You feel like quitting.

But life doesn’t have to be that way. You can substitute joy for happiness and experience a whole new kind of life.

Joy doesn’t depend on what goes on around you. It depends on what goes on within you.
It is the result of a right relationship with God, a right attitude toward life, and a right faith in the power of Christ. Happiness says, “I am the captain of my fate!” and courts disaster. Joys says, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (Php 4:13) and marches to victory.

Paul didn’t write the epistle to the Philippians from a comfortable library or an ivory tower. When he wrote it, he was a prisoner in Rome and in danger of being executed any day. Yet this letter is saturated with joy and rejoicing. Why? Because Paul was a man who knew Christ; he was a single-minded man with a mission to fulfill and a God to serve.

Outlook helps to determine outcome, and in this letter, Paul tells you how to have the kind of outlook that produces joy. He shares the “open secret” of having joy in spite of circumstances, people, things or situations. He explains the basic principles of Christian experience that can turn your life into a daily celebration of the joy of the Lord.

Yes, you will still
have problems and battles and burdens, but you will find yourself overcoming instead of being overcome.

You will find yourself joyfully saying with Paul, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”