Paula Wiseman

Faith and life meet in a story

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Something to think about as you start a new week

Monday Meditations are quick posts designed to get you thinking about God. They provide a fresh perspective as you jump into your routine.

 

Seek Peace

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Let him seek peace and pursue it. 1 Peter 3:11

Peter quotes the timeless counsel in Psalm 34.
Seek means searching diligently, not giving up after a cursory glance.
Pursue means with tireless effort, not giving up until it is attained.

Seek peace with God.
Deal with the sins which separate you.
Diligently. Tirelessly.

Seek peace with others.
Seek it. Look for the best, for common ground.
Pursue it. Forgive. Reconcile. Give the benefit of the doubt.

Seek peace within.
A clear conscience before God.
A calm confidence in God.

The benefits? Peter explains in verse 10. You love life. You see good days.
Counsel worth heeding.

A Poor, Broken Spirit

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The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart– These, O God, You will not despise. Psalm 51:17

Sin
Self-centeredness
Self-reliance

Needs to be

Convicted
Confronted
Confessed

With

Honesty
Humility
Hunger

Which leads to

Restoration
Renewal
Revival

Every single time.

But we

Hide
Hedge
Hesitate

And we cling to

Fear rather than faith
Condemnation rather than cleansing
Misery rather than mercy.

Don’t do that.

Open hands to let go.
Open mouth to confess.
Open heart to receive.

Mercy. Love. Grace.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3

Like Boaz

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And when she rose up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. Ruth 2:15

Boaz was a wealthy farmer, and his fields were full at harvest time.
We are surrounded by people whose circumstances have left them with needs and little recourse.

Boaz was generous. The law required that farmers allow gleaning. He offered more than just his castoffs.
We can go beyond what is expected in our interactions with others.

Boaz had great compassion. He used his resources to care for others.
We must not shame or question the motives of those who are in need.

But sometimes, we are more like Ruth.

Poor. Alone. Isolated.
With few other options.
Maybe with others depending on us.

God is kind. He is generous.
He calls us to His table.
He offers His riches.
And He will never shame us in our need.

See, Boaz strove to be godly in his attitudes and interactions.

Because we have often been like Ruth, we understand how important it is to seize the opportunity to be more like Boaz, and so more like God.

What Do You Know?

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What do you know? Paul explained what he knew.

I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. 2 Timothy 1:12

By this point in my life, I know some things.

I know Newton’s Laws.
I know the multiplication tables.
I know the cases for nouns in English, Latin and Greek.

And I know almost every line of dialogue in Jaws and Star Wars.
I know most of the songs that come on the radio.
I know the books of the Bible, the Ten Commandments and the twelve apostles.

But I also know what it’s like to be a wife, and a mother.
I know the grief of losing someone close to me.
I know the satisfaction of reaching a goal, but I also know rejection and failure.

I’ve seen my prayers answered.
I’ve felt the comfort of God’s presence.
I’ve also heard His gentle, yet unmistakable, no.

For most of Paul’s life, he had studied God. After Damascus, he knew God.

His confidence came from experience.

So does ours.

Every experience invites us to a deeper understanding of Almighty God.

Every situation is a chance to strengthen our resolve that the LORD, He is God and beside Him is no other.

What do you know?

I’m Too …

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The LORD replied, “Don’t say, ‘I’m too young,’ for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you. Jeremiah 1:7 (NLT)

Don’t say, “I’m too young,” or “I’m too old.”

Don’t say, “I’m too inexperienced, or too unskilled.”

Don’t say, “I’m too busy, or too tired.”

Don’t say, “I’m too afraid, or too intimidated.”

Don’t say, “I’m too unsure, or too uncertain.”

Don’t say, “I’m too comfortable, or too safe.”

Don’t say, “I’m too unprepared, or too indecisive.”

Because God says, “For I will be with you and will protect you. I, the LORD, have spoken!” Jeremiah 1:8

Real Greatness

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Yours, O Lord, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O Lord,
And You are exalted as head over all.

1 Chronicles 29:11

 
As another week begins, it is easy to get consumed by the details of our schedules.
It is easy to become disheartened by events on a world scale and on a personal scale.
It is easy to feel small and ineffectual.

But there is real greatness.
There is real power and glory and majesty.
There is an exalted King who rules over all.
A sovereign Lord and Master.

This King knows my name and your name.
And He invites us to call Him Father.

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