Better Than Thousands

–Delana H. Stewart

The Place God Dwells

In studying Psalm 84: 1-12 (NIV), I compared and contrasted the psalmist’s experience visiting the Temple of the Lord with Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians (6:19-20) regarding those who follow Jesus being the temples in which God dwells.

In the first two verses of Psalm 84, the psalmist writes:

¹ How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty!
² My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord;my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.

Do I long for the Lord like that? Here I am, a temple of the Mighty God. Do I take the time to be still and seek Him? How lovely is my temple in which He dwells?

The Journey There

Verses 4-5 state: ⁴ Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you. ⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

The Lord, the maker of the heavens and the earth, dwells in me. I should be ever praising Him. When God’s presence filled the Temple, people traveled long distances to be in His presence. I do not have to journey to a far off place. God is in me. Yet I must set aside time for solitude to meet Him in this place. I must journey inward to experience the fullness of His presence.

Everyday in His Presence

In verse 10, the psalmist exclaims:

¹⁰ Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

Wherever I walk, I am in the courts of the Lord. Wherever I sit, wherever I stand, wherever I work, wherever I talk. Do I live my life like I am in God’s courts? Can others sitting in the room with me experience being in God’s presence?

The Psalmist concludes by saying:

¹² Lord Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in you.

And Paul tells those who trust in Jesus–

¹⁹ Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰ you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.  1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV

 

Learning from Disappointment

“When have you most wanted a miracle in your life and been disappointed? What did you learn from the experience?”  

Philip Yancey asked these contemplative questions in my devotional reading today in Meet the Bible. They definitely provided me cause to pause.

Three experiences in my life came to mind.

1)      My parents’ divorce.

What I experienced:

I thought back to the time I was 12 years old and wanted more than anything for my parents to not break up. I prayed for it. I prayed for reconciliation.

What I learned:

I could not control other people. I could not control everything that happened to me. I could control how I would respond and how I would choose to live my life. I also learned that God redeems bad situations and continues to care for me and provide for me.

 2)      The death of my step-Grandmother.

What I experienced:

While I was in college, my step-Grandmother suffered from liver cancer. I prayed that she would be healed. She died.

What I learned:

God is in control, not me. There is always a bigger picture.

 3)      Closed doors in our adoption journey.

What I experienced:

During a decade of waiting, there were many doors that closed along the way. Experiences that threatened to steal my joy, peace, hope, and trust.

What I learned:

Always hope. Always believe. Always trust. Never give up! Closed doors are often God’s way of directing our steps to the situation and timing best for us. Closed doors often bring us to a point of truly seeking Him, trusting Him, depending on Him.

–Delana H. Stewart

Waiting in the Cocoon

By: Delana H. Stewart

Do you feel like you are in a holding tank? Perhaps waiting in a cocoon?

Stephen W. Smith in his book Embracing Soul Care quotes Trina Paulus author of Hope for the Flowers:

“I’m making a cocoon,” said the caterpillar. “It looks like I’m hiding, I know, but a cocoon is no escape. It’s an in-between house where the change takes place . . . . During the change, it will seem . . . that nothing is happening, but the butterfly is already becoming. It just takes time.”

 

I have been there, in the cocoon, that is. Waiting. Waiting. Waiting some more. Wondering if God had heard my prayers. Wondering if I had heard God correctly. I know what it is like to wait for something for a decade.

Oh, how I wanted to break out of the cocoon and not wait! But I am so glad and thankful that I did not rush the process. Beauty, life, grace, and strength come through the cocoon.

Like the author of Embracing Soul Care I reflected during that decade of waiting on those in the Bible who had long periods of waiting, too. Job waited for healing and restoration. Abraham and Sarah waited their whole lives for a child. Moses waited for 40 years before God called him from the burning bush. The Israelites waited in the desert before being able to enter the promise land. Jonah waited for days inside the belly of a great fish.  Jesus waited in the tomb.

God’s faithfulness and provision come while we are waiting. Are you in a cocoon today? This time of waiting you face in your life is more than just waiting for something to happen, an answer to come; it is about the process of becoming.

“. . . the butterfly is already becoming. It just takes time.”

***************************************************

See also:

Death before Life

[An excerpt from my upcoming book, Nine Year Pregnancy.] Years of persevering in prayer, waiting for God to answer, waiting for Him to fulfill a dream, I reached a point where the dream had to die. At that time, I sincerely thought that the dream died, the door closed forever, never to be opened again. [...]

November 4, 2011

A Season of Waiting

If you have been struggling with unanswered prayer or have been waiting a really long time for God to answer your prayer, then this is for you. If you have been waiting a long time for God to bring a spouse into your life or if you have been waiting on God to open your [...]

October 6, 2011

Perseverance and Adoption

3 Reasons Why I Liked the Old Topics View Better

Anyone else out there frustrated by the way the “Topics” tab works now?

Dear WordPress, If you really want to know what other WordPress viewers think about the new view, freshly press this and see what kind of response you get.

I liked the old view better because:

1. I could quickly skim through hours worth of popular articles by heading and photo to determine if there were recent articles that would interest me. The old view did not require me to wait for large photos to upload for articles I didn’t want to read. Sometimes I cannot even get it to go beyond the “wait there’s more” phrase to show me the next page.

2. Searching by topic (whether by clicking on a common topic or inserting the word in search) brought up a nice, easy-to-read through list.

3. I liked how it showed the top two featured posts for that category.

Someone probably likes this new view better. Please leave a comment to tell me why, maybe I will learn to like it, too.

If, like me, you do not like it either, please “like” this post and leave a comment as to why. Perhaps WordPress will take notice.

And if by chance there is still a way for me to view the topics the old way, and I just have not discovered it, please let me know how!

Deep and Wide 101

One of my favorite childhood songs was Deep and Wide. I looked today for the origin of that song, but could not find it.

“Deep and Wide, deep and wide, there’s a fountain flowing deep and wide.”

A few weeks ago I penned a verse to go with that chorus–

Lord, You are deeper than the pain.

You are wider than the stain.

You are a fountain flowing with love and grace.

 

Ephesians 3:18

New Living Translation (©2007)
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.

Romans 8:38-39

New International Version (NIV)

³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ 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.

Hebrews 4:16

New International Version (©1984)
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

 

Three Days at Sea

This is the title of the book I am working on

and hope to publish later this year.

To follow progress, see photos, and read excerpts

visit the book’s blog:

http://3daysatsea.wordpress.com/

I Felt You

I felt You today.

I was standing there, so hot, so weary,

gazing upon yet another task to be done.

When a gentle breeze blew through

the window whispering in my ear…

“Lift up your head. Look unto Me.”

And I gazed unto the clouds

and smiled

as the wind wisped playfully

with my hair.

I felt You today

when little fingers curled round mine,

trusting, loving me unconditionally,

forgetting my many failures,

grinning at me so contagiously…not a worry or a care.

I felt You today!

By: Delana H. Stewart (c) 1999

Psalm 24:1-2, 8-10 and Psalm 25:1-2

Beauty and the Beast

In my devotional reading today in the book Embracing Soul Care by Stephen W. Smith, I reflected on the way our senses affect our souls. Today’s lesson focused specifically on the sense of sight.

The author shares: “Nothing speaks to our souls with as much force as pain and beauty. Pain stops us in our tracks with blunt force trauma; beauty soothes and ministers. Beauty ushers us into places of the soul that breathe life, inspiration, awe. Seeing beauty, we hear the voice of the God who inspired it. Beauty turns our eyes toward Jesus” (p. 170).

While Stephen Smith did not elaborate on pain, I found myself mulling over my own question: “What does pain usher in?”

From the time I was small and scraped my knee or bumped my head, I observed in my own life how pain ushered in comfort, help, and healing from loved ones in my life.

Pain of childbirth ushers in new life and joy.

Deep pains, sorrows, both physically and emotionally, sometimes reach depths prohibiting those around to bring the comfort and help and healing needed. They sometimes go deeper than a mother’s care or doctor’s prescription can treat.

But I have seen with my own eyes and experienced in my life how pain (physical and emotional) ushers us into the very throne room of God, at the very feet of Jesus.

So, through beauty and pain our eyes are turned to Jesus!

Happy Birthday Mom!

 

 

Mom, you are amazing and you amaze me more and more every day!

Thanks for always being there for me!

I love you!

Happy Birthday!

5 Things Not to do with Ground Cumin

Variety may be the spice of life, but here are 5 things not to do with ground cumin:

1. Don’t buy it in the same kind/brand of container that you buy your Ground Cinnamon!

2. Don’t keep it on the same shelf as you do your Ground Cinnamon.

3. Don’t attempt to use it first thing in the morning when you are not fully awake to read the label!

4. Don’t sprinkle it on your cinnamon raisin toast!

5. Don’t put it in your coffee! (Note: It will wake you up quickly if you do!)

 

Helplessness

I am recently working through the study guide of the book When Life is Hard by James MacDonald.

Like holding up the head of a premature infant fighting for breath and life, God holds up my head in my helplessness.

In the lesson for Day 1 the following quote on page 14 really jumped out at me:

“God knows unless we realize our helplessness, we won’t rely on Him or experience all He has for us and all He can accomplish through us. You see, God really knows what He’s doing!”

That is what I am clinging to today . . . how about you?

Upon

Let us come together rejoicing,

Joyfully singing of our Great and Awesome God.

Lifting to His throne our voices,

Bowing on our knees,

Shouting through the village streets

“How marvelous is the Lord, Our God!”

Come, come with me my brothers and my sisters,

Let us offer up thanksgiving

To the One in whom we trust.

Praise Him that His love

Is for, forever,

That He is Just,

Yet showers down His mercy

Upon us!

Delana H. Stewart

7 Tips for Parenting a Strong-Willed Child

 

1. Stay calm.

Two very simple words, yet these words represent a very difficult thing to do when your child becomes angry or throws a tantrum. However, I have learned that if I let my child’s anger get me angry, then it results in an escalation of anger. Staying calm helps your child calm down, and has the added benefit of not raising your blood pressure.

2.       Drone on like a broken record.

Staying matter-of-fact and monotonously repeating your calm instruction helps your child realize that his or her emotional outburst is not changing your stance or approach.

3.       Use logic.

Though there are times and children who will defy all the logic you try, I high percentage of the time, if you use logic and consistency you will reap great benefits. One of my favorite resources in helping parents use logic with their children is Parenting With Love and Logic by Cline and Fay.

4.       Empathize.

This is another tip that I believe I learned from Cline and Fay’s book, as well as from other resources along the way. Sometimes our children (like all of us) have to do things they do not enjoy, and/or face consequences for misdeeds or bad behavior. As parents, we can offer love, compassion, and true sorrow for the tough day or experience our child is walking through, while at the same time holding firm to the consequence.

5.       Give yourself a time-out.

Sometimes the best thing we can do when dealing with a tantrum or a child exerting a strong-will is to take a break. Sometimes that means one parent letting another parent handle a situation. Sometimes that means going into your bedroom and collecting your thoughts before proceeding. For me, at times it has meant soaking in the tub and waiting slightly to deal with an issue.

6.       Wait for the storm to calm.

It is best to not try and give any explanation or ask for any explanation when a child is raging. Numerous authors have written about the brain’s inability to respond appropriately when angry. Just Google amygdala and brain hijacking! Deal with the issue at hand when both you and your child are calm and emotions have had time to settle.

7.       Pray!

I do not say this lightly and do not mean just the daily prayers we pray for our children. Though praying for our kids daily is a great idea! What I mean is in the moment our strong-willed child is at the peak of his or her strong-willed moment or temper-tantrum moment to pray right then outloud! Often, in the moment, I forget to call upon the Lord when there is great power at the mention of the name of Jesus. Do not forget that there is a spiritual battle going on in addition to the battle that you can see.

 

Books you may find helpful:

Parenting With Love and Logic

No More Meltdowns

The New Strong-Willed Child

 

 

Web Resources from The Education Cafe:

• 3March 1, 2011Tantrums and Meltdowns

• 1February 24, 2011No Angry Breakfast: Tips for kids with ADD or Strong Wills

• 1May 10, 2010Empowering Mothers, part 1: Dealing with Power Drains

• 0May 9, 2010Empowering Mothers, part 2: Establishing Respect

• 2May 9, 2010Addendum to Empowering Mothers: The symptoms of Attachment Disorder

• 0May 3, 2010Dealing with the Difficulties of Parenting and Teaching

• 0November 19, 2009Healthy Love: Loving Without Overprotecting, Overindulging, or Overcontrolling

• 0November 16, 2009Tips for Dealing with Strong-Willed Kids

• 2November 14, 2009Strong-Willed Children: Understanding and Solving the Challenge

 

Easter Bonnet, Bluebonnets

Yes, Easter is still a few days away, but I thought I would get an early start!

I love Easter, and I love the bluebonnets that are always blooming in the springtime in Texas! Though I haven’t bought or worn a new Easter bonnet in many years, I have always loved Easter bonnets. Something about a new hat, new dress, new life…

Having traveled around the world, I have learned that in many countries the new year is celebrated in springtime. That makes so much more sense than celebrating it in January. In the spring the trees put out leaves, flowers bloom, birds return and give birth to young. New life is everywhere you look.

The greatest new life is the new life we have because the tomb of Christ is empty!

He is risen!

(If you have new life in Christ, I hope you will leave a comment such as: He is risen indeed!)

Blue Skies for World Autism Day

Today, if you haven’t heard, is World Autism Day. You can learn more about the Light it Up Blue campaign by clicking here: http://www.lightitupblue.org/Markslist/home.do.

You may also want to check out my articles here:

http://theeducationcafe.wordpress.com/2012/04/02/the-cafe-has-the-blues-6/

If someone you care about is on the Autism Spectrum, then light it up blue!

I know that I have posted this picture once or twice before, but it is one of my favorite photos of the color blue (and it was taken by my sweet daughter-in-law Juliana).