In Other Words....am I a Pharisee?

I love the quote Amy is asking us to ponder today!

“A pharisee is hard on others and easy on himself,

but a spiritual man is easy on others and hard on himself.”
by A.W.Tozer

I love this! Oh, how Jesus was so MAD at the Pharisees of His day. They continued to burden people with rule after rule to follow while ignoring rules themselves. (Matthew 15:1-9) He calls them hypocrites and says, "These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men."

Pharisees want to follow the rules without offering grace. Jesus said, "I desire mercy, not sacrifice (Matthew 12:7) It is so much easier to look out "there" and see Christians who are messing up or who are not living out the Word perfectly. We can say, "Look! The Word tells us to do this and they are doing THAT!"

While we want to encourage one another in the faith, we are NOT to be the Holy Spirit for others! When God convicts US of something, it is NOT our "job" to impose it on others. I openly share my trials and what God is teaching ME and convicting ME of. Often other women share with me that the Holy Spirit convicted them of the same because of my testimony. But, it is the Holy Spirit who does the work!

That's why I love this Tozer quote!

"When we are hard on ourselves," we are looking at our own faults, seeking to follow Christ, picking up our own cross, allowing the Lord to shape, mold, and refine us, NOT telling others to pick up their crosses.

It is a fine line because we see Paul admonish the churches through his letters and challenge Believers. And, we are called to speak the Truth (and here is the key!) IN LOVE. What are our motives? Are we being self-righteous, "holier than thou"? Or, is our motive a genuine, loving concern for someone. Sometimes God calls us to lovingly approach other believers about sinful behavior. Last year, after MUCH prayer, I talked to a good friend about a sin she was caught in. It was wonderful and she knew that I loved and cared about her- in fact, loved her enough to be tuthful with her! But, it was GOD who led me and gave me the words and prepared her heart in advance.

So, as I ponder Tozer's quote, I am challenged to look at my own heart, asking God to search ME and refine me. And, as I openly and honestly share these situations with others, sometimes it will challenge, encourage, and inspire them to do the same.

This quote reminded me of another favorite quote.
"A child needs your love the most when she deserves it the least."

Lord, may I never be a pharisee to those around me, especially my children!

At the Well....Kindness... Are you too busy?

Welcome back to the well! I haven't written here for a few weeks, but I have checked the question each week, pondering and praying over the discussion questions. I am so thankful for Chelsey at Joyfully Living for organizing this awesome spot for women of all walks of life (and places in our faith walks) to gather for encouragement and wisdom.

This week, Lori from I will take it Lord, all You have to give is hosting.

Topic:"Interruptions, Delays and Inconveniences"

Lori reminds us, "Titus 2 reminds us to ...'to be kind,' but are we really as kind as we can be in our daily lives or are we so focused that we only see the interruptions, delays and inconveniences as frustrations instead of the opportunities that lie in them for God to reveal Himself.How do you handle interruptions in your days? Do you plow right on over them missing opportunities God has placed on your path? What interruptions frustrate you the most? How are you working to overcome that?"

I love that Lori brings this topic up! It is sooooo important in today's hustle/bustle, goal-oriented, gotta-finish-my-to-do list generation, and so important as Christ followers. If we look to Jesus, we see that He was so aware of those around Him and no matter how busy He was, He made time for more! (I mean, how much busier could we be than JESUS????)

One of my favorite examples of this is when Jesus was going to the home of Jairus to heal his daughter. On the way, a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years touched the hem of Jesus' coat and was healed. Now, Jesus could have just kept going. The woman was healed and Jairus and his followers were hurrying Jesus to get to the little girl. But, Jesus stopped to show her kindness. (Matthew 9:18-22, Luke 8:40-48)

One of my greatest challenges is caller i.d.! I am guilty of peeking at the caller i.d. and thinking, "Oh, I just don't have TIME to talk to that person right now!"

But, lately God has been convicting me of answering the call to talk to friends/family and spending time on relationships. There have been several recent conversations lately when I knew that the caller needed a friend and a listening ear. God, in His goodness redeemed my time and I was able to finish my chores. And, when I am "behind" on my "to do" list, God reminds me of the kindness extended and how THAT activity was more important than anything on my LIST!

What we must do is pray to be sensitive the Holy Spirit and His leading. We may not always SEE the person needing a kind word, smile, or help, but the Holy Spirit does. He will whisper to us, lead, and guide us, but we must be listening! And, I try to pray that God would bring people across my path for me to bless.

There are so many hurting people that need to be shown kindness- both unbelievers AND believers! Our husbands.... our children....the people in our every day lives! Sometimes we have no problem extending grace and kindness to strangers, but forget to do it with our own family members! We roll our eyes, sigh heavily, and wonder how the household survives without us!

OUCH!

Am I generous in my kindness? Am I, when showing kindness, doing it "as I am doing it as unto the Lord" or keeping track of my "kind acts" and keeping score?

Have you heard the awesome song by Brandon Heath? Watch the video here. The chorus is my prayer!

Give me your eyes for just one second. Give me your eyes so I can see... Everything that I keep missing. Give me your love for humanity. Give me your arms for the broken-hearted. The ones that are far beyond my reach. Give me your heart for the ones forgotten. Give me your eyes so I can see.

Lord, I never want to be so busy that I miss the brokenhearted- the one who needs a SMILE....grace....a kind word....

Please visit Lori this morning for more wonderful wisdom on kindness...

Camping Fun at Lake McBride

Thank You, God! We just enjoyed a beautiful family weekend together camping at Lake McBride. (This is the same gorgeous state park where the family pictures in my sidebar were taken last year.) We hiked, made sandcastles, visited the dam and spillway, and camped over night. What a beautiful time of year this is with the leaves changing. Lord, Your Creation is amazing! Thanks for the incredible blessings!

Oh, no! Here we go again.......

Do you feel like you are on a roller coaster?

Do you feel scared with the economy, the election, hurricanes.....?

To read about it, please visit me at