Commitment

God has recently impressed upon me both the call He’s laid on my life and the importance of my commitment to that call.

I’m a writer who writes by the leading of God. I consider it a ministry. The same holds true for my photography. I’m blessed in that He’s given me the desires of my heart. It was a long struggle between the Lord and me. For years, I was caught up in the world’s definition of success and satisfaction. God used physical circumstances to get my attention and, true to His word, brought me to a higher place. Psalm 18:19, New Living Translation, says: He led me to a place of safety; he rescued me because he delights in me.

I’ve come to realize that only in consistent obedience to His call can I truly grow spiritually. This plays out in my two blogs, Words from the Heart and The Storyteller, as well as other avenues He’s opened to me.

This past year has been a challenge. The move from Heidelberg, Germany back to my home in Arizona took more time and effort than I ever imagined. Now it’s time to get back to work.

I believe that obedience is the most important thing we can do in our relationship with the Creator, second only to entering into an intimate relationship with Him.

If you do not know the Lover of your soul, I encourage you to meet Him.

“For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” Matthew 7:8, New Living Translation

You could begin with the previous post (January 1, 2007) and information in the Special Note below. It’s not important where you begin, just that you take that first step.

In obedience to my Father, I will be posting here on a weekly basis. If my words touch your heart, I pray you’ll visit again soon.

Blessings, Francine

SPECIAL NOTE: I pray that each commentary I write here will bless you, but please understand that some are built on previous entries. I’ve tried to build a Biblical basis from which my thoughts are developed. It’s important that you understand my words aren’t the end of the story, so to speak. I would encourage you to check out previous entries if you have questions concerning what I’ve written. In addition, I’ve included links to several web sites that can provide much more detailed guidance than I’m able to do here. Check out “Running Empty” or “Power to Change” (see list of links to the right). For more in-depth study, you can visit “Now Try God” or “New Christian Life” as additional resources. The bottom line – don’t accept what I say as gospel. That’s what the Bible is for. An excellent on-line resource is BibleGateway.com .

Another good site is Crossmap, and not just because my inspirational messages can now be found there. This organization, which has been running since 2000, serves the Christian community as a web portal. There are great columns by talented nationally known writers and pastors, a wide variety of other Christian sites, news, and commentaries.

As always, I welcome your comments or you can contact me at tenderheartaz@yahoo.com

Open or Closed?

Are you open or closed to God?

If we aren’t open to Him and how He wants to guide our lives then we are closed.

It’s our choice. We can be receptive to all God has for us or we can reject what He has to offer.

It’s like opening a door or closing one. It takes an action on our part.

So many people believe God just sits on His throne and watches His creations run around like ants. While He never sleeps and His eye is even on the tiniest of sparrows, He also knows exactly what is going on with His creation. We are His beloved.

But He never forces Himself or His plans on us. You see, in His infinite love, He gave us free choice. I mean, after all, love isn’t love if it’s forced.

Will you open the door?

By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us—set us right with him, make us fit for him—we have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus. And that's not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us. We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God's grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise. Romans 5:1, The Message
 
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