Tag: Perseverance

The Pull to Turn

enCultivate

Journal Entry // December 20, 2021

those who have turned back from following the LORD, who do not seek the LORD or inquire of him.”

Zephaniah 1:6 ESV

It seems as though the last few weeks of my reflection time have been heavily focused on perseverance and patience as I wait upon the Lord to deliver. As I have reflected on this the past couple of weeks, I have mainly been concerned with understanding that God is faithful and true and will fulfill his promises at their proper time. This passage presents a different perspective on why perseverance and patience are so vital to my faith. It’s not that God will leave or forsake me, rather the concern is that I will leave and forsake Christ.

Continue reading “The Pull to Turn” →

Sure Footed

enCultivate

Journal Entry // December 19, 2021

GOD, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer’s; he makes me tread on my high places.

Habakkuk 3:19 ESV

This message from Habakkuk moves from questioning God with complaints about his purposes in this world to humble reliance upon the grace and mercy of the Lord. This last portion of the message is always so encouraging to me. Habakkuk begins this portion by listing off the different struggles that threaten life in his day. Fig trees not blossoming, no fruit on the vine, no olives, no harvest from the field, the flock and herd are no more. These are the personal disasters of my life pilling up on one on another. So that not only does today bring challenge and trouble, but the future is now in doubt as well. I feel this with Habakkuk and I understand and experience this worry with him – an anxiousness for the future.

Continue reading “Sure Footed” →

Hopeful Waiting

enCultivate

Journal Entry // February 13, 2021

And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you.

Psalm 39:7 ESV

And what is this hope that David is waiting on? It is not the type of hope that we use in our modern day vernacular. It is not this wishful hope that we have no idea if it will come to pass. It is not hoping that I win the lottery or hoping that it doesn’t rain next weekend. No, this hope in the Lord is a surety that what God has promised will come to pass. That even in the darkest of moments when it looks like his promise is failing, we can trust that the Lord will surely bring about what he has promised.

Continue reading “Hopeful Waiting” →

Precious Time

enCultivate

Journal Entry // February 5, 2021

One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple.

Psalm 27:4 ESV

What is it that the Psalmist longs for and is the desire of his heart? Fellowship with the Lord.

  • Dwell in the house of the Lord… To spend every moment in the presence of the Lord. To have fellowship, communion, relationship with the Father.
  • Gaze upon his beauty… To simply focus heart, mind, and soul upon the Lord. To be captivated by his goodness and to spend intentional dedicated time focused exclusively on him.
  • Inquire in his temple… To bring the burdens and anxieties of this life before the Lord. To lay my worry and guilt before him. To know that I can cast off these burdens and see the freedom that comes from obedience.
Continue reading “Precious Time” →