becoming: give us undivided hearts

7/29/2019 BECOMING: Give Us Undivided Hearts

1/10

BECOMING

give usundivided

hearts..................

Q1/2013


2/10

Happy 2013!

I love the New Year fresh starts, blank calendars, a renewed sense of

motivation. We need it after what is usually a wonderful but taxingChristmas season! To be honest, though, I have to say that the last couplemonths of 2012 left me with a heavy heart.

Sometimes I watch the news at night and catch myself saying, "What iswrongwith people?!" It's a rhetorical question, of course. I know exactlywhat's wrong with people. They are desperately trying to fill a spiritual voidwith worldly things. Many of us fail to recognize that the human heart, voidof the Spirit of God, values itself above all else, and the result is a world fullof people each devoted to doing what is best in their own eyes- often withcatastrophic results.

It is fascinating that in a world as diverse as ours, every single one of ushas the same problem needing the same solution. From the ruthless,murderous tyrant to the humble, suffering missionary, we are all plaguedwith sin and equally in need of God's unmerited mercy. We are truly lostuntil it finds us.

We see this lostness played out everyday. We are grieved and angered bythe evil happenings in the world, and rightly so! But, in a sense, we cannotbe completely stunned by them. Lost people walk along lost paths. Not allare murderers, but they are lost just the same and are searching for thepeace that only God can give. As Christians, our lives should be consumedwith a passionate zeal to bring the High and Holy name of God to the world.

Funny thing is, we can't be a true light to the outside world until our innerworlds are aligned- even more than that!- immersed in Christ. So much ofour lives we are trying to dothe right thing and bethe right kind of person.But, at some point, we must come to the realization that our goodness doesnot depend on how hard we try to be good, but how closely we walk withthe Father.

This is why Jesus told us to "seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,and all these things will be added to you". He knew what we musteventually to buy into: that all the things we want- the fruitful life, the soul'srest, the servant's heart- all are added after we pursue God first. They arethe result of consistently being in his Presence, not of our human efforts.

(contintued...)

EDITORS LETTER

BECOMING MAGAZINE Q1 2013


3/10

And so, knowing this, I believe that our deepest cry must be this: that ourhearts, the ones that are so tempted to soak up earthly pleasure and guardour precious reputations and avoid uncomfortable sacrifice- our hearts mustrelentlessly abandon themselves to one cause alone- the pursuit of God.

This year, if you want to be the best person, the best mother, the best wife,the best friend, the best light you can be, there is but one thing for you to do.Seek God with an undivided heart- the one He will give youas you seekHis kingdom and His righteousness first.

What specific transformation is God calling for in your life right now? Thereis something, I promise. Contrary to cultural "wisdom", you are not ok justthe way you are. Yes, God met you in your sinful state and loved you andsaved you just as you were, but He does not expect that you stay there!God "saved us and called us to a holy life" (2 Timothy 1:9). After salvation,

all of Christian life is to be moving towards Christ-like holiness.

As 2013 begins, we ought to focus on putting aside half-hearted devotionand insisting that God change us from the inside out. How will youseekHim with an undivided heart?

My personal answer to this question is in the following pages along with afew godly friends who agreed to honestly share where God is calling forchange in their lives this year. These are written anonymously, as the intentis not to glorify these women for their pursuit of God, but to challenge us allto search deeply for the voice of God calling each of us to be transformed in

a mighty way.

May the Lord bless you this year as you seek Him with your whole heart.

Always BECOMING,

Shannon

Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an

undivided heart, that I may fear your name. Psalm 86:11

I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will removefrom them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 11:19

EDITORS LETTER



4/10

UNDIVIDED HEARTS 2013

Striving for transformation in real, everyday life...

All articles in this issue are published anonymously.



5/10

God is calling me to grow in integrity. Thiscall began in the fall of 2012 when I had a fallingout with a close friend of mine. My friend is nota believer. Throughout the course of ourfriendship, I fought an internal battle betweentwo sides of myself: my deeply rooted "people-pleaser" nature against the woman of integritythat God was calling me to be.

I have always struggled with desiring theapproval of others and wanting desperately to be

liked. Rather than speak truth into this friend'slife, I would frequently "say what her itching earswanted to hear" (2 Timothy 4:3) to avoid conflict.I failed to give her honest, Godly advice whenshe'd share the struggles in her marriage. Iwouldn't tell her when she was hurting me withthe things she would say and do. As I began tolet God change me into the woman He desiredme to be, the friendship grew more strained and,eventually, came to an end.

As sad as that process was, it was veryvaluable- one of those times in my life that Godhas pruned me most.I was convicted in a mightyway: God desires for me to be a Godly woman ofintegrity. One who seeks to be sanctified daily,one who models Christ in ALL realms of her life -at home, at church, at work, and in all herrelationships. God continues to work - changingme from a conflict-avoiding, people-pleaser tosomeone of a conviction, honesty, & truthfulness.

The Webster dictionary defines integrity as: "firmadherence to a code of especially moral orartistic values, the quality or state of beingcomplete or undivided." That is what Goddesires of me- devotion to the code of valuesoutlined in His word.

In reading Scripture, I've found God has plenty tosay on the subject of integrity. "I know, my God,

that you test the heart and are pleased withintegrity" (1 Chr 29:17). "Because of my integrityyou uphold me and set me in your presenceforever" (Ps 41:12). "Whoever walks in integritywalks securely" (Prov 10:9). And Jesus isreferred to as "a man of integrity" in Matthew22:16 and Mark 12:14. If I am called to becomelike Christ, as Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 4:3then I, too, am to be a woman of integrity.

God has impressed on me that to be what He

wants me to be, I must start with three mainthings. 1) Lots of prayer. I pray God will alignmy will with His, that He will give me wisdom todiscern His will for me, that He will give me thecourage and strength to be the woman He'scalled me to be, and most importantly, that all do will be for His glory and His alone! 2) I needto be in His word - daily. Not reading solely fohead knowledge, but to study it, slowly andquietly, listening for Him to speak to me throughHis Holy, living word. 3) I need to submit - in

every way. At times I have FOUGHT this changebecause it was painful and hard. It has servedme well in many ways to be a people pleaserIt's pushed me forward in my career and mademe many friends, but that is not what Goddesires from me. "Anyone who chooses to be afriend of the world becomes an enemy oGod" (James 4:4).

Make no mistake, I'm not saying it's wrong to bea peace-keeper, to be gentle, or to be kind to

those in the world, but I was doing it at theEXPENSE of my integrity. Although this changehas been a painful one, I look back on thebeginnings of my transformation, and I am full ogratitude for what God has done and continuesto do in me. It is only through God in me that can do anything good. I pray that for the rest omy life, I will be fully His, and glorify Him alone.

BECOMING a WOMAN of INTEGRITY



6/10

I want to be perfectly candid with the readersof this magazine. I am angrylivid, in fact. I

am writing this on the Monday following the

unspeakable tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut,

where 20 innocent children and 8 adult lives

were stolen away forever. And the compounding

effect on each family member, friend and person

who knew each victim is devastatingthose

survived will never again be the people they

were that last morning they sent their precious

children off to a regular school day. And I am so,

so angry about it.

Let me be veryclearmy anger is NOT toward

God. I firmly believe and have faith that

somehow many will turn to Him and know eternal

life because this happened. But I am fueled by

an intense, raging fire inside me at humanityat

the pure evilthat exists in this world. WE ARE

AT WAR, Christians. We need to WAKE UP,

take this war and the wages that are at stake

seriously, put on the full armor of God

(Ephesians 6:11-18) each and every day, and

FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT (2 Timothy 4:7)in

our marriages, with our children, in our churches,

and with every single person we befriend, come

in contact with, and see in need surrounding us.

SOMEONE might have been that light of Jesus

to this poor, eternally lost soul who carried out

such a horrible, incredulous actand what ifbecause someone didntalong his life, this man

instead allowed the devil in and pure evil to

sculpt his heart, mind, and actions. I have one

qu

questionwhat if the person you ignore, donspeak to beside you, and dont share Jesus with

is the next one to let the enemy embrace his o

her soul instead? What might be the

ramifications? Why are we so worried to be

politically correct when there are LIVES a

stake, both here on Earth and eternally?!

So, this is my New Years Resolution. I am

DONE with planting many but cultivating

little (Haggai 1:6). I am DONE with the easyChristian life and daily rat race. I am DONE

with feeling helpless in this sinful world. I am

committing 2013 (and I pray much longer than

that!) to taking the WAR on Christianity seriously

I will pray for Gods wisdom each day to know

WHO to reach out to, WHOM to serve, and HOW

to cultivate, encourage, and build up an ARMY

for Christ out of the people that He has

purposefully placed in my path. I WILL NOT

ignore my dailyresponsibilities to His Kingdom,

WILL NOT let my God-given gifts go to waste for

this community, and I WILL NOT go one day

without arming myself with His Holy Word and

the true Power that comes with knowing and

calling upon it!

So there. My soap box. My final words for 2012

My pledge to the New Year. Will you join me and

take your Christianity and the lives of othersseriously in 2013? I pray that you will. I will pray

for you and your crucialrole in this WAR. Please

pray for me and mine.

SPIRITUAL BATTLES with SPIRITUAL WEAPONS



7/10

I have a mind for details. Over fourteen yearslater, I can tell you who gave us which weddinggifts, can walk the classrooms of my elementaryschool in my mind, and sing you countless

jingles from the 80s. While this abilityoccasionally comes in handy to astonish others,it often feels like a catalogue of seeminglyuseless information. Even more importantly, it isa reminder to me that for all the details that mymind sees and retains, I often have to pushmyself to see the big picture. I can very easily

get so swirled up in the details of daily life that Iforget what is most important and what myultimate goals are.

Recently this was readily apparent to me when,after a challenging afternoon of parenting, Ifound myself nit picking one child throughoutdinne r. My husband looked at me inastonishment as if to say, Really? Can you giveher a break? But he was not with me for thepreceding hours when my many corrections had

been ignored. As I processed the situation later,I began to wonder if my obsession with detailswas the very reason I was being ignored. I didnthave a goal in the present (other than surviving)or a goal in my parenting and so I nit picked allthe details in front of me and the results were notvery pretty or enjoyable for any of us.

However, with the start of a new year, I decidedthat it was time to put a single goal in theforefront of my mind for myself and for my

parenting. In 2013, I would like to be rooted inthe present and attuned to the living God. Iwould like my ears and heart to look for Hispresence throughout the day, not in a frantic or

fearful way, but in wonder and expectation. He isthere, but too often I miss Him because I am sofocused on a multitude of details and I forget tobe still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10)and that He can be trusted.

I am not sure, but I think that being rooted in Hispresence in the present will lead me to doingless more often; less running around, less nipicking myself and others, less frantic activityand less multi-tasking. When I find that I have

lost my focus on Gods presence, I plan to usethe tools of thankfulness, meditation on scriptureand deliberately opening myself to the moment am in rather than racing ahead or replaying thepast, to help me find Him again.

In my parenting, I would like 2013 to be a timewhere we, as a family, realize that our choicesmatter to God. How we think, act, speak, andcare for what He has given us is vitally importantTherefore, I resolve to allow my children to make

more choices and to let them experience theconsequences, both good and bad. I alsoresolve to not constantly pick up their thingsbecause, in the short term, it is easier and fastefor me to take care of it. I will ask them to carefor their possessions and remember that howthey choose to live impacts not only themselvesbut our entire family.

I will write these two goals in my Bible so thatthey are before me each day in 2013. While I do

not know what this new year holds, I pray that will say, I trust you, Jesus through each stepand I eagerly anticipate knowing Him moreintimately in the coming year.

GODS PRESENCE in the PRESENT



8/10

I have struggled over the past several yearswith self-discipline or self-control in the areasof taking time alone with the Lord and withexercise. Now, I will admit, that the past eightyears I have spent off and on pregnant anddistracted with little kids but I am at the pointwhere the excuse is wearing thin. I may have an8 year old and an 8 month old and a couple inbetween- but self-discipline is still a necessity.Because what I am finding is that when thiscrucial trait starts to suffer in one area the

symptoms begin to appear in other areas as wellincluding the budget and the pantry (i.e. too littlecontrol in both areas!)

My first thought was to look at what God saysabout self-discipline to make sure that myconcerns are biblical concerns and in fact yesthere are numerous scriptures that refer to thenecessity of self-control in the Christian life.After reading many of them the crux of my issuewas summed up perfectly in Pauls letter to the

Corinthians. In 2 Corinthians 7:1 Paul calls us topuri fy ourselves f rom everything thatcontaminates body and spirit, perfecting holinessout of reverence for God. And in his letter to theRomans (12:1-2) he exhorts them to offer yourbodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing toGod, and not to be conformed to the pattern ofthis world.

These verses stood out to me because they willhelp to keep my motive for seeking self-control

pure. If my goal of self-control is just for a hotbod post pregnancy then it falls short. But if myoutlook is to understand that my body is a templeof the Holy Spirit and a healthy body allows meto serve my God and my family most effectively,then that is honoring to the Lord. And if I realizethat lack of time with the Lord leaves me dry andwithout His guidance, then of course, spendingtime

time with Him regularly not only refills my tankbut allows me to be in the frame of mind andframe of spirit to be most effective for my familyand with my friends and with whomever the Lordmay place in my path.

So, if self-control is a necessity and a good traithen why do I struggle so much with it? Is ilaziness? Is it apathy? Well, Paul addresses thistoo! In Romans, he discusses his own inneconflict and struggle with sin by writing, What

want to do I do not dothe evil I do not want todo- this I keep doing it is sin living in me thadoes it. And he further laments in vs. 24 of thesame chapter, who will rescue me from thisbody of death! His answer to his own question ismy hope as well, Thanks be to God- throughJesus Christ our Lord (Romans 7:25).

The answer is Jesus Christ. Now, Jesus is nogoing to make me spend time with him or makeme get out my weights or make me put down

that piece of pie (free will is a blessing and acurse sometimes). However, I have access to althe power I need through the Holy Spirit whoresides in me, and Paul states that being a newcreation my desires also change (Romans617-18). So the answer for me will be prayer anddetermination. I will begin by just beginningsetting the alarm, praying for perseverance andfor God through the Holy Spirit to create in methe fruit of self-control (Galatians 5).

This prayer I know he will answer because Godpromises to make me like Jesus (2 Corinthians3:18). I must press on to attain everythingChrist desires for me (Philippians 3:12)Certainly, through the Lord, self-discipline isattainable and I am challenged this year to beginpursuit!

SELF DISCIPLINE



9/10

Riches I heed not, nor mans empty praise,Thou mine inheritance, now and always:Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.! ! ! ~ Be Thou My Vision

"Be Thou My Vision" is a hymn that disturbs thedeep parts of my spirit. Every time I sing it, Iknow it's not true of me. I love God and I loveHis Word and, cognitively, I know He's the mostimportant thing but "Thou and thou only, firstin

my heart"? I'm not so sure my life tells that story.

What would it mean for Jesus alone to be myheart's treasure? What does that look like livedout everyday? Surely, it does not resembledesperate grasping after worldly dreams orearthly possessions or the approval of others.But realistically, these are the "treasures" that siton the throne of my heart more often than God.To put these aside in favor of a reward that a) isnot always tangible and, b) often requires a

sacrifice, is hard. Eternally speaking, nothingcould be greater than a relationship with TriuneGod. But there I go every day, tempted to gatherup earthly treasures for an earthly kingdom.

In Genesis 15:1, God told Abram, "I am yourshield, your very great reward". Im alwayshappy to take the Lord as my shield, but thebrutal truth is that I'm often disappointed by thesecond part of this promise. In the deep, darkrecesses of my heart, I want the glory, comfort,and control that earthly rewards bring.

A.W. Tozer writes of the blessedness ofpossessing nothing and I love his perspective:

"The man who has God for his treasure has althings in One. Many ordinary treasures may bedenied him, or if he is allowed to have them, theenjoyment of them will be so tempered that theywill never be necessary to his happiness. Or if hemust see them go, one after one, he will scarcelyfeel a sense of loss, for having the Source of althings he has in One all satisfaction, all pleasureall delight. Whatever he may lose he has actuallylost nothing, for he now has it all in One"

It is this that I want to strive for. The opening othe clenched fist. The surrender of the heartThe denial of all things self. The great release oall worldly gifts in order to claim and cling to Onething alone. To claim possession of nothing andin a great paradox, have utterly everything.

In truth, this scares me. It forces me to trust thaGod is everything He says He is- that if I give upthe world, He truly will satisfy. I am encouragedby the words of the apostle Paul, who gave up

more for Christ than most of us would ever dare.

"I once thought these things were valuable, bunow I consider them worthless because of whaChrist has done. Yes, everything else isworthless when compared with the infinite valueof knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake have discarded everything else, counting it all asgarbage, so that I could gain Christand becomeone with him." Philippians 3:7-9

Lord Jesus, "turn my eyes from worthlessthings" (Ps. 199:37) and show me that havingyou as my heart's treasure is worth giving all omy life for. I believe. Help me with my unbelief.

JESUS, MY TREASURE



10/10

JOIN US @becomingmag.com

becoming: give us undivided hearts

Documents