As the aged King David prepared his son Solomon to take up the throne—as servant of God and King of Israel—David had strong and wise counsel for his son.

“And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve Him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts.

If you seek Him, He will be found by you;

but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever.”

1 Chronicles 28:9

David’s counsel to Solomon is counsel that we, too, as children of God should embrace fully as we live out the details of our daily-day lives…and during our times of great joy and peace…and during our times of great turmoil and sadness.

God knows us full well. And our LORD wants our hearts and minds to be wholeheartedly and willingly devoted to Him—actively seeking Him—in all that we do and think. Our blessing, and God’s promise to us, is that “He will be found”  by us!

Our God has promised that we will find and know our LORD, His loving, intimate presence with us and His strong and holy leading of us—all the days of our lives.

Through our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ, we, as children of the King of kings, have been invited “to approach the throne of grace with confidence…” –Hebrews 4:16.

Is there anything stopping you from serving and seeking the LORD—and approaching His throne of grace—with wholehearted devotion and a willing mind? 

Ask the LORD to take away any and all obstacles that you have put up in your own life that stop you from serving and seeking the LORD—and approaching His throne of grace—with wholehearted devotion and a willing mind.

Ask the LORD to take away any and all obstacles of hurt, bitterness and resentment that may have grown out of experiences with other people or from disappointing and difficult circumstances.

Let nothing rule over you except the love and leadership of the LORD our God!

There is joy and freedom, peace and purpose as we serve and seek the LORD—and approach His throne of grace—with wholehearted devotion and a willing mind!

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane 

How was that for a blunt title for this blog-post devotional? Don’t Be Stupid!

Sometimes the Book of Proverbs actually makes me laugh out loud because of the extreme, cut-to-the-point, life-lessons that are put before us. Like this one:

Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,

but he who hates correction is stupid.

Proverbs 12:1

It really says that? That way? Yep! And it’s even from the NIV translation—not from a paraphrased version of Scripture. Isn’t that cool?

I believe God wants us to clearly—and without a lot of room for interpretation—understand that there are consequences for our attitudes and behaviors. God wants us to understand that this all-up-in-our-face Proverb is meant to bring us life-giving, life-freeing truth.

When we love discipline—when we love to learn how we should live and act, speak and respond—we will love the knowledge and understanding it brings to our lives. And when we reject and hate the wise and godly correction that comes to us—we’re just being stupid!

And PRIDE is the root-feeding material for that kind of stupidity.

Our pride blocks us from humbly and open-mindedly accepting and learning lessons about ourselves that would actually free us and deepen us to grow in strength, wisdom and love.

We may not like the manner in which the discipline and correction comes into our lives. We may not even like (at all!) the person from whom the discipline and correction comes into our lives.

But it would be STUPID of us to NOT check our PRIDE at the door, and PRAYERFULLY ask GOD:

• What truth-filled discipline, from His heart and mind, should we learn and accept?
• What correction in our thinking, doing, speaking and responding needs to happen?

Learn! Grow! Accept correction that comes from the heart and mind of God—even when it comes to us in harsh ways, teaching us hard truths about ourselves!

Choose the attitude of our Lord Jesus Christ—who brings truth and freedom and power into our lives! Choose HUMILITY—and, thereby, choose wisdom!

In other words: Don’t Be Stupid!

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane 

This is what the LORD says:

“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.

But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’”

Jeremiah 6:16

So, there we are facing another life-decision, wondering what to do…which way to go.

The LORD tells us to STAND and LOOK—to recognize—that we are at a decision point in our lives. We are to be stable and alert—not pushed around nor blind-sided—when assessing our circumstances and the decisions we need to make.

Maybe for you those decision-demanding-crossroads are about a major life change—a relationship, a move, a job, a total career change, a change in your physical or mental health.

We also need to recognize that we are standing at decision-demanding-crossroads everytime we choose to think, speak or act. Yep, everytime—whether in our daily-day lives and relationships OR in the more obvious crossroads during a major life change.

No matter what decision-demanding-crossroads we are at, the LORD tells us to ASK for the ancient paths, ASK where the GOOD way is. In other words: ASK the LORD—who is the Ancient of Days, the Eternal One—what His righteous, GOOD direction would be for us.

Then the LORD tells us (because apparently the LORD knows He needs to be that specific with us!) to WALK in that GOOD way—to WALK in His way.

The LORD loves us powerfully and passionately and wants the very best for us. God knows that His GOOD way is the very best for us. And our LORD promises that we will find rest for our souls—peace, restoration, security, strength, joy—when we do WALK in His GOOD way.

Oh! It would be so fabulous IF that was where this Scripture verse ended. You know—we stood, we looked, we asked God, we obeyed God and we received the LORD’s strong and loving rest for our souls.

But, sadly, that’s not the end of it. Instead, our tendency towards stubbornness and rebellion against our LORD’s Holy, Loving Authority is revealed. Way too often, we—in our thoughts, words and actions—stomp our feet, shake our fists and turn our faces away from where the LORD wants to lead us. We make it clear—one way or another—that when it comes to the LORD’s way, “We will NOT walk in it!”

Living our life really is ALL about CHOICE! And it is ALL about trusting God’s Word and God’s Love for us as we make those choices.

Choosing the LORD’s good way gives rest to our souls. Anything else weakens and warps us.

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane

Today is going to be a very special, very meaningful day for me. I get to go back, for the first time, to minister to—and with—the Counselors and Staff at the Christian camp where I first accepted Jesus as my Savior. I’ll be doing, first, a session on Leading a Child to Christ in the afternoon and, then, in the evening I’ll be speaking at the Counselor and Staff Commissioning Service.

Thank You, my ABBA, for this humbling and beautiful privilege!

Forty-two years ago when I was seven (yes, that currently makes me forty-nine for all you math whizzes in blog-cyberspace—FIFTY in December!), my parents sent me and all four of my siblings (all of us born within five years from oldest to youngest!) to a camp for one week. They needed a break. I don’t think it really mattered much to my parents what camp would take us.

But! It mattered very much to our God.

For just one short week back in 1967 I attended Ontario Bible Camp in Oswego, NY. And through the faithful servant hearts of the OBC staff, and especially through the Camp Chaplain’s clear, powerful and loving sharing of God’s grace and truth through God’s Word, Jesus became my Savior. Oh! What a difference a moment…a day…a week—orchestrated by the loving heart of our God—can make in a life!

For God so loved the world that He gave His One and Only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

Jesus entered my life with His passionate love for me and His eternal salvation. I knew, then, that no matter what the hands of others would do to me, I was still held in God’s perfect, loving, strong, good hands.

Thank you, ALL of you, who have served over the years at OBC—or in any form of ministry, formal or informal—to share with others the grace and truth of our Lord Jesus Christ, His salvation, His transformation and His outrageous, unfailing love!

Your seemingly small act of service in the Name of Jesus, the Name that is above ALL names—ABOVE the names of abuse, incest, rape, fear, brokenness, hate, anger, my own sins, the evil I have done and the evil done to me—has made ALL the difference in my life! For all eternity!

Before I left OBC I was given a Bible.  And it was—and is—only through God’s intervening love, God’s living and active Word and God’s intimately present Spirit that my life has been completely healed and transformed—from a broken, abused child to a mighty woman-child of our Sovereign God!

Yes, today is going to be a special, very meaningful day for me at OBC! Thank you, JESUS! It is All from you and it is ALL for you!

May we ALL seek to let Jesus use us to touch at least one life for Him! Oh! What a difference a moment…a day…a week—orchestrated by the loving heart of our God—can make in a life! Amen!

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1

But! That doesn’t mean we are going to like, or even understand, everything that happens when it happens. Yet we are called to trust in the One True God whose sovereign purpose and love will one day reveal to us how:

He has made everything beautiful in its time. Ecclesiastes 3:11 

Until that time—whether our seasons bring birth or death, weeping or laughing, mourning or dancing, war or peace—we are Always in a Time to Trust in the One who is Eternal, True, Righteous, Wise, and Loving.

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane

Have you ever started something—maybe a new job, a new course of study, a new career, a new hobby, a new relationship, a new move out of your old neighborhood…or out of your old comfort zone—and then hit some kind of challenge, confusion, distraction or frustration?

You’re left wondering:  So then, WHAT happens? WHAT should I do?

In order to live out our faith in Jesus Christ—whether it is a fairly new faith for us OR we have been on this faith journey with Jesus for a long time—God gives us all the same clear, full answer to the question: So then, WHAT??

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord,

continue to live in Him,

rooted and built up in Him,

strengthened in the faith as you were taught,

and overflowing with thankfulness!

Colossians 2:6-7

No matter WHAT challenge, confusion, distraction or frustration we may face in our faith journey with Jesus—our Loving, Living, Fully Present, Powerful Lord lets us know exactly WHAT we need to do—and provides everything for us to be able to do it…now and for all the times yet to come! 

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane

All things aren’t good. But God always is…

And we know that in all things

God works for the good of those who love him

and are called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28

And God’s very greatest purpose for those of us who love him and have responded to His passionate, saving love call is that we would each be…

…conformed to the likeness of his Son…

Romans 8:29

So, no, all things aren’t good. But God always is.

Our own sinful choices separate us from God. Our own sinful choices and the sinful choices of others against us can break our hearts, warp our minds, rob us of peace, security, possessions and stability, and severely injure and even destroy our bodies.

It is only through the sacrifice of Jesus that we can receive the full and free forgiveness from our Holy God that we desperately need. It is only through the resurrection power and transforming love of Jesus that we are able to fully and freely forgive all people of all sins against us…no matter how grievous and evil those sins are.

So, no, all things aren’t good. But God always is. 

God is good when we face tragedy and disasters in the natural world—whether from floods, fires, earthquakes, tornadoes, famines or drought. God is good when we face broken relationships or bankruptcy. God is good when we or someone we love dearly is ill or crippled, injured or dying…or dead long before we were ready to say goodbye.  

These things are not good. And God is not asking us to pretend that they are.  

God is good. And because of His sovereign authority and unfailing love God is able…and desires…to work all things for our good as we trust in Him and His good will that purposes to make us evermore Christ-like in every circumstance and season of our lives.

May we each choose to let our Good God hold our heads and hearts, even when things aren’t good, so that Christ’s image will be powerfully reflected in our lives…and in our character!

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane

P.S. For personal and ministerial reasons I will be taking a bit of a sabbatical from writing new devotional posts, although I will stay open to God’s good leading anytime He wants me to write a new one!

Be blessed by the love of our Lord Jesus Christ that is unfailing and transforming when times are good and when they are not! Amen!

Today is April 15th. This is TAX DAY in the United States. We have a debt to pay. All of our taxes for the previous year come due today.

Some of us may actually be getting a refund because our tax debt was already paid. (I’m happy for you! Really!)

Many, maybe even most, of us, however, still have a tax debt that we need to pay out to our government. Today.

Some of us may try to finagle our tax forms to ensure that the amount we owe is doing some version of what I call: “The Tax Limbo Dance.”  You know, “How Low Can You Owe?” 

Some of us may even choose to completely ignore our debt—ignore our responsibility—to pay our required tax amount. Determining in our own minds that it is we—not the government, nor anyone else—who decides what we do with our money and everything else that belongs to us.

Well, maybe some people will get away with the finagling that is done in figuring the amount of tax debt they owe. Others may seemingly get away with disregarding their debt all together.

Whatever our attitudes and our consequent actions are regarding the payment of our US taxes—our Lord Jesus has something to say to us. Really?

Yep. Jesus has something to say to us, not only about what we need to give to our governments, but Jesus has something, much more important, to say about what we need to give to God.

Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and give to God what is God’s. 

Matthew 22:21

I’m pretty sure that Jesus is telling us here that we each need to fulfill our responsibilities to the governments under which we live. And that includes paying our tax debt as a US citizen. Today.

And yet far beyond that, I believe Jesus is challenging us to really think about what actually belongs to God. And, then, Jesus is calling us to act faithfully in giving back to God all that belongs to God.

You and your accountant—or maybe Turbo Tax—will figure out the debt you owe in taxes.

As for figuring out what belongs to God, God makes that perfectly clear to us. No finagling here at all!

The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it,

the world and all who live in it! 

Psalm 24:1

Yep! All that exists, all that we have, all people everywhere, all of our very lives truly belong to God!

And, Oh! God really does want us to live—knowing and believing—the truth that we belong to Him! Our loving God desires the very best for our lives. And that comes to us when we give our lives fully back to the One, our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave His life for us!

Yes, living in the truth that we each completely belong to God is freedom. No fear of being audited. No finagling to look a little better. No need to ignore our debt.

Jesus has accepted the full responsibility to pay the full price of our full debt to God. Believing this truth, living this truth, is our way to “give to God what is God’s.” 

This is the true debt free living!

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane

Do you know someone who is blind or seriously visually impaired? They may function amazingly well and live relatively independently in spite of the significant challenges and limitations they deal with every day. Yet, the fact remains: they cannot see clearly, if they can see anything at all.

That fact puts those who are blind and seriously visually impaired in a far greater risk of danger when something comes into their presence or path that they cannot see or that they are ill-equipped to avoid or even recognize. Likewise, those without clear vision can be a serious danger to others when they choose to ignore the presence of the people around them, pushing right through on their own determined paths in a self-focused and sightless, insensitive way. And there are certain activities, like driving a car, that those without sight should never do at any time. There is neither any excuse for acting in such wrongful and foolish ways, nor is it possible to avoid the pain and suffering that would affect all involved when the inevitable crash comes.

We, too, can act as though we are blind or at least seriously visually impaired—emotionally, relationally and spiritually—when it comes to having a clear perspective on how our self-focused, sightless and insensitive words and actions can cause damage to our own lives and to the lives of those around us. And it is often upon those with whom our lives are most closely bound—our husbands, wives, children, parents, friends—that our blind perspective wields its greatest destructive blows.

But our God does not want us to be blind any longer. We have a choice…and in letting God open our eyes, we also have a purpose! We must choose to let God be God, and allow His holy perspective and His perfectly clear view of us—of who we are and what we do—rule our lives so that we will no longer be blind or dangerous towards anyone! Then, we will see and know the freeing truth and purpose of our Lord Jesus Christ who opens our eyes so that we may be His righteous people. We are called to be a light to the world and to speak and act in ways that will open the eyes of others still trapped in their blindness!

I, the LORD, called you in righteousness;

I will take hold of your hand.

I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people

and a light for the Gentiles,

to open the eyes that are blind

Isaiah 42:6-7

Let God open our eyes to His righteousness and watch the blindness fall away from us and others!

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane

I’m in New York City this morning. For me personally, I love this city…because God loves this city…or rather, God loves every single person in this city…just as God loves every single person in the world!

For me whenever I’m here I am so powerfully aware of how very different we people are…how many different sizes, shapes and shades of skin we people come in, how many different countries, cultures, socio-economic and language groups we people come from, how many different perspectives and preferences we people have.

Here in NYC, I am sharply aware of so many different people with so many differences. Yet, the Word and Spirit of God confirm to me even more sharply that God loves every single person passionately and fully…and that our Lord Jesus Christ has been fully offered so that each and every person may know the salvation and intimate love of our Heavenly Father!

For God so loved the world

that he gave his one and only Son

that whoever believes in him

shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

May we as messengers of this powerful truth of God reach out to all others around us—no matter how similar or different to us they may be—with the saving, transforming love of our Lord Jesus Christ! 

In love, peace and purposeful passion,                                                               Sylane