Many of you may not know that our Laura is also a practicing CPA! Since it’s tax season, we persuaded her to share a few tax tips in this week’s Martha Monday video. We hope one of these will help you!
Be sure to get your own copies of the free resources Laura mentions in the video:
Disclaimer: Everyone’s tax situation is different. These tax tips are intended to be general in nature. Please review your records and consult with a tax advisor to determine your tax status!
Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:18-19
Dwelling in the past robs us of our present and sabotages our future. God speaks to us powerfully through the prophet Isaiah when He says, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.”
He does not tell us to erase the past or ignore it. He does not say we should not apologize for our part in past sins, or release forgiveness for what was done to us.
He says, do not dwell on the past. Don’t live there! Is your past—either what you have done or what was done to you—eating you alive? Is your past on a loop in your mind, replaying the pain and hurt, day after day?
Just as it’s impossible physically to walk without stumbling while looking over our shoulder, so we cannot function in life if we are consumed with looking back—dwelling on—the past.
Those old hurts, conversations, disappointments, all the shoulda/woulda/couldas, are behind us. We cannot go back and change what has happened, and dwelling on these things only adds to the pile of regret, shame, and sadness. It makes our present another layer heaped onto the sad pile of the past.
What is the way forward?
How can we move on?
Is it possible to make our today and tomorrow different from our yesterday?
Yes. With God. He is the way-maker.
He wants to do a new thing. He will make a way for it to happen. Yes … even in the wilderness of your life, Isaiah says, as he paints a beautiful, hopeful picture of “streams in the wasteland.”
Regrets. We all have them. They may be professional, behavioral, mental, emotional, or relational.
The relational ones, at least for me, are the heaviest to bear. I made so many mistakes raising my children. As I was lamenting these regrets and crying out to God, “Oh, if only you would turn back the clock. I would do so many things differently.”
God spoke to me in that moment. He has spoken to me many times. While never an audible voice, I know when it is Him. I heard His voice in my heart: Laura, even if I were to do that, you would not do anything differently. Life has taught you many lessons. You needed to live to learn them.
Profound words from a wise and compassionate God. Life-changing words.
Life is indeed a classroom. What happens to us, what we do and do not do, all become lessons to be learned for the future. A teachable spirit means we learn from the wrong choices and allow those lessons to shape future decisions. Refusing to learn, on the other hand, means we may make the same mistakes over, and over, and over yet again.
Owning what I’ve done wrong, asking forgiveness, and releasing forgiveness have all helped me to realize: It’s what you do next that counts.
The Gospel—the good news—means that in Christ we no longer need to be defined by our past. If we could fix it on our own, the Cross would not have been necessary.
Do you know my Jesus? Have you acknowledged your sin and need for forgiveness? If you are forgiven by Him, is it time to forgive yourself? It’s time to MOVE ON … stop dwelling in the past and start living in the present!
Are you ready for His new thing? If so, stop dwelling on the past!
This week was the first of our Spring study in II Kings! We hope you’ll enjoy the introductory teaching video here:
Visit our YouTube channel to subscribe (it’s free for anyone with a Gmail address) and be among the first to know each time a new video is released!
Today we’re sharing a throwback video from January 2021. Watch now as Laura shares some of her favorite tips for the best ways to use a planner!
{Editor’s Note: While the journal giveaway mentioned in the video has ended, we would still love for you to share our YouTube channel with friends!}
You can find our current ‘Do It!’ List on our Downloads page. There are two versions available — the standard list, pre-filled with daily, weekly, and monthly tasks, and a blank list that can be personalized to best reflect your own circumstances.
When you visit our Downloads page, you’ll also find our Write the WORD bookmark and S.O.A.P. Bible study pages. It’s not too late to join with other women during the rest of January as we read, write, and reflect upon verses with the word, “dwell.”
Click HERE for the free “Days to Remember” download that Laura mentioned in the video.
“LORD, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?” Psalm 15:1
I’ve been reading Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby, and am reminded that God is always at work and He invites me to join Him in that work. I’ve been convicted to consider how often I have asked God to join me in my work – to come to my tent and bless what I have planned – instead of asking Him what He has planned and how I can be a part of it. The difference may be subtle or it may be substantial.
In the verse above David puts the focus on GOD’s tent and GOD’s mountain. He wanted to join God – to be where God was. His prayer was not asking God to come to his tent. Rather, David wanted to be part of what God was doing.
I’m learning to shift the focus of my thought life and my prayers. I’m learning to begin by asking God what His plans are, how He is working, and how He wants me to contribute. I’m determined to dwell in God’s tent rather than ask Him to come dwell in mine.
This short verse also reveals a gospel nugget to be mined out. David’s question, “Who may dwell…who may live…?” reminds us that none are worthy to dwell in God’s sacred tent or live on His holy mountain. But because of Jesus, I am declared righteous. I can join Him. What I could never earn on my own has been given to me as a gift.
I invite you to join with me in praying Psalm 15:1 back to God:
O God, thank you for the gift of righteousness in Jesus. It is “righteousness by faith from first to last!” Help me to live by this faith. Help me, God, to learn to pray differently – to focus on Your plan, Your way, and Your will. Forgive me for often asking You to come dwell in my tent—to bless my plans. I want to dwell in Your tent! I want to follow You plan! Thank you, Holy Spirit, for gently reminding me even as I began in prayer today that I needed to realign what I was asking. Thank you for being a gentle teacher and guide. Lord, what are you up to today? And how can I join You?
In this week’s devotional video, Laura shares some thoughts from the first chapter of her upcoming Bible study in II Kings. We invite you to listen, and then to pray about who God would like you to look on as “precious in His sight.”
In this week’s Martha Monday video, Laura shares an invitation to the Spring 2022 study of II Kings:
If you live in the Northwest Arkansas / Northeast Oklahoma area, we would love to have you join us on Wednesday mornings from 9 – 11 a.m., beginning January 19, in Siloam Springs, AR. For those who don’t live in the area, weekly teaching videos will make it possible to follow along online.
Please visit our Facebook event page for more information, or send us an email for details on how you can purchase the Joy of Living study workbook and join us as Laura leads this study of the history of Israel’s monarchy in light of God’s covenants.
“I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.” Psalm 4:8
Was David declaring these words through clenched teeth?
Was he singing these words with a happy heart?
Was David giving thanks from a place of serenity and calm … and was that calm the eye of a storm while the proverbial tornado swirled around him?
The longer I live, the more convinced I become that choosing to dwell with God – choosing, as a friend recently said to me, to be on the side of the fence with Jesus – is what matters. The battle may be real. Circumstances may be hard. Life may feel unfair. People may be mean. The culture may be crazy. All these may be what you and I see as we look around. But hear me on this: none of it has to penetrate our personal reality.
Circumstances do not get to define who we are. The Cross did that – and still does that.
We may look around and feel fearful, frightened, unsafe, and anything but peaceful. But when we look up, we find our due north – we see Him. And He provides the spiritual equilibrium we need.
As women of God, our identity is wrapped up in Jesus. Unhappy circumstances need not rob us of peace and joy.
God is sovereign over events in our world. He is above the culture, above the hurt and pain and struggles in this world. Whether He causes it or allows it, He is aware of it and will use it for my good AND HIS GLORY.
I look out and I can easily become frightened or angry. I must shift my focus up – to God. He has not stepped back. He is not unaware. He is not uncaring.
He is working.
Do you believe that? Is it truth only in your head that needs to migrate to your heart? If you are like me, believing it yesterday was for yesterday. Today is a new day to settle that truth anew.
Whether today brings tears or laughter, whether the biopsy is positive or the bank balance is negative, or whether scale is up or down, I am at peace because I know the Prince of Peace. I am safe – not just today, but for eternity. I can rest and revel in His love and provision.
Would you pray the words Psalm 4:8 back to God with me?
As emotions swirl and tears flow, may each of us sleep in peace – knowing that real peace can only be found in You. The world, the culture, and sometimes even our Christian brothers and sisters rob us of peace and safety, but You are unchanging. You are steadfast, faithful. You are God Almighty.
God, transform us in the days and weeks ahead in this new year. Equip us to be women who do not just cry or become angry, who do not complain or criticize others, but who point others to Scripture, to You. I pray our happy times and our hard times always point to You. Holy Spirit, remind us that You are always working.
Thank you for the peace that comes in knowing that even though our circumstances may be anything but peaceful, You are the Prince of Peace. Use these challenges to shore up our faith in You and understanding of how You work in and through them. Be glorified in all this, God. Transform us through whatever comes.
Thank You for the sacred privilege of being Your child. Thank You for the gift of life to come in heaven and life on earth today. Help us to steward our lives and our experiences well. I will choose to rest in Your love and Your peace. You and You only keep me safe. I choose today to dwell in You. Thank You, Jesus, for loving me and keeping me safe—today and forever. Amen.
In this week’s devotional video, Laura discusses Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians and His great gifts to us today:
Watch this week’s Martha Monday video, as Laura unpacks more ideas for “wrapping up Christmas” to set the stage for next year’s celebration! Click HERE for the free printable lists … or visit our Downloads page for lots of free resources to help you balance your HEART for God and others, with the responsibilities of cleaning, organizing, and stewarding your busy life at HOME.
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“But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built?” I Kings 8:27
The time leading up to the events in I Kings 8 were busy ones for Solomon. He devoted himself to an ambitious construction project: a temple for our great God. It was a seven-year project and the details for the building and its furnishings can be found in I Kings 6 and 7.
By human standards, it was stunning! Magnificent! Spectacular! No detail was overlooked, and no expense spared.
Solomon could be labeled an overachiever; the temple to Israel’s God would outshine any other built for any other false god in any other nation. As he oversaw the planning and construction, he must have been pleased, even proud, as he looked around and compared the temple he had built to those of other nations.
Until the day of dedication. That’s the day he looked up. That’s the day he realized the inadequacy of his temple—of any structure created by any man or king—to host the God of the universe.
And that’s the day he asked, “Will God really dwell on earth?”
Have you ever asked that question? Have you considered its significance?
We’ve just celebrated the coming of God to dwell on earth in the person of Jesus Christ. Emmanuel. God with us.
Our mighty God has condescended to dwell on earth! He is not just the God of up there … but the God of down here. That truth separates Christianity from every other world religion and every cult. God came to us. God came for us.
Solomon was overcome as he realized the smallness of his temple when compared to the greatness of God.
As Christians living post-resurrection, we know our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Like Solomon, we acknowledge our smallness—our inadequacy—when compared to our great God.
Solomon looked up with awestruck wonder and asked, “Will God really dwell on earth?”
And this side of the Cross, we, too can look up and marvel at the truth: God really does dwell in me!
Because of our identity in Christ, His Spirit abides in you and in me. Do we heed His voice? Do we listen for it— and follow His prompts? The life of a believer is refined and transformed as we yield to His will and His way. There is no sweeter or better way to live!
As we read and write verses with the word dwell this month, I pray we are all humbled and grateful, as we marvel anew that God really does dwell in us and chooses to work through us! May we never, ever get over it!
If you are curious about Solomon’s reign as king and the era of I Kings in Israel’s history, we encourage you to check out our video teaching from I Kings. To find the complete playlist on our YouTube channel, click here.
Please also note that Laura will begin a new series of teaching from II Kings this month. Subscribe to our channelto get notifications when each week’s new video posts.
Finally, have you downloaded your copy of the Write the WORD bookmark for January? Visit our Downloads page for this free resources (and others).
In this week’s devotional video, Laura introduces the Write the WORD theme for January and invites you to join us this month as we read, write, and study God’s Word with a focus on verses featuring the word, “dwell.”
Today we’re sharing a throwback from almost two years ago! We hope you’ll enjoy a few of Laura’s favorite tips and hacks for editing, organizing, and storing away your family’s seasonal decorations and supplies.
You can find our own version of the FREE “Wrapping Up Christmas” downloads — as well as our monthly ‘Do It!’ List and Write The WORD: Dwellbookmark and S.O.A.P. study pages — by visiting our Downloads page.
“They will know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of Egypt so that I might dwell among them. I am the LORD their God.’ Exodus 29:46
Egypt represents bondage. God heard the cry of the Israelites and delivered them from their slavery. Apart from God, you and I are also living in bondage – slaves to our own sin and our own ways. Like the Israelites so many years ago, we are totally dependent upon God to rescue us … to bring us out of our own “Egypt.”
God’s reason for rescuing the Israelites then is the same reason He rescues us now: so that He can dwell with us.
God wants to dwell with you.
Does that truth resonate? Do you know you are loved by the Creator of the universe? Has your heart been transformed by the realization that He longs to dwell with you? Does this truth permeate your thought life?
Because God is holy, He cannot dwell in sin. The Holy Spirit cannot occupy a heart consumed with sin. Through the sacrifice of Jesus, our sin is atoned for and God dwells in us.
Because of our identity in Jesus Christ, we have been moved from Egypt to the Promised Land, from slavery to freedom. Is that your reality, friend?
Are you living in the land of Promise? Are you living and abiding in Jesus? Are you living with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control? If you are dwelling in spiritual freedom, these are the furnishings in your new home. If the Holy Spirit has taken up residence in your heart, these traits should be present and active in your life.
Too often we live in the Promised Land, looking over our shoulders at Egypt. We gaze upon what we gave up and perhaps even long to go back.
Have we forgotten the slavery and bondage?
Have we forgotten the misery?
Let’s choose to begin 2022 fully present in our new freedom! Let’s choose to dwell with Jesus – to abide in Him, celebrating God’s provision and the powerful presence of the Holy Spirit. What better way to begin a new year than by celebrating that God dwells with us? He is our God! He is our Lord! He is our Savior and our Deliverer! Nothing that Egypt offers can come close to what we have in Him!
Our January Write the WORD bookmark and S.O.A.P. Bible study pages are now available – find your free copies on our Downloads page! I hope it spurs you on to focus on what it means to dwell in Him. And since there are two bookmarks on each page, why not pause to ask God who you might invite to join you in writing the Word in January?
In this week’s devotional video, Laura explored lessons about joy, surrender, and worship that we can learn from the Wise Men.
In this week’s devotional video, Laura discusses Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians and His great gifts to us today:
