Day 222

It's Day 222 of  The Red Shoe Project.  My Red sneaks are on, and I've already started my day with some solid spiritual intake.  Prayer Walking is the perfect opportunity for me to get away from distractions and focus completely on God.  I speak to Him, and He speaks to me.  It's not unusual for me to sing a song or two...  or three, for that matter.  Good old worship choruses pop in my head all the time.  Some are scriptures, right out of the Bible, word for word.  That's how I memorized a lot of scripture over the years.

 Many times, I've found that the choruses that pop in my head are actually answers to questions that I've presented to the Lord in prayer.  He has this incredible way of giving me the exact chorus I need.  Now I don't think to myself, "What chorus could I sing that would answer that question?"  If I knew that, I wouldn't have to ask the question."

 I just talk to God, and  BOOM!  the chorus immediately pops into my mind. What's really funny is when He gives me the chorus before I even ask the question.  Sometimes it's mid-day before I realize that He's already answered me.  I'll think, "Why does this same chorus keep popping in my mind?"  And then it comes to me... "That's it!  That's the answer I've been looking for!  Thank you, Jesus!"

I want to continue talking a little more today about  the cycle of Spiritual Fueling, Digestion and Giving Out for God.  After I wrote yesterday, some specific examples came to my mind that I thought might be helpful.

There are 3 primary bakeries 

in which God offers unlimited, daily bread.

 1.  The House of Prayer
 2.  The House of Worship 
 3.  The House of His Word

The House of Prayer  

is anywhere you can close in with God for some one-on-one conversation.  

You can be in your seat at church.  You can be on your knees by your bed.  You can worship as you drive your car.  You might find it delightful, sitting on your back porch, strumming a guitar while you chat.  Personally,  I love prayer-walking.  That happens to be one of the things that's working for me these days!  Mind you, you're never limited to one way.  Try them all and do whatever works best for you in your present circumstances.

Over the years, I've found God to be quite chatty in the most unexpected places.  One time, I had a God encounter while folding laundry in the basement of my house, late at night.  Another time, I was apprehended by The Spirit on God while on my knees, scrubbing the bathroom floor.  (Actually, He's met me there many times.)  Many years ago, (before Pauly), I was dog-sitting a big black lab and a little jack russell for several months.  Every night I'd bring them out into the back yard to do there business.  It was dark out there.  I used to put on these big rubber boots just in case I stepped in anything unfavorable.  There I was walking around in the dark, in the middle of the night, in the muck...  and God would come talk with me.  How funny is that?   That was a very difficult time in my life, but nevertheless, God would come fellowship with me.  Yes... God will often show up when and where you least expect him.  If you're hungry, He'll be there!

Of course the sky's the limit on all the diverse opportunities that can be found to talk with God.  Even still, sometimes we can feel overwhelmed with distractions.  Personally, I've learned the power of  "closing my eyes!"   I can be almost anywhere, and closing my eyes blocks out just about everything.  Sometimes I'll push my fingertips against my ears or pop in some ear buds to shut out any distracting and disturbing sounds.  Suzanna Wesley, mother of the well known Wesley brothers of old, was known to sit in her chair at prayer time and pull her apron over her head.  That signified to her children,
"DO NOT DISTURB,  MOM IS PRAYING!"

The House of Worship

 is anywhere you can close in with God to Worship Him.  

It can be singing music, playing music, listening to music.  It may be live music.  It may be recorded.  You can find music on t.v., on Pandora, on a cd, or on the radio.  You can hear it out in the open, or you can hear it through your ear buds.  It's all good!  There's a lot of Christian music.  But which music is it, that brings you into that Secret Place with Him?  Which songs are immediate access points to God for you?  Some music is very celebratory.  Some music is nice to listen to... it's peaceful and calming.  On the other hand, some music gets me on my feet, shouting praises to God!

And then...  there's "THAT" music.  

The kind that somehow compels me to drop on my face and weep before the King.  I must admit, I love them all, including some that I haven't mentioned.  But the music I try to focus on most these days, is the kind that leads me to the Father's Heart.  I don't want to be outside.  I want to be in His Presence, at His feet, close enough to rest my head on His heart if I can.

You'll  find that many people love to dance when they worship.  Some wave flags.  Some stand.  Some sit.  Some kneel.  Some weep.  Some shout praises to God, while others sing softly in unknown languages.  Need more ideas?  Just open up the book of Psalms.  You'll find more examples than you know what to do with.  God loves variety!

The House of His Word.  

Speaking of variety, never before has there been such an 

"All You Can Eat Buffet"   when it comes to God's Word.  

Years ago, there was primarily one translation used by most Believers... The King James Bible.  Today, there are numerous versions, and all are pretty much acceptable.  The Bible is not just in book form anymore either.  More and more Believers are using Bible Aps on their electronic devices.

Scripture is everywhere.  It can be found in songs, in devotionals, in inspirational articles, blogs, down loads, pod casts, electronic archives and webcasts.  If you missed church, tune in any day of the week, at any time -- day or night -- to hear a sermon from people and places all around the world.  You'll find messages from men, women, and young folk -- some well known ministers and some not so well known.  You'll hear powerful poetic messages with a beat, called Spoken Word.  The list goes on and on.

With all that's available, I still believe that 

if a Christian consistently  took one minute 

and read "The Daily Bread" every morning, 

without fail, we'd have some 

Powerhouses for God!  

Okay, I'm going to stop here for today.
Tomorrow, we'll talk more.

Eat!

in RED shoes,
Gail

Day 221

I'm wearing RED shoes on this 221st day of  The Red Shoe Project.   I can't, for the life of me, stop thinking about this person I just met.
The other day, Bonnie and I were once again at Starbucks, when along came a girlfriend of ours with her husband.  We invited them to sit with us while they sipped on their drinks.  Almost immediately, we broke into a dynamic discussion about drawing closer to Christ.  This man was so hungry for God!  What a sight for sore eyes!  It was awesome!

So this is what True Hunger for God  looks like!

I know what  "HUNGRY"  feels like.  You've heard me time and time again, cry out,   "MORE OF HIM!"   I just can't get enough!   But to witness that intense desire in someone else is just as exciting!

"I want more!"  he exclaimed.  "How do I get that?  How do I get to that next level with God?  Do I just keep doing what I'm doing, only more often?"

Good questions -- followed by an informative discussion that contained solid answers.  It was a divine appointment.  God brought him right to us.   Yes... at Starbucks, of all places!

It's apparent that this

man is walking on his own 

Yellow Brick Road looking 

for all that God has to offer.  

Yahoo!  I'm excited for him!
I wished I could have fitted him
with a pair of men's RED Nike 
sneakers right then and there!  LOL.

So tonight, I met with another friend,  (Yup... at the coffee shop),  for some good conversation around  God's Word.  She's another one...  

TOTALLY HUNGRY 

for God!  

She's an empty vessel ready and waiting for God to fill her each day.  "MORE!" She wants it all!  and God is glad to give it to her.  "Where should I start in the Bible?"  she asked.  "What should I be reading?   She'd be in church or Bible study everyday if it were available.

All this has got me to thinking about the word, 

"HUNGRY"

When someone is Spiritually Hungry, they are:

• Starving
• Severely suffering or dying spiritually due to lack of spiritual nourishment.
• In desperate need of spiritual food.
• Can't survive without some sort of spiritual intake.
• Malnourished - deprived of spiritual sustenance
• Famished - ravenous, in need of daily bread.
• Empty - hollow, there's nothing left, all reserves have been exhausted
• Depleted - Down to zero,  spent, totally consumed.

Jesus declares, 

 "I am the bread of life.

Whoever comes to me 
will never go hungry

and whoever 
believes in me 

will never be thirsty."

John 6:35

In pondering all this, I came across something that I never noticed before.  It has to do with our Spiritual Metabolism... the process of turning spiritual food into fuel. If you do any research on healthy eating, you'll find that it's recommended that a person eats several smaller meals throughout the day as opposed to one or two big meals. This is called, "grazing."   Continual grazing keeps the furnace burning.   In the same respect, when we continually graze on spiritual food,  it keeps our fire burning.  Amen?

When our fire is continually burning like that, our metabolism rate is kicked up to high, and everything within us gets consumed.  It becomes a cycle of taking in spiritual food, digesting it and giving out to others.  Before long,  you're empty again -- you need more food! -- so back you go, into His presence.   The cycle repeats itself over and over again.
The point is... 

The more consistently you take in 

and give out, spiritually, 

the more desperate you are going to be 

for "More of Him," continually!

That's why people who are hungry for Jesus are always coming back for more!  They get in His presence. They fill up. They go into the world and share the Good News. When they near empty, they come back into His presence to fill up again.  

Being Hungry is about being Empty.

It's a weird feeling when I've given out all I have spiritually.  A realization comes to me, "I've got nothing left to give!"  People aren't looking for Gail...  they are looking for God. So when I'm empty of spiritual things, I've got to go back to The Source for more.  Gail's got nothing to offer on her own!

In years past, there were times when I gave out a little here
and a little there.  I had a spiritual metabolism, but it operated at a slower speed.  When I fueled myself less often, my body stored up much of what I had in reserves...  that's called FAT.  When we don't fuel frequently, our body thinks we're starving and stores our intake for personal emergencies.  I don't want to be a FAT Christian!  I want to be a FIT Christian... one that's
on fire for God!

There's no need for me to store up fat.  Jesus offers a never-ending,  daily supply and His bakery is open 24/7.  

I'm off to bed now and I've placed my RED sneakers by the door.  They're right there for me to pop on first thing in the morning when I head out to the "bread line."

See you there.
Gail

Day 219

Day 219 of  The Red Shoe Project turned out to be a day jam packed with goodness.  Bob and Yvonne Gerhart (Day 217) agreed to delay their trip home to Alabama just so they could swing by The Bonfire and minister to the women there.  In preparation for that gathering, I popped on my Red sandals and met up with Bonnie at Starbucks to talk things over and pray.  Between yesterday and today, God was speaking to both of us through the story found in  2 Kings 4:1-7 where Elisha the prophet says to the widow woman...

" Go around and ask all your 

neighbors for empty jars.  

And don't ask for just a few!"

This has to be one of my absolute favorite stories in the Bible!  An old time hymn summarizes it like this:

Are you longing for the fullness 

Of the blessing of the Lord

In your heart and life today?

Claim the promise of your Father;

Come according to His Word,

In the blessèd, old time way.

Refrain

He will fill your heart today to overflowing.
As the Lord commandeth you,
“Bring your vessels, not a few.”
He will fill your heart today to overflowing
With the Holy Ghost and power.

Bring your empty earthen vessels,
Clean through Jesus’ precious blood.
Come, ye needy, one and all;

And in human consecration
Wait before the throne of God
Till the Holy Ghost shall fall.

Refrain

Like the cruse of oil unfailing
Is His grace forevermore,
And His love unchanging still;

And according to His promise,
With the Holy Ghost and power
He will every vessel fill.

Refrain

When we talked about this passage of scripture, Bonnie and I decided that we needed to put out some additional invites to this week's  "Bonfire."  If God was going to wonderfully fill people, we wanted to make sure that some of our closest friends and loved ones didn't miss out.

I personally had a specific friend in mind, that I wanted to invite.  She's a new Believer... so this would be a little out of the box for her, BUT I also know that she wants EVERYTHING that God has for her, so I hate to hold back on anything like this.  If I was going to invite her, I couldn't do it through voice mail, email or texting.  I'd need to talk to her.  Well... that didn't happen, so I guess she wouldn't be there.

Then suddenly...  there she was in Starbucks, smiling from ear to ear, greeting Bonnie and I!  How crazy was that?  We never bump into each other out and about town.  Guess God wanted to make sure she got a personal invite regardless. When God wants something to happen... it's going to happen.  There's nothing I can or cannot do to prevent it.

Yes... she came to the meeting.  Yes... she got blessed, beyond measure.  It was good.  It was very good.  God filled every vessel in the place.  Not one person left empty!  Not one.

Just goes to prove that God is the same...

 "Yesterday, Today and Forever!"

Hebrews 13:8

Amen!

Gail

Day 220

Day 220 of  The Red Shoe Project had arrived!  My eyes were barely open when I glanced at my phone to check out the time.  A text was waiting for me...  "Can you meet?"  My girlfriend wrote that message hours ago, so I literally jumped out of bed, dressed, brought Pauly for his walk and headed out the door, in RED flip flops.   My pal had other errands to do first, so she didn't have a specific meeting time.  With that in mind,  I headed up to the local coffee shop where we would connect.  I ordered an iced chai, plugged in my laptop and popped in some ear buds.  I'd write while I waited.


I don't know what it is about Me, Coffee Shops and Pandora, but when shaken together, it often presents to me an easy access point to God.  I guess worship music flooding my brain while I pound out meditations on the keyboard just does it for me.  I have to be ever so careful as to not break out dancing right there in the center of all the foot traffic waiting to place their coffee orders.  Seriously... I really do have to be careful when I pop those ear buds in... especially when I close my eyes and focus on the words.  I get swept away so easily.

 Last week, it happened while I was at home.  I was sitting at my office desk, totally lost in worship and prayer when suddenly my daughter gently tapped me on the shoulder.  Yikes!  I didn't even know she was home.  She must have slipped in the front door without my even noticing.

"I love you Mom.  And it's great that you're 

worshipping God and praying, but it's really 

distracting and I'm in the other room on the 

phone."

"You can hear me?"  I asked.

I thought I was just moving my lips, singing and praying to myself.  Guess not.   How I pray and sing when I think no one is around is quite different than when I'm in the company of others.  With people, I'm conservative, considerate, and acceptable.  When it's just me and God...
I'm loose, free and without reservation.  I'm explosive, and totally unacceptable!   Not to mention, God doesn't care if I'm off key, too loud, or get the words all wrong.  He loves my reckless love and worship and I love the
liberty He extends me to do that!


As I sit here, quietly typing this blog, a song comes on: "Exalted"  by Chris Tomlin.  Oh no!  Here we go.  I feel the tugging.  Right here!  Right now!  

"Come on in!"
 shouts the Lord,

as if He were calling me to join Him.

"The water's wonderful!  

Cool!   Refreshing!    
Don't miss out on this!"   

"Here I come!"

 my soul cries out.

In my mind, I picture myself running down the deck shouting, "Cannonball!"

 

* * * SPLASH! * * *  

I'm in!  Glory to God!  Oh how I love this!   I hear myself shouting in my head... "Jesus!"  I'm  laughing and splashing as I dunk my head under the water over and over again.  I can somersault.  I can tread water.  I can float on my back.  It's all good! 

Yes... I'm doing all this in Starbucks, as I wait for my friend to arrive! LOL.  

The minutes have turned to hours.  Time flies when you're having fun.  I'm noticing the lunch crowd has come and gone.  Jesus and I are still here, enjoying one another's company like sweethearts totally smitten with each other.  I look up and here comes my friend through the door.  Time to switch gears. 

Gail