Friday Matters

Everyday Step in Faith

In the Old Testament as the Israelites were soon to enter into the Promised Land they were faced with crossing the Jordan River during flood season with the Ark of the Covenant. God told them to go forward right into the middle of the river before the water would go down and because of the faith the people had in God they obeyed and trusted God. We read in Joshua 3:17 that; “All Israel passed through until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.”

I know I would’ve first wanted to test the water with my big toe to see some evidence of God’s promise of the water going down before I stepped into the middle of the river. But often God provides no solution to my problems until I trust Him and move ahead with what I know I should do. Sometimes God wants me to step forward into the unknown because it’s an opportunity for me to know Him better and trust Him with my faith and not my feelings...everyday.

Thursday Matters

Everyday Religions

My husband Dan did not become a Christian until he in his 20’s and in college. He never grew up going to church so in college he wanted to know if there was a God. He studied the religions of the world and THEN saw the uniqueness of Jesus. Jesus claims to be the way, not just show the way. And there is an enormous difference in religion and the forever-relationship Jesus offers. It’s not based on what we do but what He’s done. ALL religions require us to do something or sacrifice to please God so we can earn heaven.

Most religions are intolerant of people who disagree with them. Some even hate and want to hurt those who disagree. Jesus' message is just the opposite He says, "Let your love be genuine, hate what is evil, hold on to what is good." "Love your enemies" not just tolerate them. What? The message of Jesus is to LOVE and forgive others, which you can only do once you have seen your bad self and accepted His forgiveness…everyday.

Wednesday Matters

Everyday God is Greater

We spend a lot of time living in fear. Studies tell us that 85% of us live in fear by worrying. Is the size of your fear larger than the God of the Universe? God is greater than death, greater than disease, and there is no condemnation in Him. He certainly is greater than what you may be worrying about.

Should you worry about hell? No. But, no one really talks about its existence but, of course, the Bible does. Jesus Himself indicates that punishment in hell is just as everlasting as life in heaven and it’s where the wicked go who don’t acknowledge that Jesus is Lord. (Matthew 25:46). The righteous person has the hope of heaven, and you are made “right” by accepting what Jesus did on the cross by atoning for your sins. Because God is holy, He must punish sin but because He is loving He didn’t want to punish us. On the cross He accomplished both the holiness and lovingness of God. You have nothing to fear. Remember John 4:18 in that perfect love casts out fear. With God you always have hope…everyday.

Tuesday Matters

Everyday Gentle Answer

Sometimes I talk too much. Even if I’m talking about good things, it’s still better if I follow the advice of Proverbs 10:19; “Don’t talk too much, for it fosters sin. Be sensible and turn off the flow!” I know that the mouth that blesses, praises and prays can also irritate, hurt and harm.

I remember a time when I was home from college and having a heated argument with my dad, who’s an unbeliever. I was so frustrated, and I wanted to lash out and say something to prove my point but from experience I knew my brilliant but angry words would not change a thing. It’s crazy but I actually said aloud Proverbs 15:1; “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” It was weird but the argument stopped immediately, as soon as I spoke the Proverb. God had the last Word. My prayer is Psalm 19:14, “May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing to God and I’ve discovered it’s in listening more than talking that healthy relationships are maintained…everyday.

Monday Matters

Everyday World Peace

There’s a lot going on in this world. There are a lot of people with different opinions on how our country should run. If you’re not a political person you may feel stuck in the middle because you’re not joining a side. Honestly, I’d be okay holding a sign on the corner saying, “Jesus saves,” because it’s the truth.

I’m convinced no matter your race, your political side of the aisle, your gender, your religion, or your financial status, we will never achieve real peace without a deeper understanding of God. People have become so disagreeable that nothing is able to draw them into harmony. Jesus said the peace He gives is not like the peace in our world. His peace is rooted in mercy, forgiveness, and everlasting life. His peace cannot be removed, just like His love because it’s unconditional and everlasting. As humans our nature is combative, defiant, and selfish. Human nature will never be at peace, because sin cannot know peace. This is why it takes God to remove sin and replace it with His peace and saving grace…everyday

Friday Matters

Everyday Flesh

I have a strong will. I’m sure someone listening right now can totally relate to the fact that while our spirits may be strong and willing our flesh fails us time and time again. The flesh does not conquer the spirit. The flesh is weak - as Jesus said - and the flesh is a stumbling block to our spirit. What I eat or drink can be good or the amount of time I spend scrolling on social media has its place but when my flesh dominates, I don’t eat, drink or spend time on social media in a way that is healthy. Jesus tells us we do not "watch and pray".

My prayer is this simple, “God You’re stronger. You live in me. I pray Your Spirit leads me in truth and not my feelings by the flesh.” Sharing areas of weaknesses with someone also helps with accountability and strength too. Jesus is for you and He’s not mad at you when you do fall. He will help you get back up with strength and courage to keep on keeping on. He loves you…everyday.

Thursday Matters

Everyday God Said

I went through Genesis chapter one and underlined all the verses where I saw the words, "GOD SAID." It was amazing to realize that everything on this earth came into existence by the power of God’s words! God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God said, “Let there be stars and vegetation” and there was. And then the big finale’ when God said, “Let Us (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) make mankind in Our image,” and man was created!

It just made me think about Hebrews 4:12 knowing that His Word is living and active and when spoken can have such power in our lives. Far too often I trust in my feelings over the truth of God in His Word, the Bible! He promises to work ALL things for the good and not just some. He promises to never leave us and to give us wisdom when we ask. There’s a lot of good from a loving God who is always good no matter the circumstances. Choose to trust He what God says over what you feel…everyday.

Wednesday Matters

Everyday Vegas

Susan had turned her life around by turning to Jesus and now she was on talk radio with three other women still in the “business” discussing lifestyle choices in Las Vegas. The host and others on the panel were repeatedly asking Susan, “Where was God when you were in this business? Why didn’t He save you?” And Susan replied, “God was always with me. It was I who left Him. The others clearly did not have a relationship with Christ, they didn’t know of His great love for them, and so they had no respect for God or His ways but Susan understood completely and she said; Christ gives us all a free will but it’s our choice whether we want to have Him in our lives or not.”

Without knowing the relationship that brings love and freedom a person is only going to see God’s laws as bringing judgment and bondage. We may turn our backs on God, but He will never turn on us or stop loving us. The wisdom of Proverbs 28:5 says, those who seek the Lord understand fully…everyday.

Tuesday Matters

Everyday Free Will

It all comes down to free will. We have a choice to choose good and evil actions. I have made bad choices whether it was lying or taking something that wasn’t mine but I’ve also had the same bad things happen to me, someone lying and stealing from me.

C.S. Lewis said, “If a thing is free to be good it is also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having. I have to really stop and think about that but it’s true. It’s the freedom of choice that makes love real. Being forced to love God is not real love at all. It goes back to the basics of what being a Christian is. Accept God’s love, His grace and HIS work on the cross. It’s not about our good works. When we understand His grace, we can really start loving others freely…everyday.

Monday Matters

Everyday Shields of Faith

When my husband had cancer fifteen years ago it was hard, it was scary. But my relationship with God enabled me to receive peace despite the circumstances. Thankfully, Dan is cancer free but at the time of the tumor, surgery and chemo I had to be intentional to stop and breathe and let my anxiousness go to God. We can read in 1 Peter 5:8 that the enemy is always prowling around trying to devour our hope and steal our peace, especially in scary situations.

One night I had a dream of my husband Dan and I standing in a circle between two pillars that spelled the word, “IS.” “What did that mean?” God said: “My grace IS sufficient.” “My power IS perfected in weakness.” And then I saw people praying in a circle around us, facing outwards and protecting us with shields of faith. The enemy was prowling around trying to find an entrance in hoping to shake us up, but the power of prayer and faith prevented him. That was an amazing dream. Remember GOD is always greater than the enemy of our souls and always good…everyday.

Friday Matters

Everyday Love VS Trust

Can we love someone and at the same time not trust them? Yes because if someone is repeatedly stealing money from us, we can still love them, but we don’t give them access to our bank account. We show compassion for an alcoholic by offering our help. We also show compassion by not “enabling” the alcoholic by protecting them from consequences for their bad actions. Many times, consequences are the “severe mercy” that is needed to get their attention. The caution is to make sure we have not elected ourselves as their jury and judge.

It's the Holy Spirit who guides and directs us in how we should move forward in love which might be setting a boundary or not continuing in conversation with someone when they repeatedly spew out garbage to us. Often, we post and proclaim our hurt more than we pray about it. Trust in God who loves you and the other person. He’ll take care of you both. He loves you more than you know, no matter who you are or where you’re at…everyday.

Thursday Matters

Everyday Titles

Years ago, I went through what I describe as a “stripping away” from titles that made me feel important. I stepped down as an artistic director for a children’s theater company, and a spokesperson for a women’s refuge center and I hadn’t really thought about how important these titles made me feel. In Colossians 3:4 God told me, be content with obscurity, like Christ. I was to be content with being unimportant.

When Jesus said, “Become like a “little child,” He meant we’re to be willing to accept ourselves as least in importance. The least is a symbol of those who have the lowest places in society; the poor and the oppressed, the prostitutes, the bank collectors. But Jesus concern was that these should not be despised or treated as inferior (Matthew 18:10). He was well aware of their feelings of shame, and because of their humility and His compassion they were of really great value. God’s grace falls on us not because of our titles in society, but because it’s His good pleasure to love us just as we are…everyday.

Wednesday Matters

Everyday Shame

The message of Jesus is to LOVE and forgive others, which you can only do once you have seen your bad self and accepted His forgiveness. There’s this past so many people carry around that’s really heavy because it’s filled with shame from harming ourselves through “cutting,” an eating disorders, an affair, alcohol, abuse suffered, it’s all yuck. I read that 80% of memories are shame based. People carry shame because they think once they’re fully exposed or discovered they won’t ever be accepted or loved. But when their identity is solid, they’re stable.

Psalm 91:1 is my 911 verse. It reads; “She who dwells in the secret place of the Most High will remain stable.” It means that when I can stand still and let myself be exposed. God covers me, my shame, my fear and replaces all that I’m not with all that He is. It’s hard to really grasp that He’s fully forgiven me and doesn’t recall my sin as I do. God can see the real you and He loves you as you are no matter what…everyday.

Tuesday Matters

Everyday Detach

Loving someone who has an addiction problem can be very challenging. I remember hearing the story of a woman who was married to an alcoholic and every night her husband would come home drunk, collapse on the floor and fall asleep. And every night this woman would somehow get him up and put him to bed. She became worn out and frazzled from rescuing her husband. A friend suggested she attend Al Anon and there she learned about “Detachment.” The next night when her husband came home drunk and fell asleep on the floor, she simply put a blanket over him and left him there. She loved him by covering him but by not picking him up she was detaching. She did not rescue him. She created a loving boundary and let go.

Sometimes love calls us to let go completely. It can be a scary and uncertain time but God will guide you always (Isaiah 55:11). And He’ll often send others to help who’ve been through a similar trial. Reach out. You are not alone...everyday.

Monday Matters

Everyday Your Past

Joshua who served under Moses finds himself ready to lead God’s people into the Promised Land but first he needs to send two scouts to check things out especially into Jericho to see what they might be up against. And it turns out these two scouts are able to lodge at the house of Rahab, a woman who had worked as a prostitute. In Joshua 2:14 we read the promise of the two spies; “We offer our own lives as a guarantee for your safety. If you don’t betray us, we will keep our promise and be kind to you when the Lord gives us the land.” And that’s in fact what happened.

By the end of her life, Rahab too had come to love the God of Israel, and she’s even mentioned as an ancestor of Jesus. No matter how many mistakes you’ve made, always know that God can use everything for the good. He is a Redeemer and has a new beginning for you. You may have a rough past, but you also have a future with Him who loves you…everyday.

Friday Matters

Everyday Significant

What makes you feel important loved or even liked? How often do you check the “likes” on your Instagram or Facebook post? I know. Been there. Done that. Hey this is Debbie Griffith with Everyday Matters. But REALLY the place I feel the most love is when I know who I am and whose I am. I’m God’s girl. You see, He loves all of you and He LONGS to have you rid yourself of the garbage and dirt that makes you feel ashamed or unloved. We’re so important and significant to God. He gets us, gives us gifts to have purpose and He never stops loving us.

Jesus instructs that we’re to be willing to accept ourselves as least in importance. The least is a symbol of those who have the lowest places in society; but Jesus concern was that these should not be treated as inferior (Matthew 18:10). He was well aware of their feelings of shame, and because of their humility and His compassion they were of REALLY great value, just like you…everyday.

Thursday Matters

Everyday Hard Places

Psalm 62:8 tell us to trust in God at all times. It teaches us that we are not to have faith in God just once in a while, but at all the times. Hey this is Debbie Griffith with Everyday Matters. It is easy to trust God when things are going well. But when things are not going well, we develop character by trusting God in our difficult situations. And the more character we develop. the more our ability can be released. Stability releases ability.

Many people have gifts that take them to places where their character cannot keep them. Gifts are given but character is developed. I have always been a communicator and a convincer. But in order for God to use my gifts as a speaker not only does He have to give me the gift, but I also have to have the character so that He can trust me to use my mouth to communicate His Word and heart and living loving Him in my private life as well as publicly…everyday.

Wednesday Matters

Everyday Training

Sometimes don’t you feel like you’ve been wandering in the wilderness for an awful long time and it’s high time things should start looking brighter? I’ve been there. And what helps me is to understand that the trials I’m facing are like tests given in a course that God has allowed to prepare me for my future. The class in the wilderness is not easy but knowing that God had to first approve what’s happening to me and it’s also no surprise to Him, helps me to understand the scriptures which say; “He who began a good work in you will complete it so rejoice in your trials because they’ll produce character which will bring you hope.”

God permits Satan to contest the believer. We’re given these tests to train us so that by Isaiah 45:3 we will be given treasures hidden in the darkness. But let’s remember the rest of the verse; “He will do this so we may know that He’s the Lord, the One who calls us by name…everyday.”

Tuesday Matters

Everyday Relationship

If one of my four sons were to say, “My mom is pretty religious,” I’d be bugged. I don’t practice a religion; I have a relationship with God. Jesus defined what a relationship with God is when He said in Matthew 16:24, “If you want to be a follower of Mine, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow Me.” Surrendering my strong will to do God’s will isn’t always easy but it’s always worth it. God loves me. He fully knows me, and He fully loves, and He know what’s best.

God not only sees the big picture, but He sees the whole picture. Can you see why religion is so irrelevant to God? Having a relationship requires us to be intentional, to spend time getting to know someone and with God it’s about knowing the Bible because He is the Word Himself. Going to church is an activity that is important for community and accountability but if it’s a religious activity then it’s based upon rules whereas a relationship is about knowing Jesus intimately and personally…everyday.

Monday Matters

Everyday What Road?

There’s only one road to God? What? That’s narrow minded. Hey this is Debbie Griffith with Everyday Matters. You’re right, it sounds narrow but through a relationship with Jesus, not religion, it becomes clear that the only way to God is through Jesus Christ and His sacrifice. There are amazing people who love others but think there are many roads to God and that true spirituality is just to love your neighbor and help the poor.

How then do you know when you’ve given enough to get to God? What about the people who’ve been taught to hate? Are the poor just virtuous? That sounds right, but listen, if a soldier drapes his body over a grenade to save his friends, we recognize it as a sacrifice. Something we honor, but not something we can pay him back for. The same is true with Jesus. We can’t earn our salvation. It’s a gift we receive by accepting the sacrifice Christ made to pay for our sins and trusting the path He sets before us…everyday.