In our last week of Mornings In The Word, we were reminded each day of this important truth: “There is more than surviving; there is thriving in The Wilderness” (Tammy Mashburn, page 88):

1. Sink or Swim? Confession here – I cannot swim. At all. But I drown beautifully! Whenever we go on vacation or go swimming, yours truly wears a life vest. I truly do. Even in a pool. I have such a fear of water that is over my head, yet I do not want to miss out on the fun with everyone. Without Jesus, I would also spiritually sink. But the wonderful and most beautiful thing is, He will never leave us nor ever abandon us (Hebrews 13:6). He will go to the greatest lengths to rescue us for He is ever in pursuit of us. The study asks some sobering questions: Have you fallen away from God? How can you make your way back to Him? Don’t waste another single minute. Let’s put our swimmies on and dive into His waters!
2. God desires us to experience freedom. A quote comes to mind: “Adversity does not make us frail; it only shows us how frail we are” (author unknown).  The same can be said of our sins. God’s Word comes to expose that which needs to be released. He frees us from any net, any entanglement, which tries to hold us back as we allow Him to shine His Light into our lives. His desire is for us to walk freely, untangled, by His grace, His forgiveness, and His mercy. “You will free me from the net
   that is secretly set for me, for you are my refuge” (Psalm 31:4, CSB).
3. Hoarders or Givers? Do we clench tightly or hold loosely? In the story of Peter and John (in Acts 3), we find the two are approached by a lame man. Peter, in response to the man’s begging, says, “I don’t have silver or gold, but I will give you what I do have.” (This is my loose translation). We often think we need to have money or possessions to give to others. We fail to see we have been given what is needed even more – our story. Our testimony. Our Jesus. “Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts; let them proclaim your power. I will meditate on your majestic, glorious splendor and your wonderful miracles. Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue, I will proclaim your greatness” (Psalm 145:4-6, NLT). We need boldness, courage, and transparency in sharing our stories. We can’t hold back sharing Jesus with others. I’m convicted today – to hold loosely, give more, to ask Him to grow me some courage to share often and freely with those around me. Do you find it hard to share your story? What will it take for you to share more freely with those God places in your path?
4. Judgement or Grace? “We greedily take grace, yet withhold.”  “We should be speaking life.”  “I pray for a gracious heart.” Those three lines made me take time this morning to pray for my own heart. May our hearts not be quick to return to “judgment” rather than grace. May our words speak life, speak hope, more so, speak Jesus.
5. Let’s run our race. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:1-2, NLT). We are told to do three things: “let us throw off everything that hinders”; “let us run with perseverance”; we are to be “fixing our eyes”. In doing these three things, we better our race. As we do, God steps in and gives us what we need to cross the finish line. My thoughts turned to the Boston Marathon, only because I live near Boston and not because I am a runner. While every marathon is a test of endurance, I was reminded of the most difficult section of the Boston Marathon known as “Heartbreak Hill.” This is a steep uphill 1/2 mile (at mile 20) – when the runners are tired and worn. It’s a hard stretch but the runners know if they reach the top, it is a downhill race the remainder of the way. Are you currently in your own wilderness place? What things can you do to thrive in the hard?

God’s Word is a guide and He longs to guide you to living abundantly in His ways. Spend time with Him and come to know His voice as He speaks to you from the pages of Scripture!

This month I am sharing lessons learned from the devotional book “Mornings In The Word” by Tammy Mashburn. Week One can be found HERE ; Week Two HERE ; and Week Three HERE . You can read more about the book on the author’s website HERE. You can also follow Tammy on Twitter.

Today I am joining … Inspire Me Monday .