Far back as I can remember I have loved Psalms 73, especially the ending:

Whom have I in heaven but You?
And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
For, behold, those who are far from You will perish;
You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You.
But as for me, the nearness of God is my good;
I have made the Lord GOD my refuge,
That I may tell of all Your works.

Throughout the seasons of life, I find myself returning and feeding on the beautiful truths and comfort found here. Because honestly, at all times, I desire God’s nearness above all. This psalm presents such an honesty about my frailty: my flesh and my heart fail me. They are unfaithful to trust in. And stability I seek can’t settle upon either of these.

But Jesus — sweet Jesus — is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. He is a rock that is higher than I. He is the exact amount I need every day. When I lack courage and my knees shake under the fear, Christ infuses a perfect timely strength which enables me to keep walking in faith. When I struggle with desires for more, for seasons in the future, for what I don’t have, Jesus is my portion. He is and gives exactly what I need for every moment. My cup is always full.

When I wander from His presence I dreadfully perish. My nurishement and hope is misplaced onto objects weak and vain, and I feel their deficientcy in my core. My good is found only in the Lord’s nearness. He is my refuge and desire. My greatest need and purpose is to stay close to Jesus… for my joy is found in Him.

- http://www.alabasterboxblog.com/

“I still have many things to say to you but you cannot bear them now.” - John 16:12

I bitterly read this verse and wrestled with it for a while today. I wrestled with God. “Why can’t You just tell me what you are apparently longing to say? You have all these things to tell me but You think I can’t handle them? God, seriously? I want to hear You! Why would you think that? I need to hear them! Do you not hear me crying out to You? Have you forgotten my prayers? I don’t know what else to do. Why do You have to be so difficult? I have no idea what I’m doing right now - I’m stuck and I need guidance that only You can give to me so why can’t you shed some light onto this situation? Shed some light into my life?” 

Of course, after my mind settled down a bit, I realized my foolishness and started laughing to myself. Who was I to question God? Honestly, I think this verse is directed at each one of us. We complain about how we don’t hear the voice of God - how we don’t know what we’re supposed to do or where we’re supposed to be. We’re just there. Confused. Yet do we do anything about it? We forget that there might be a reason that God is silent. Perhaps it could be a test of patience and perseverance. Or just simply a test of faith. Perhaps He is silent because we still have potential for spiritual growth. Maybe He’s waiting to shed His wonderful wisdom upon us for when we have started to completely surrender our downfalls and insecurities to Him. Maybe He is waiting for us so stop keeping certain things from Him. He wants all of it. If He were to tell you everything right now, perhaps you wouldn’t even understand it because maybe you aren’t at a point spiritually where that wisdom would make sense. Or maybe you might even take it for granted because you wouldn’t understand the significance of it. 

I’m not saying that calling out to God for wisdom is a bad thing because it’s not. In fact, God encourages us to do so. I’m just saying that maybe part of the reason for the silence of God is ourselves. We must really examine our hearts and figure out what is stopping us from growing in Christ.

Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. - Hebrews 10:24.

Spring has finally sprung which means that the weather will inevitably warm up. As awesome as it is to bring out the spring clothing and, eventually summer shorts, us Christian women need to remember how the way we dress can tempt our brothers in Christ. Our jobs is to help and encourage our brothers in Christ from being led astray by our beauty and charm. All guys struggle with this. Even the most Godly. They all struggle with their eyes. Most girls are innocently unaware of the difficulty a guy has in remaining pure when looking at a girl who is dressed immodestly. Please be aware of how easily your actions and glances can stir up lust in a guy’s mind. I know this seems somewhat unfair since summer can be really hot and the best way to fight the heat is to wear short shorts and a tank top but it’s our job to help keep our brothers strong in Christ. We shouldn’t be a reason for them to fall into temptation but, instead, an encouragement and crutch. It’s true that guys are responsible for maintaining their own self control but you can help by refusing to wear clothes designed to attract attention to your body. Take the responsibility of guarding your brother’s eyes. Even if a guy forces himself not to look, he is very much aware of the presence of a girl who wears clothes that are revealing.

Stop being mean, bad-tempered, and angry. Quarreling, harsh words, and dislike of others should have no place in your lives. Instead, be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God has forgiven you because you belong to Christ.