The early riser may get a glimpse of God’s handiwork. The above picture was taken early this week in the early morning hours from our home in Orange.
God’s Handiwork
Self
Self is such a miserable place to be
At the end of the day
That’s just what hell may be like
There will be no escaping me
In self
I’m absorbed in my own misery
Consumed with my own pain
Continually thinking it’s all about me
In self
Daily I pursue
That which brings me pleasure
Rather than disciplining myself to do the hard things
In self
I forget about others
Fail to notice their needs
Nor offer a helping hand
In self
I’m determined to accomplish my will
Never yielding or obeying God
If I could…I’d make God to be like I want Him to be
In self
While I’ll never admit it
I treat others
As if they are here to serve me
In self
There is no joy in the Lord
For my eyes fail to see Him
My focus is entirely on me
In self
I am filled with only me
There is no room for anyone else
At times it’s a pretty lonely place to be
Yet there is One who tells me
I am to die to self daily
That I must be a servant of all
That I am to love the Lord with all my heart
Only the One
Who humbled Himself
Who came to do His Father’s will
Can show me how to live for Christ and not for me
Susan Bunts Wachtel
September 4, 2009
God Stop – Defeat vs. Victory
Satan wants us to come to the come to the battlefield equipped in our own strength and armor because he knows that’s how he can defeat us.
But it’s in Christ Jesus…that we have the victory.
God in the Middle
Sometimes I feel as though
I’m in the middle of crossing the Jordan
In between doubt and defeat or
Experiencing victory through believing God
Between standing on my own strength or
Walking in God’s omnipotent power
Between leaning on my own understanding or
Trusting God’s wisdom and His perfect Word
Between following God at a distance or
Walking in lock step with Him
Between seeing God’s power in the lives of others or
Knowing through experience His all sufficient power in my own life
Between captivity and victimhood or
Deliverance and victory through Christ Jesus
Between sin and death or
Walking in the newness of life
Between choosing my own will or
Obeying God
Oh God, may I remember that You have gone before me
That You are with me in the middle of the Jordan
May this be my Ebenezer Stone
A witness that Lord has brought me thus far
God You are the Covenant Maker and Keeper
You will bring me safely through
by Susan Bunts Wachtel
September 2, 2009
September 2, 2009
For the Birds
Hold On
Hold on to me ever so tight Lord
Never let me go
Always be with me
You go before me
Your Spirit is within me
You surround me God
May I cling to Your Word
Saturate my heart and mind
With truth, knowledge and wisdom
Fill me with Your peace
Give me a hope that endures
Through all circumstances, trials and tribulation
God…You are my All in all
Jesus…You are my salvation
Victory is found in Christ alone
Susan Bunts Wachtel
August 26, 2009
FVHS Superstars
Now who would have ever thought that Chris Wachtel would be putting together a slide show for Facebook? Well…it took a reunion with his friends from Fountain Valley High School’s theater group to do so.
What a fun evening we had. It was great to meet the people whom Chris has spoken so fondly of.
Set Apart
As Christ So Loved the Church
Last week I listened to several programs from Focus on the Family in which Fred Stoeker talked about his struggle with pornography and how he was able to overcome the addiction by God’s grace.
Not only was he able to overcome the addiction…but God who is able to do abundantly, exceedingly, more than we ask or imagine…changed the course of his family. While Fred’s father was addicted to pornography and passed that sin along to his son…Fred was able to draw a line in the sand and say no further. His son Jason is a man who is committed to purity and stands along with his dad in living and promoting purity.
It was an amazing story. I felt many emotions while listening to the program. I felt deeply grieved and saddened. No more so than to hear about pornography’s hold on Christian males and young people (both men and women). It’s significant and the ramifications are huge for the body of Christ. It renders the men and women that God has called to serve Him ineffective because they are caught in sin.
Any of us who has been caught in sin’s web know how effectively Satan uses it to trap, condemn and bind us. When we are trapped in our own sin…we don’t want to confront people in their sin…because we know that we are hypocrites. We are unwilling to take a stand for the truth because we are deeply embedded in our own sin. We don’t want to serve because we feel unworthy. There is always the nagging doubt…what if someone finds out?
Fred then made a comment about how God instructs husbands to be the leaders of their home and to love their wife as Christ so loves the church.
That thought…of a husband loving his wife as Christ so loved the church…took hold of me. What would that look like…if a husband really loved his wife that way?
What would it look like if Christians loved people as Christ loved the church? How would it affect our actions and how we treat people? What would our words be like?
Obviously, I feel inadequate and lacking when I measure myself against that standard of love. But then I thought…would I want how I love people to be the measure by which Christ loved me?
If Jesus Christ had the measure of love that I have…would He have gone to the cross? Would He have loved me…who denied Him and sinned against Him for far too many years? Would He have forgiven me of my sin?
In my sinful imperfect self…my love is very far from loving others as Christ so loved the church. Yet…as I submit myself to Jesus Christ and the Father’s will for me…if I yield more and more, day by day to the Holy Spirit…if I seek to know God through the study of His word and through prayer…I can grow in sanctification.
As I love God and yield and submit myself…He will help me to grow and learn how to do what’s impossible to do without Him. This side of heaven…I’ll never achieve that perfect love. But that shouldn’t stop me from doing what God has commanded me to do. To have that perfect love…to love as Christ Jesus loved…requires that I deny myself daily.
But oh… to think how marvelous heaven will be…when all the saints around us are able to love with a more perfect love. Love untainted by sin and selfishness.
Backyard Treasures
Leftover Love
Theirs was a leftover kind of love
Surely it didn’t start out that way
But before they knew it
All they had left at the end of the day
Was bits and pieces
Scraps from their day
The morning comes early
Goodness knows there is never enough sleep
One rises more easily
The other has a slow wake-up call
An extra cup of coffee
Helps them to keep running on empty
Soon they are off and running
Going their separate ways
There may be a text message
To say I love you
A phone call in the middle of the day
Just to check in
Their jobs are most demanding
Of time, energy and attention
Their very best is given each day
To a company of relative strangers
Of course there is shopping and errands
Necessary to run their household so efficiently
When they arrive home
There is much work that still needs to be done
Lawns to be mowed
Bills that must be paid
Cleaning and laundry
And a meal to prepare
They sit down at the table
Hold hands and say a grace
Both are so tired from their day
Conversation may not ensue
Sometimes they wonder
What’s it all for
Activities abound
Responsibilities call
Bible study, worship and prayer
Serving the body of Christ
It’s all good and yet…
With each demand…there’s a little less to give one another
A sense of accomplishment is never felt
For there are walls left unpainted
Boxes still unpacked
A garden that needs tending
Poems left unwritten
Books yet to be read
At the end of the day
Both fall into bed
With nothing left to give
Exhaustion lures one to sleep
The other reads to quiet the mind
Until a welcome sleep finally comes
In the middle of the night
They awaken ever so briefly
Look over at the one
To whom they pledged their life and love
And wonder…how can our marriage survive
On leftover love
Susan Bunts Wachtel
August 14, 2009
While I know our situation is not unique…we are finding it a challenge with the demands and necessities of life to find the time to spend together as husband and wife.
The Road Beyond
I’ve been down this road
So many times before
I ought to know it well
Instead of doubt and despair
My mind should be filled
With excitement and prayerful expectation
The road begins
With a prayer
For God’s soon deliverance
Then the wait begins
Sometimes the delay appears to be a no
For God’s timing is oft much different than my own
He takes me to the brink
Where I feel like I cannot endure
Not even one more day
Then God takes me beyond
To the place where I must choose
To doubt or believe God
In the place of beyond
I wait upon the Lord
With faith look for God’s miraculous deliverance
Oh my soul, take courage
For God will never disappoint
When He takes me down the road and beyond
Susan Bunts Wachtel
August 12, 2009
Faith Meter
Recently I’ve been experiencing some spiritual battles that left me feeling soundly defeated. Rather than believing God that I am more than a conqueror and acting on it…I believed the lies of the enemy. Much to my chagrin I’ve taken the bait one too many times.
That’s when I realized…I’m tired be living a defeated life. Tired of choosing fear and anxiety rather than trusting and believing God. Tired of looking at my circumstances and letting them be the measure of my faith. When my circumstances are good and everything is going my way…the faith meter is so high it’s off the charts. When troubles abound and the fiery darts of the enemy assail me…you can’t get a reading.
If my faith meter was instead a heart monitor…the doctors would pronounce me dead and pull the sheet over my head.
Isn’t my faith, to some degree, a measure of my heart towards God? Am I a person who loves God with all my heart, mind, soul and strength? If I don’t believe God is good…no matter what my circumstances…then how can I love Him when life turns ugly?
While meditating on my faith failures…God challenged me with the following thoughts:
- Will I choose to love God when I don’t understand what He’s doing?
- Will I choose to bless His holy Name when I don’t understand His purpose for allowing the enemy buffet me?
- Will I choose to thank Him in all things?
- Will I choose to obey Him when it’s the hard thing to do?
- Will I choose to trust Him when I’m hurting?
- Will I choose to look to Him, not my circumstances?
- Will I choose to listen to Him only, not give an ear to the enemy?
- Will I choose to pray rather than fret and imagine the worst?
- Will I choose to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ?
- Will I choose to dwell upon that which is good, lovely, and pure and of good report?
- Will I choose to continue to bring my requests to God…trusting His timing and answer to my prayers?
- Will I trust that God is working out His good and perfect plan in the trials and tribulations of life?
- Will I bring my loved ones before the throne of God and seek His wisdom on how to respond?
- Will I choose to believe that God is doing a work in others, even when it’s not evidenced in the now?
- Will I choose to saturate my mind with God’s word?
- Will I seek to know God more?
- Will I choose to say “Blessed be the Name of the Lord” in good times and bad…and mean it with all my heart?
Fear and anxiety are doubt and unbelief being worked out in my daily life.
Today I choose to believe God, love Him, trust and obey Him. By His power, through Christ and the Holy Spirit dwelling within me…I will be more than a conqueror today.
Tomorrow…I’ll be faced with that choice all over again. But for today…I choose to believe God.
A Time Away…La Jolla & San Diego
La Jolla…Be Still
In Response
Dear Hubie and D-Jay,
I wanted to thank you both for your comments on a recent post “Divine Delay”.
Hubie…I hope to offer you encouragement. You mentioned that it was your desire to one day be married, but thus far it hasn’t happened. I pray that Chris and my story gives you hope. I encourage you to never give up…keep praying and waiting on the Lord. Many people presumed that because I was single for 49 years, that I would never marry.
But God never took that desire from me. I went through seasons where the desire to be married lessened…but it was always there. While people have good intentions…and want you to be content in your circumstances…they don’t know what God’s plans are for you.
Keep praying, keep asking trusted family and friends to join with you in prayer. Pray that at God’s appoint time, He will bring a godly Christian woman to be your wife. But also be willing to be content in God alone if indeed God’s plans are for you to live a life of singleness. Continue to the love the Lord with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. Even when you don’t understand why…remain fully committed to God and His plan for your life.
While you are content in your current circumstance…continue to lift up your desire to the Lord. I pray that one day God will grant you that desire.
D-Jay…how exciting that you are beginning your faith walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that you will grow and have a deep and abiding faith in our Lord. That as you yield to Him, as you come to know and trust Him that you will grow by leaps and bounds. What a great time to accept Christ.
Drink from the well of Living Water. Study the Word of God faithfully. Hear God’s Word…read it with your own eyes. Pray that that Holy Spirit will help you understand difficult passages. Listen to God and pray to God. Don’t be shy. The more you pray, the more comfortable you will feel.
Keep your focus on God…think of His attributes and His characteristics. Hide His Word in your heart…so that you might not sin against Him. Saturate your mind with God’s Word…so you can effectively wield the Sword of the Spirit. Memorize scripture. Praise God on the good days and bad days. When you have God…when your sins have been cleansed by the precious blood of Jesus Christ…when you have the Holy Spirit within you…nothing is so bad that you can’t overcome it.
Live a life that will glorify God. Live a life that is a sweet fragrance…one in which God can use to make others hunger and thirst for Him.
Below are some great resources that can help you grow in your Christian walk. Many have free sermon downloads, articles, devotionals or ways for you to get involved and study God’s Word.
John MacArthur – Grace to You
John Piper – Desiring God
CJ Mahaney – Sovereign Grace Ministries
Live a life that is radically committed to Jesus Christ…you won’t regret it.
A Divine Delay
Oh there was no mistaking it. It had the handprints of God all over it; a divine delay planned just for me.
“I guess God is speaking to me and I had better listen up. Perhaps this is an answer to all my prayers throughout the day.”
Here I was, stopped at the light. Before I knew it the rails were coming down and the signal lights were flashing and a train would soon be passing by. Sometimes it’s the commuter train and I’m quickly on my way. But not today; instead there was not just one, but two freight trains passing by.
But it was okay because God had a special message for me…at just the right time.
The night before had not been pretty. We had an argument, during which some regretful things were said. I don’t think either of us knew what had really happened or why. But it did and it left us feeling raw and hurt.
Things were better the next morning…but still a little tense. We both knew that we’d have to sit down and talk about it. Learn from it, with the hope of not repeating anytime soon. When we talked earlier in the day…Chris said, “Let’s do the hard thing and talk about it”. I reluctantly said okay…even though I wanted to run for the hills. A case of denial sounded really good right about then. With a little pretending that nothing was wrong thrown in for good measure. But we both knew we needed to talk.
Throughout the day…I thought about what I wanted to say. Thankfully my emotions had calmed down a bit…and my words would have been measured. But I knew there was still some hurt underneath them. So I continued to pray.
God kept reminding me that He requires that both Chris and I forgive one another. As Christians…we know that Christ has forgiven us all of our sins. How then can we hold against each other…what Christ has already forgiven us?
As I was driving home I was listening to the radio. When the commercials came on I changed channels in time to hear David Jeremiah’s message on Psalm 23. He was talking about forgiveness and prayer. I knew that it was no accident that I had turned to that program.
Pastor Jeremiah started to tell a story about Hudson Taylor to illustrate the importance of taking everything to God in prayer. To not approach hurts, offences and bad circumstances in our own wisdom.
As he was telling the story, the trains came and I was stuck at a red light. God had both my attention and my heart.
In the story Hudson Taylor had experienced frustration, lazy workers and thieves who had taken advantage of him. He encountered delays. At each turn, he responded in his own wisdom. When he finally got to his destination, God revealed the providence in those delays and His provision for the losses. Hudson Taylor was reminded that if he had first gone to God in prayer when he started his arduous journey, that while he would have still encountered the circumstances, he would have had the peace of God and the assurance of His presence. He would have had certainty that His mighty God was working all things together for good for His servant who loved the Lord.
As the light turned green and the path before me was clear…I prayed again. This time a little differently. “God, you are asking me to do the impossible. You are asking me to forgive when my sinful human nature wants to hold on to a hurt. I know that forgiveness is Your will…but You are going to have to do that in me. Give Chris and me the words to say to one another. May we be mindful that Your presence is with us. May what we do and what we say be pleasing and glorifying to You.”
When Chris arrived home…we sat down to talk. We read a scripture and prayed. When I lifted my head up I knew that there was nothing that I needed to say. God had worked out that forgiveness in me. Likewise Chris’ words were humble and gracious. God was in our midst. By His grace what could have been a very painful encounter was okay. Maybe even more than okay…it was good.
Thank you Lord…for Your divine delays and giving me what I need, just when I need it.
Finally, all [of you] should be of one and the same mind (united in spirit), sympathizing [with one another], loving [each other] as brethren [of one household], compassionate and courteous (tenderhearted and humble). Never return evil for evil or insult for insult (scolding, tongue-lashing, berating), but on the contrary blessing [praying for their welfare, happiness, and protection, and truly pitying and loving them]. For know that to this you have been called, that you may yourselves inherit a blessing [from God–that you may obtain a blessing as heirs, bringing welfare and happiness and protection]. – I Peter 3:8-9 Amplified Bible
Least you are thinking, “good golly I hope Susan’s husband knows what she’s written”, let me assure you that he does. In fact he’s given his blessing to post this. It is our prayer that God may use something in our lives to help others. To encourage you to turn to God and seek His help, grace, mercy, strength and wisdom. That you will remember your greatest weapons are prayer and the Word of God.
This is dedicated to our dearest friends and prayer warriors…Ruth, Jeff, Pattie and Robyn. We love you and are grateful to call you our friends.
A Love Story Never Told
Theirs was a love story never to be told
A tale of deliverance
An outrageous work of God
Even some of God’s saints
Might turn away if the truth were known
Reviling their sinful past
Most would never believe it
Some would say it couldn’t be done
They could never imagine what God would do
Redeeming two very broken souls
Taking bits and pieces and knitting them together into one flesh
Accomplishing what man said is impossible
Some do not believe in miracles today
Certain they are a thing of the past
But these two could tell a different story
Proclaiming the wonders of God’s redemption
Testifying of His marvelous grace
Their lives bearing witness to God’s outrageous love
Susan Bunts Wachtel
July 21, 2009
One Enemy
There is but one enemy
You are not it
It is the one with stealth
Working behind the scenes
He seeks to cause division
Using anger, jealously and pride
He plants seeds of doubt
Watered by human failure
He preys on our humanity and weakness
Manipulating our emotions
His arrows are well timed
In conjunction with anger, hunger and fatigue
He magnifies a hurt
Makes us believe it was done with intent
He cajoles us
Forgiveness and grace are undeserved
He pumps up our pride
Feeds our self inflated ego
He bring us low
With remembrances of a multitude of sins
Unless we take every thought captive
We are so easily led astray
May we always remember
Never forget
There is but one enemy
You are not it
Susan Bunts Wachtel
July 17, 2009
Dedicated to my precious friend Ruth…thank you for your wise counsel that always brings me back to God.
Letter to My Niece…The Adventure Begins
Dear one…now that the good news of your engagement has gotten out I’m sure that at times you feel overwhelmed. Well hold on to your hat…it’s just beginning. But never fear…these waters you will soon learn to navigate with skill.
Who would have thought that after you decide to marry you’d have so decisions make? As many decisions as you and your fiancé will be making in the coming months…it doesn’t hold a candle to the all the advice you will receive from well meaning family, friends and even a few strangers. Even this you will learn to handle with grace and ease.
There is so much joy when the wonderful news of an engagement is announced. Before long…decisions and planning will start.
For my husband Chris and me…those decisions started right away with shopping for an engagement ring. Because we had only known each other 3 months, Chris decided that it would be best for us to go ring shopping together. That experience was a mixture of comedy and frustration. In the end…it turned out to be good practice for the other elements of our wedding that we would have to plan.
We started engagement ring shopping at Robbins Brothers. It was kind of funny. We still felt the magic of being newly engaged. But we dealt with a clerk who was used to selling to young people who didn’t really know what they wanted. But I was 49 years old…and had an opinion on just about everything…and wasn’t too keen on explaining myself every time I said no. While I couldn’t tell you exactly what I wanted in a ring…I knew it when I saw it. After repeatedly being quizzed if I like this ring or that one…and why…we decided that perhaps we should look at some other stores.
That turned out to be wise and providential decision. God led us to a jewelry store…where with no pressure browsing we found an engagement ring and our wedding rings. I also learned…that I don’t have to worry that I’m hurting the sales person’s feeling when I say “No, that’s not what I want.”
Some of the first decisions you and your fiancé will need to make will include when you are getting married and what’s your budget. Both answers will drive the other decisions you need to make while planning your wedding.
Because we decided to get married relatively soon…we had a lot of decisions to make in a short period of time. That necessitated…making decisions quickly. Because we were paying for the wedding ourselves…and not our parents our budget wasn’t extravagant. While we wanted to have a nice wedding…we didn’t want to break the bank on that one day.
We wanted a ceremony that would honor and glorify God. One where we could praise and thank God for bringing us together. One that we could invite family and friends to and have the gospel message shared…even in our wedding ceremony.
We both knew where we wanted the ceremony to be held…Kindred Community Church. Kindred had been my church home since we became a church. It was the place where Chris and I first met. But we had a decision to make. Should we hold the ceremony in the church sanctuary…or in one of the lovely garden areas? The garden areas were less expensive and would have easily accommodated the number of guests we wanted to invite. But my heart and soul were in the sanctuary because I have so many fond memories in there. It was just right for us.
Once those important, driving decisions were made…when, how much and where…we had to get busy. We had a wedding fast approaching in four months and counting.
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