Usually its better to slow down!
By Bill Gaultiere © 2010
I was coming down the stairs this morning with my arms full and heading out to an appointment that I was going to be late for when I spilled my cup full of cereal all down the stairs and across the entry! This is a parable…
Most pastors and leaders that my wife Kristi and I minister to have the same problem I had this morning – they’re carrying too much and they’re moving too fast. They’re under tremendous stress and have difficulty making time for the intimacy with Jesus that they crave and [...]
Continue reading Hurry to Spill Mercy
By Bill Gaultiere © 2010
Most every day I talk to someone who is afraid or anxious (which is generalized fear). Maybe you fear what people think of you… Not having enough money… Public speaking, flying, being far from home, or spiders… Failure or rejection… Losing a loved one… Disease or pain… Death…
We all long for more of God’s peace in the midst of the stresses of our lives!
It’s been said that there are 365 “fear nots” in the Bible, one for every day of the year. This is a wonderful thought, but is it true? Most people say no. Indeed, there is not a version of [...]
Continue reading “Fear Not!” 365 days a year
By Bill Gaultiere © 2010
Are you free – really free? Are you at peace being the person God created you to be and enjoying your life with him?
Many people we talk to are wearing a heavy yoke. They’re working all the time. Or they’re worried about money or their health or their kids. Or they’re tired of trying to please an impossible to please spouse. Or they’re depending on alcohol to relax.
Jesus shows us a life of freedom. No one has had more pressure than Jesus. No one has had more responsibility, expectations, temptations, stress, or pain than Jesus. And no one lived life more [...]
Continue reading Be Free! Live in Jesus’ Easy Yoke!
Your identity, worth, meaning, and joy are in Christ alone – not in your performance or what people think of you. 110 times the Apostle Paul urges us to place ourselves “in Christ.”
Practicing my “In Christ Alone” prayer will help you to enter the Sabbath rest of Jesus’ Christ’s embrace: “In Christ alone my soul finds rest… Selah” (inspired by Psalm 62:1,5).
Pause to take a breather now… Refresh your soul in Christ… Form your heart around the desire to seek Christ alone as your source in all that you do… Pray slowly, over and over,“In Christ Alone my soul finds rest… Selah.”
Try it as a Breath [...]
Continue reading In Christ Alone
By Bill Gaultiere © 1992
I spent seven years in my own psychotherapy, getting help with anxiety and depression, learning how to express my feelings better and receive the soul care that I needed. I needed help to get free of my false self and come alive as my true self.
My therapist was “Christ’s Ambassador” to me (2 Corinthians 5:20) and God found me at the bottom of the old well and set me free to be me!
In 1992 I wrote about my personal struggle of going through therapy in my prayer poem: “Becoming ‘I’.” My experience was very much like David’s in Psalm 40:1-5:
“I [...]
Continue reading Becoming “I”
By Bill Gaultiere © 2010
I’ve heard it said: “I pray when I’m in trouble. I pray all the time!”
I relate! I’m in trouble all the time! Realizing this is the secret to a great prayer life.
When our circumstances are pleasant it’s easy to forget that we’re in trouble: the world is vain, demons are near, temptations abound, trials are coming, people are starving, we will die.
We have to remind ourselves: “I am in trouble!” Then we will pray!
“I am in Trouble”, inspired by Psalm 34:15-22, is just the prayer prompt that we need. Pray it for yourself. Pray it for the people the Lord [...]
Continue reading I am in Trouble
By Bill Gaultiere © 2008, 2010
I was thinking of Jesus’ words: “Don’t worry. Look at the birds… Your Heavenly Father cares for them. Aren’t you much more valuable than them?” (Matthew 6:25-26, PAR). (The Psalmist had a similar meditation that Jesus may have drawn from, Psalm 104:12, 17, 27-30).
And they inspired me to sit down and do some bird watching while I prayed today as I was alone with Jesus in the quiet for a few hours. As I watched and listened to what was going on above my head Jesus spoke to my heart.
Don’t misunderstand me. The Lord’s voice didn’t come to me like [...]
Continue reading Don’t Worry – Listen to the Birds
By Bill Gaultiere © 2010
For most people I talk to peace is elusive.
What do you do to be at peace? Do you walk on eggshells to avoid upsetting someone? Have a couple of drinks to relax? Veg out for hours in front of the television? Try to solve your problems with more money? Escape into a novel?
I’ve tried some of those things. I’ve also run away from my problems – literally by running ten miles or more! But when you’re done running you still have to come back to the things that are stressing you out!
Instead, I’ve learned to talk about how I [...]
Continue reading Prayer for Peace
Distracting thoughts are great enemies of prayer. They can be like buzzing bees that drive us crazy!
Today I enjoyed Sabbath time with Jesus. With My Psalms Prayer Book in hand and candles lit at the altar in my prayer room I kneeled and prayed from Psalm 118.
The Word of God helped inflame the Spirit in my heart and burn away the distracting thoughts until little by little I was centered in God’s presence and my thoughts became as incense…
It lasted awhile. Of course, the bees came back! Lord, help me to keep the fire going! Guard my mind and heart with your peace (Colossians 3:1-3).
Try [...]
Continue reading Thoughts as Incense
“Find rest, O my soul, in God alone,” David prays in Psalm 62:5.
Is your soul at rest? Are you living in Jesus’ “easy yoke”? (Matthew 11:28-30). God’s peace is elusive for most of us! We may struggle with worry, irritability, or jealousy. Or we may keep ourselves busy all the time.
Why don’t our souls find rest in God?
Because we want to be in control of our lives. And one thing that we especially tend to want to control is our emotions. We don’t want to feel things like sadness… neediness… loneliness… fear… chaos… anger. So [...]
Continue reading Find Rest, O My Soul
