By Judy Villanueva

Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, 
your justice like the great deep. You, Lord, preserve both people and animals. How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; 
you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; 
in your light we see light. (Psalm 36:5-9:)

One bite, and oh my, the goodness hits my taste buds and I feel the joy!!! It was one of those, “Take me now, Lord, because I want to end on this heavenly, scrumptious note!” I have never tasted Sticky Toffee Pudding, but while in Scotland, decided to try one of their favorites and was NOT disappointed! Can you identify? Can you think of something that brings you joy from head to toe…dark chocolate maybe, or windy days, pumpkin pie, autumn leaves, coffee, clouds, bike riding, running, or sitting by the fire? Life is full of delights and if we are attentive to them, we’ll discover the love of God embedded in each one!

The reality is that life is a blend of joys and sorrows, pleasure and pain, seasons of fullness and seasons of loss. They all live together and I suppose that is a good thing. If life were all wonderful, we would likely lose our felt need for God and find our soul longings satisfied in temporal things. And, if life were all sorrowful, we might be swallowed up and unable to think, dream or envision life beyond the pain.

I often wonder if God doesn’t drip delights throughout this world and our experiences within it, because He knows they will remind us that there is a good God at work behind the scenes…a God we can trust.

If I am attentive as I breathe in the beauty of the sunrise, or slow down enough to savor the playfulness of a child, or laugh-to-tears with a friend, I will feel God’s goodness and it will speak love to my soul.

I believe that hidden inside of life’s delights is the love of God, His good will toward us, His delight in delighting us!

I also believe that as we relish and soak up the blessedness of these kinds of moments, we become a little more anchored in love, strengthened for harder days, and helped to believe better in a wise and good God.

“Father God, I am so grateful that You are good! It strengthens me to remember that along with being mighty and wise and Holy, You are also good:) Open my eyes to your goodness today as I sip that first cup of coffee, greet my loved ones, and live this day. Thank You for tasty bites, the love of dear friends, baby hugs and every good thing that will bless me today! Amen.”

What about you?

Do you experience the delights in life as gifts of God’s goodness?

Are you attentive to God’s goodness around you? Can you name a few delights from yesterday?

Do you find that you are more inclined to notice the “good” or the “troublesome” in life?

Practice being attentive to God’s goodness. It becomes a habit that will bless your soul!

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Worship

By Judy Villanueva

The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”  Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” (1Samuel 3:10)

My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words; Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart, for they are life to those who find them 
and health to one’s whole body. (Proverbs 4:20-22)

I was ready for the challenge!  I was twenty-three years old.  She was a baby.  I had a college education.  She had determination!  Suddenly, she made her move and crawled as fast as she could for the electrical outlet!  She looked over at me and reached out her dimpled hand in defiance!   I sternly said, “Look at mommy!  Don’t you dare touch that outlet!” We had been here before — many times — and each time I’d watch her teeter between wanting what she wanted and yielding to my voice.  To her credit, she looked at me and stalled for about ten seconds before she touched it!

“Look at Me!”  It’s a directive that parents use to get their child’s attention.  It is meant to entice the young one away from one focal point and onto the parent in order to give needed correction or guidance.  Babies, of course, cannot appreciate the good intentions of the parent and simply want what they want!  Sadly, even grown up, we tend to get focused on things that don’t bring life or worse, are harmful to us. Submitting our desires to God and turning to Him for direction is essential to maintaining a balanced and healthy spiritual life.

The problem is not so much that we want this or that, but rather that our hearts get so filled up with good things (and not so good things) that there is little room left to want God.

Can you hear God when He calls you to look at Him?  It might be a still, small voice, an internal nudge or a louder invitation, like an ulcer, or a life that is falling apart.  If we are not in the habit of “listening”, His might sound like one voice among many.

There is a fine-tuning that happens each time we hear and obey God. The sound of Him becomes clearer!

Likewise, we can deaden our sense of Him by ignoring His prompts and turning away from His face.

Looking for God, listening as we make decisions or walk out the front door is necessary if we are to be helped to want what is most worthy of wanting!  Do you want God?  I do, in theory!  But, too often, I really just want what I want and depend on His kind, steady voice to help me turn away from things that distract me and look at Him.  I want to be aware of God in the middle of my day, especially when He says, “Judy, look at Me!”

I need to feel the sound of Him correcting, directing and helping me find my way to His will.

I need to hear His voice say “I love you” in my every moment and learn to want Him most of all.

“Father, I thank you that you are a wise and watchful parent.  Help me to hear you call when I am in heading away from your will and in need of redirecting!  Keep finding me!  Amen.”

What about you?

Can you hear God when He calls to you?

How do you look at God?

What sorts of things help you hear His voice?

Are you learning to want God, most of all?

There is nothing more orienting than looking at God!  It finds us!

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Worship

By Judy Villanueva

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:38-42)

To sit at the feet of Jesus and let Him be my one distraction sounds both enticing and elusive. More often than not, I find myself in the kitchen with Martha, scowling at Mary and wishing so badly I could be the one sitting at Jesus’ feet.  I like to think that Martha loved Jesus from the kitchen amidst her many distractions and wish I couldn’t relate to how she let them postpone the joy of entering his presence.  But, I can.   As I slow down with this passage and take my pulse, I become aware that I am stuck in the kitchen!  I want to be next to Jesus, close enough to see the expression in his eyes and hear the tone of his voice. I know he is in the room with me but am not quite sure how to drop all my doing and find a place at His feet.  Do you ever feel that way?

This moment of awareness becomes a prayer and I ask Jesus to take my soapy hands and lead me out of the kitchen. “Help me, Lord, to turn away from the many things that fill my heart with worry and teach me to want only one thing — only One.”  I suddenly realize that one simple nod from Jesus is all it will take to help me drop my dishes and run to Him. Imagine this moment with me.

Can you see Jesus looking at you in the middle of your day and inviting you to come sit with Him?

Prayerfully, with my Bible on my lap, I imagine the scene and I look at Jesus.  He looks at me!  I see Him seeing me and hold my breath.  THEN, He gives me a smile and a nod and I run to Him!  I realize, as I make my way over, that I didn’t think there would be room for me and I wasn’t sure I’d be welcome.  But, looking up at Jesus face I find a big welcome and looking down at His feet, I find a place prepared just for me!

“Jesus, thank you that always see me. I give you permission to nudge me out of my busyness! Thank you that I will always see a “welcome” in your eyes and find a place in your presence prepared just for me. Help me today to bring that same welcome to others. Amen.”

How about you?

Where do you find yourself in this Bible story? Are you in the kitchen, busy with preparations? Or, are you sitting at Jesus feet?

Does the pace of your life leave room for noticing Jesus beckoning you to come to Him?

Do you define yourself by the “many things” or by the “only One”?

What do you need from Jesus today? As you sit at His feet and have His full attention, how can He help you today?

Worship

By Judy Villanueva

But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul. (Deut 4:29)

How sweet it is when my little granddaughter finds me!  To be reached for by chubby baby arms is too wonderful to describe but the words “sheer joy” come awfully close! Sitting on the floor I quietly watch as my two-year-old visitor stacks and knocks over blocks with glee. Occasionally, she stands and runs in circles laughing until another toy beckons for her attention.  All the while, I see her sneaking peaks to make sure I am near and, every so often, she interrupts her play to find me.  Then, for a few cherished moments she crawls up on my lap and nestles in close for “kissies.”  As I soak her up, I realize how good it feels to be found, reached for and wanted! “Is it any different with God?” I wonder.  Does He, too, feel delight when we turn away from our toys and reach for Him?

I never dreamed that after so many years of being a Christian I would still be learning how to want God — most! That may sound strange but I find that life has a way of crowding out my desire for God with temporal offers of fullness.  I naturally know how to want these things, but want to want the Divine heart that watches and waits for my notice.  The thought that God is delighted when I reach for Him is as much mind-blowing, as it is an explosion of wonder!

The One who made all things wants me and reached across the heavens with a cross to make a place for me on His lap.

Trials always motivate me to reach for God, but my prayer is to grow in love for God and live interrupted by His presence, in breathless anticipation of finding Him and being found!

Last night, as my husband and I sat under a canopy of stars we decided to begin an experiment.  For thirty days we are endeavoring to spend 20 minutes a day in silent prayer. Our hope is to engage in a daily moment, 1200 seconds long, that consists of crawling up on the lap of God and sitting quietly in His arms.  What happens to worries and fears when we stop looking at them and rest with God instead?

In stillness, God helps us feel His love touch our lives.

When we stop talking and moving about, when we let His movements of grace interrupt our play — when we simply let God hold us,  we find a place on His lap where we are hugged and kissed — found, reached for and wanted!  Yes, He soaks in our presence and wraps us up in His.

 “Thank you, Father, for being my place of rest and for all the ways you reach out for me.  Help me to look up from my toys and find You in my days.   Thank you for the cross that reached across the heavens to find me!  Amen.”

What about you?

Do you want God?

Do you believe that God is delighted when you reach for Him?

How do you reach for Him?

Do you notice when God’s presence invites a holy interruption?

God wants you!  Reach for Him.

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Worship

By Judy Villanueva

Mark 2:2-5

 A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on.  When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

“I’m hungry!” we complained. “I see”, said my mother with a knowing smile. “Well, feel free to grab an apple!” Not surprising, we were not hungry for an apple and had set our sights on the cookie jar.  In truth, we were not hungry at all,  just bored and in search of a quick fix…something to satisfy something inside us that we could not quite name.  How easily we learn the signals our bodies give that alert us of our need for food, drink, or sleep.  A growling tummy, a dry mouth or heavy eyelids are discernable clues!  But, what about the yearning of our souls…that “something” inside us that needs God and hungers to be filled up with Him?

Can you feel it when your soul hungers for God?

I’ve read this passage many times, but today what lifts up off the pages is the hunger that filled the air in Capernaum! Notice the crowd who came hungry to hear Jesus preach the word, the four men who arrived hungry for a healing, and the paralyzed man who ached for legs that could walk.  Our hungers are designed to lead us to places that will fill and satisfy  us, body and soul.   The problem isn’t usually that we won’t follow our hungers to nourishment but rather, that we are woefully inclined to plug-up our hungers with temporal things.  We set our sights on the cookie jar when what we really need is Jesus!

It is a challenge to recognize our hunger for God amidst the noise and distractions of modern life. To do so, we must pay attention and tolerate the discomfort of hunger pains long enough to understand them. Then we must let our hunger for God move and motivate us to get to Jesus!

And, if there is no room even outside the door, then we must follow our hunger to the roof and start digging!

We may need to turn off the television, put away our cellphones and patiently learn how to enter His presence. Ten minutes on our knees, an unhurried reading of Scripture, time spent in silence or praying with a friend place us on the mat before Jesus.

It is where our deepest longings are satisfied and where that something within us gets loved by Someone named Jesus.

“Jesus, help me to recognize my soul’s hunger for you and guide me into your presence. I thank you that you wait for me to notice you and are eager and generous to love me. Amen.”

What about you?

Can you feel it when your soul is hungry for God?

What are the obstacles that get in your way…of getting to Jesus?

What helps you enter His presence?

I pray you will follow your hunger pains to Jesus.  He longs to fill our souls with love.

“In His presence is fullness of joy.” (Psalm 16:11)

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Worship

By Judy Villanueva

Exodus 3:3-8


Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.”

Moses was working. He was about the business of a normal day when he encountered God. I doubt he was expecting to meet an angel on route to the west side of the wilderness, let alone in the middle of a blazing fire! One thing is certain, Moses was available to notice an extraordinary phenomena and curious to move in for a closer look! “I must turn aside now and see this marvelous sight, why the bush is not burned up.” How often am I too busy to notice an invitation from God to come close and be curious?

God is always speaking from the middle of our lives with invitations to be with Him and learn from Him. Our part is to stay available and curious…ready to move in for a closer look!

God saw that Moses had turned aside to look and called to him. Does God watch and wait for us to turn aside and look for him so that He can talk with us? Does He know when we are available to hear Him call our name? You may think that burning bushes are not a common phenomena in our day, but think about it. If burning bushes are things in life meant to draw our attention to God then, very likely they await our notice every day. What kinds of things in your day are quietly unique, unexpected and “shining” in their ordinary-ness? Likewise, where is your place of angst, the thing that burns whenever you think of it? Admittedly, we are more drawn to move toward a pleasant thing, but…

If God is able to speak from the center of “whatever thing,” then noticing and turning toward His voice becomes holy ground embedded in ordinary days!

My burning bushes this week included catching sight of the full moon sitting atop a craggy ridge, soaking up the joy of a 6 month old and kneeling in prayer next to the “bushes” over which I feel angst. These may seem too trivial to “count,” but counting the life that is ours…the life around us…is what we have, and it matters.  Not only that, but  moving toward burning bushes helps us hear what God is saying to us from the middle of our lives…about hope and life and promised lands.

“Father, I thank you that You see me and call to me from the middle of my life. Help me to notice the burning bushes that you’ve set along my path and make me curious enough to move in for a closer look. Help me to join You on holy ground and be available to hear whatever you want to say to me about my life. Amen.”

What about you?

Are you aware of a burning bush in your life at this time? Do you think God might be calling to you from the middle of it?

Are you curious and available for a closer look?

Are you open to hear God what God will say next?

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Worship