www.susielarson.com

Persistence Pays...

Greetings Dear Friends!
Susie Larson here...

And to those visiting, I say welcome!

I post every Wednesday and my sole purpose is to nourish your soul and encourage you along the way.

Many of you know that prayer is a significant part of my life. Some of the most profound blessings in my life are a result of tenacious, unrelenting prayer.

I often think of the example Jesus gave us when teaching on how we should pray. In Luke 18 we learn about a widow and an unrighteous judge. The woman pleaded with the judge for justice against her adversaries. The judge neither feared God nor cared about the woman, but because she wore him out from her asking, he granted that which she requested.

Isn't it interesting that Jesus used such an example for us as His children?

He is not an unrighteous judge; He is our Beloved One.

In Luke 11 Jesus gives us another example of how to lay hold of the things we need from Him. Jesus paints the picture of a friend who knocks on the door of another friend at midnight. The friend standing outside needed some bread but the friend on the inside had already gone to bed and tucked his kids in for the night. Jesus explains that the friend-in-need, got his needs met, not because the "inside friend" was a friend, but because of the boldness of his request.

While evil prevails in our day, we must learn the secret Jesus is trying to teach us here.

Room to Grow...

Greetings, Friends!
Susie Larson here...

And to those visiting, I say welcome!

I post every Wednesday and my sole purpose is to nourish your soul along the way.

With two kids in college and one in high school, I frequently catch myself pondering the past or musing about the future.

I feel happy about the things I did right as a parent, and I wince when I think of my mistakes.

One day I asked my oldest son this question, "Jake, what was the one thing I did most right in raising you? And what was my biggest mistake?"

His reply surprised me. "Mom, you were the best mom in the world to me. You had a super high standard in the things of faith, integrity, and respect. And yet, you gave us room to breathe and didn't expect us to be perfect to make you look good. Your biggest mistake? Well, I would say it was the way you beat yourself up when you made a mistake. Mom, we love God, we love each other, and we really love you and dad. We have everything we need. We've had a great life."

He was right. My problem was never in admitting my mistake, it was more so in my capacity for condemnation.

Not always, but sometimes it took me longer than necessary to let myself off the hook and accept God's gracious forgiveness for the times I'd blown it.

God makes provision for our weaknesses, which is a blessed, wonderful thing.

Just as He is perfectly happy to give our kids room to grow, He also gives us room to grow.

Most of the time we learn from our mistakes and we're better because of them.

As our kids approach their teen years, they also need some room to grow, room to breathe, and room to make a few mistakes that they might learn some valuable lessons while they're still under our care.

While we can get away with controlling our toddler (and we should); trying to do the same thing to a teenager will surely backfire. I'm convinced that our kids will actually lose their confidence if we insist on controlling every choice they make.

As parents of teens, we need to be more involved than ever, but our strategy must change.

When they're young, it's important to carefully guide our children in the matters of right and wrong.

When they're older, it's still important, but they have to be allowed to feel a few consequences while they are still under our roof.

Read on...

Peace, Be Still...

Greetings, Dear Friends.

Susie Larson here...

What a friend we have in Jesus.

How sweet it is to be loved by Him.

Where would I be without His love?

Um, let's see how many more songs I can think of to express to Him my love and gratitude.

Yesterday I was desperately sick; so sick that I considered going to the hospital.

Many of you know that I have severe food allergies.

The day before yesterday I ate my soy yogurt for breakfast and my coleslaw salad for lunch (these are daily staples for me). For dinner I tried a microwave gluten-free meal. Unfortunately I think the label was supposed to read, "gluten-FULL."

By the following morning I was writhing in pain and could barely get out of bed.

And though my body was sick, my heart was assured of God's great love for me.

Deep in my soul was a peace that stayed with me all day long.

Guard Your Yard...

Greetings, Dear Friends!

And to those visiting, I say welcome! I post a devotional blog every Wednesday and my sole purpose is to nourish your soul along the way.

This morning during my prayer time I stumbled across this verse:

Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many (Hebrews 12:14-15).

Proverbs 4:23 exhorts us to guard our hearts with all diligence, because out of our hearts flow the issues of life.

I've said this on numerous occasions but it bears repeating here. Whenever we speak, we plant seeds. Picture seeds spilling out of your mouth and dropping to the ground every time you speak. We plant things with our words. The question is, are we planting weeds or things that nourish and foster life?

Two things jump out at me in the verse from Hebrews.

1.) See to it that no one misses the grace of God.
2.) See to it that no bitter root is allowed to grow up and thus, defile many.

We are reminded from this verse that our choices never stand alone. Even our inner most thoughts affect the lives of those around us and because of this, we as Believers, are accountable for even the smallest seeds of bitterness we plant in our lives.