Cross My Heart Ministry

But the people were thirsty for water there,
and they grumbled against Moses. They said,
“Why did you bring us up out of Egypt
to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?”
Exodus 17:3

A first reading of the people grumbling against Moses might have us paint the scene with a wide brush of judgment:

• Moses: loving well and leading well
• Israelites: whiners, grumblers, and ungrateful

But as I look a second time and point a finger at those Israelites, I come to realize I AM those people.

Fear brings out the worst in us. Fear prompts us to respond poorly and to look for someone to blame.

The presence of a deep need eclipses everything else. This need — the thirst for water in the desert — was a life-or-death situation for the Israelites, their children, and their livestock.

Those of us living in the 21^st-century western world can find it difficult to truly understand thirst. We work outside for a couple of hours and declare, “I’m dying of thirst.” But we’re not literally dying.

God’s people in the wilderness were facing death if water was not found. As they contemplated death from thirst or slavery in Egypt, they began to regret following Moses across the bed of the Red Sea.

I’m humbled to realize I am really no different than those I dubbed, “whiners.” When customer service representatives are less than helpful, when I feel wronged or unappreciated, when things don’t go my way … I can be guilty of grumbling inside (and sometimes outside, too).

Hundreds of years may have passed since this wilderness whining, but human nature — specifically, this human’s nature — has not changed.

Here are some takeaways that come as I pray over this passage:

1. A great need — even a very serious physical need — is not a license to complain and criticize.
2. It’s not only human nature to look for someone to blame, the one we blame is often the one who loves us unconditionally and more than all others. It’s why children hold it together for their teacher but act up for mom and dad. It’s why a bad day at work might lead to a spat over dinner with our spouse. It’s why the people blamed Moses.
3. Looking out instead of up leads to despair. If I fixate on the problem, I will naturally criticize, condemn, and blame — and still be thirsty! I must look UP, to the one who knows me best, loves me most, has the power to meet my need, and can use this hard thing to draw me to deeper faith and trust in Himself.

What is your great need today? How could God not only meet that need, but bolster your faith through the process?

Is it time to stop grumbling and start praying?

This week, our devotional comes from Mollie Duddleston, Director of Ministry Operations & Women’s Ministry at Cross Church. We hope you’ll listen as Mollie shares her thoughts on Nehemiah 9:15, a verse from our July Write the WORD bookmark, and encourages us to be intentional in reminding ourselves and others how God faithfully fulfills His promises to His people.

If you have not yet, we invite you to download this month’s free bookmark and S.O.A.P. Bible study pages, and join us for our study of THIRST during July.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
Psalm 42:2

The Psalmist declares the cry of every human heart. Whether living in ancient or modern times, man or woman, even Christian or non-Christian – there is a longing need to be with God. A desire to know God and be known by Him.

Blaise Pascal called this a “God-shaped vacuum.” It is a thirst that cannot be quenched with any success, destination, bank account, or by any other human being.

We were made by Him.

We were made for Him.

Our souls thirst for God.

Our Write the WORD bookmark is designed to create a format that allows you to meet with God daily in His Word. We use a one-word theme that (typically) carries you across the pages of Scripture through both the Old and New Testament.

This month we have chosen the word “thirst” as our theme for July.

We pray the words of Psalm 42:2 are both your declaration:

My soul thirsts for God!

and your prayer:

God, make me thirsty for you!

Today, I invite you to join us this month in reading, writing, and studying what God’s WORD has to say about our thirst to know and be known by our Creator.

Download our latest Write the WORD bookmark
and S.O.A.P. Bible study pages HERE.

This week, we’re pleased to introduce our free bookmark for July, with 31 verses featuring the word THIRST. In our most recent devotional video, Laura shares a brief devotional fromm Psalm 63:1. We pray that you’ll watch and be blessed by her words!

Find this month’s Write the WORD bookmark, S.O.A.P. Bible study pages, our July ‘Do It!’ List, and more free resources on our Downloads page. And, if you have not yet subscribed to our YouTube channel or the Cross My Heart Ministry email list, we hope you’ll take a moment to sign up for those today!

 This is how we know that we belong to the truth and
 how we set our hearts at rest in his presence:
 If our hearts condemn us,
 we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.
I John 3:19-20

Do you ever feel less?

Do you ever feel that you are not enough?

Lots of people, and lots of things, can make us feel unworthy: a judgmental friend, the number on the bathroom scale, a cluttered kitchen counter. But sometimes it’s our very own heart that is the culprit. Our emotions can rise up to betray and condemn us.

Enticed into playing the dangerous comparison game, we indulge in some self-hate thought life that sounds something like:

• She’s thinner than me.
• Her house is newer and nicer and cleaner than mine.
• She’s a much better cook than I am.
• Why can’t I get that much accomplished?
• I wish I had just a fraction of her creativity.
• She’s the Hospitality Queen, and I don’t even qualify as a lady in waiting.

The evil one whispers the lies, and we listen. The conversation in our head gets buried in our heart.

Judgment. Condemnation. Failure. We label ourselves as lacking, unworthy, and inadequate and take on these terms as our identity.

The only way to stop the lie is to speak the truth. Lies are told in the dark, but the truth is proclaimed in the light. The light chases away the darkness.

If you know Jesus, you “belong to the truth.” He is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Only in His presence can our hearts be truly at rest.

A horizontal focus on others often brings on guilt, insecurity, and feelings of failure.

A vertical focus on Jesus acknowledges that I am not enough—no one can be—but in Him, I am made enough. In Christ alone, I am equipped and empowered for the high call of living for Christ always and in all ways.

Apart from Him, I am nothing. In Him, I can do everything He assigns.

God is greater than my mocking, condemning heart that wants to betray me.

God is greater than my inadequacies and insecurities.

He is greater than my emotions. Because I am His, I am not derailed by my own heart.

The eyes of my heart can yet again shift upward to gaze upon Jesus. In Him alone, I find peace. My heart is set at rest only because it is set on Him.

This week, we’re blessed to have Kendyll Garvin of Cross Church share her thoughts in our devotional video. We know you’ll be challenged by Kendyll’s message from Mark 6:31 which encourages us to pull back from the stress and busyness of life to connect with Jesus!

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There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God;
for anyone who enters God’s rest
 also rests from their works,
 just as God did from his.
Hebrews 4:9-10

The choice to accept Christ is an embrace of HIS rest and a letting go of my own efforts to earn salvation. Coming to Christ means I lay down my striving and doing, and lean into His provision. I acknowledge my identity in Christ—and that alone—is my ticket into heaven. Nothing I do (and nothing I do not do) will get me in.

As I practice Sabbath Rest, it can be a weekly reminder of my salvation decision and a renewed resolve to walk in this belief. Sabbath Rest is a weekly celebration: my salvation is complete because of Jesus!

It also stirs hope for His return. Eternity will be our ultimate release from the burdens of this world. But we don’t need to wait for heaven to enjoy rest in Him.

Often we imagine keeping the Sabbath as a throwback to blue laws, with all businesses closed on Sunday and many other activities prohibited. I’m reminded of the scene in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Farmer Boy, when children were expected to sit still and straight in their Sunday clothes for hours on end. Sabbath in those days must have seemed more like a punishment than a celebration.

Changing the connotation for Sabbath may come slowly. It begins as we embrace the day as a gift received from God, rather than a set of rules set out by God.

We’ve come to treat Sunday as a catch-up day: laundry, meal planning, grocery shopping. Or it’s a day bustling with activity: church, teaching Sunday School, ministry meetings. We fill our Sabbath with doing for God rather than spending time with God.

Those old habits cannot be changed immediately, but perhaps gradual transformation can happen as we accept a Sabbath Rest challenge. Consider incorporating just one of these suggestions into your Sunday:

• Choose to make it a no-laundry day.
• Schedule one hour outdoors with your family. Take a walk, go for a bike ride, enjoy a picnic, or just sit in the sunshine. Worship the Creator in His creation.
• Curl up with a good book.
• Pray a joyful Psalm back to God.
• Tell your salvation story to a friend or family member.

I’ve heard it said that those who work with their hands should sabbath with their minds, and those who work with their minds should sabbath with their hands. Essentially, then, professors should chop wood on Sunday and woodcutters should read a book!

We should do something different on Sunday than what we do Monday through Saturday.

Holy means set apart. Sunday can be embraced and celebrated as holy because it is different than every other day.

Are you ready for some Sabbath Rest?

In this week’s devotional video, our special guest Cassie Montgomery of Cross Church takes a closer look at Matthew 11:28-30, where Jesus addresses the people of Israel who are frustrated and overburdened by the legalistic “dos and don’ts” of the Pharisees. Listen now as Cassie unpacks truths from scripture and shares insight into finding true rest in Him:

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Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
 for I am gentle and humble in heart,
 and you will find rest for your souls.
 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
Matthew 11:29

If this passage seems very familiar, that’s because it is part of the one highlighted in last week’s Sunday Soaking.  There was just more truth to squeeze out before moving on!

The word “yoke” brings up memories of two oxen chained together, walking in a circle, and going nowhere. Pretty much describes the self-imposed yokes we often put upon ourselves – or allow others to thrust upon us.

His yoke, in contrast, is love, peace, and righteousness in Christ. It’s described as “easy” in verse 30.

The phrase “learn from me” offers hope to this Type-A girl. Learning to be comfortable with the easy and light way He offers is a process. After wearing the striving-and-doing yoke for so long, the one fashioned of love and peace seems too light and too easy … sometimes awkward because it’s so strange and unfamiliar.

Can it be this simple?

Shouldn’t I be working harder … and perhaps expecting more of others?

The old yoke – of doing more, getting my way, and winning at any cost – feels comfortable because it’s familiar. As it is lifted and replaced with the new way of thinking and behaving, the “light and easy” can feel a bit too, well, light and easy. As we learn from Him, we come to realize a light and easy yoke fits and feels nice. No blisters or callouses. No staggering under the weight of it, or working to carry something too heavy for  us … something He never asked us to carry, but a burden we just loaded up on our own.

Are you weary of trying to remember why you are angry, of continuing to stoke old fires? Is that grudge you are carrying only growing heavier through the years? Are you overwhelmed, trying to meet the needs of everyone in your world while ignoring your own? Does life feel like it has zero margin? Are you rationalizing your existence and tallying up your good deeds to assess your worth?

STOP IT.

Breathe.

Focus.

Come to the One who has already won the battle. The One whose sacrifice has already ensured you are enough in Him. The reality is that you and I could stack yoke upon yoke, keep trying to walk and do and be more and it would never, ever be enough. That’s the point, really. Only in Him can we be declared righteous. Only in Him can we find real love and lasting peace. It’s not about what we do. It’s all about who we know. Do you know Him? Do you believe He is enough? Does your behavior match up with your belief?

So what’s it gonna be? His yoke or your own? Easy and light, or hard and heavy? Choosing which to put on is a daily decision. Which do you choose to wear today?

For this week’s devotional video, it’s a joy to have Bri Hess from Cross Church sharing insights from Exodus 33:14. Listen now to be reminded that no matter the season in life – or the challenge that season brings — it is the constant, abiding presence of God that brings us REST:

If you aren’t writing along with us this June, we invite you to begin now. Visit our Downloads page for your own copy of this month’s Write the WORD: REST bookmark, optional S.O.A.P. Bible study pages, and more free resources to help you balance your heart for God with the demands of a busy life and home.

Come to me,
 all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
 and you will find rest for your souls.
Matthew 11:28-29 (NIV)

“Weary and burdened” can certainly describe a busy wife and mother (or grandmother!) juggling the responsibilities of daily life. If you’re old enough to remember Helen Reddy singing, “I am woman, hear me roar,” then you might join with me in rewriting the lyrics:

I am woman…I am tired.

Sometimes we try to fix the weariness — with a vacation, a shopping trip, a chick flick, or a big bowl of ice cream. All those temporary reprieves and indulgences are just that: temporary. They are inadequate attempts to use physical rest solutions to bring soul rest resolution.

Soul rest and physical rest are not the same. The length of our to-do list does not (necessarily) bring soul weariness. It is the continual doing without refueling that depletes the soul.

Our daily coming to Him fills us up so we can continue to pour out. His yoke is easy. His burden brings love, peace, and purpose. He enables us to not just do the laundry, shop for groceries and make the meals, rise early and stay up late, but to do it all with a heart and mind set on bringing Him glory. Our daily coming to Him – our daily choice to worship – is what fuels us to do everything else. We can worship before, and in the midst of, the daily duties and challenges. Because our rest is in Him, the challenges become opportunities, and the duties bring delight. In an uncanny way that can only be attributed to God Almighty, soul rest can be found even in — sometimes especially in — the midst of chaos and full schedules.

Soul rest can be found only in Jesus. He alone provides what we really need and crave. He invites us: Come to me…you will find rest for your souls. If that sounds appealing, but also abstract, here are a few ideas for making it real:

1. Make time for Jesus. Decide to get up a little early. Even ten minutes can transform your day. Choosing to worship Him first is a declaration of priority. Making that declaration will color everything else that happens that day.
   
   
2. Read the Word. The Bible is our daily manna. It is God Himself speaking to us. It brings revelation, encouragement, conviction, and confirmation. It will transform your life. I can say that with confidence, because it has transformed mine.
   
   
3. Be quiet before Him. Life can become a cacophony of messages, demands, and information. Making room to listen will lead you to be ready: to learn, and to find soul rest.
   
   
4. Praise Him. We were created for worship. It’s in our spiritual DNA. Lifting our voices to acknowledge Him will simultaneously lift our souls.
   
   
5. Savor the sacred. Time in His presence will separate out the holy and the eternal from the carnal and the temporary. It distinguishes the yoke we choose to receive from Him from the one the world wants to thrust upon us.

So go ahead and indulge in a little shopping spree. Enjoy a double-dip splurge of chocolate chip. But don’t expect those gratifications to sustain your soul. Only Jesus can do that.

This month’s Write the WORD focus is REST. In this week’s devotional video, Laura looks at truth found in red letters (meaning they are from the lips of our Lord and Savior) in Mark 6:31:

“Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

We hope you’ll listen in as Laura explores these inspiring words of truth from our Savior:

We invite you to join us in reading, writing, and studying what God’s Word tells us about REST this month. You can find you own copy of our Write the WORD bookmark, along with the optional S.O.A.P. Bible study outline and other helpful resources, on our Downloads page.

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For I am the Lord your God
who takes hold of your right hand and says to you,
Do not fear, I will help you.
Isaiah 41:13

Being a teacher, mentor, and spiritual coach to women means I have the sacred, holy privilege of hearing their stories. Some make me cheer; some make me cry. Women who are put together on the outside often carry hurt and pain on the inside. I’ve come to realize that life in this fallen world means you and me – all of us – are coming out of a hard thing, living through a hard thing, or a hard thing is on the horizon.

That’s not pessimistic, friend. It’s realistic.

We need to remember that God is not the author of pain. It was the enemy that slithered into the garden and hissed a lie into Eve’s ear. She chose to believe the evil one rather than God. And the proverbial Pandora’s box was opened. Sin entered the world, and brought along its companions: shame, guilt, suffering, etc. The choices of Adam and Eve then, and our own choices now, bring suffering as a result. Some of our pain is the result of things we’ve done and some is the result of what has been done to us.

Suffering stinks.

But suffering can serve a purpose. God can take what was not good and He can work it for good.

He can use these hard things to refine us and humble us. Pride tells us we don’t need anybody. A spiritual two-year-old declares, “I can do it myself!” But difficult circumstances can drive us to Him.

When all is well, we tend to forget about God. But when trouble comes, we find ourselves needing His help and crying out for it.

The reality is, He is always near. In good times and bad, He is near. When we are “good” girls and we are not-so-good. He loves us in the trouble and in the triumph – and we need Him in both.

If God is close enough to take hold of our hand, He is close. How reassuring to realize that we worship a God who is not just “up there” but very much “down here,”  who knows and understand what “this” feels like. He came to us and for us. He became us. Removing his robe of glory, Jesus put on human flesh. We pray to a God who knows what it is to suffer and to navigate life in a fallen world.

When we realize He is near and He can help and He wants to help, our restless hearts are quieted. A sweet calmness settles over us. The storm may be raging on the outside, but we find ourselves quieted in the eye of the storm … because His hand is holding ours.

O God, thank you for holding my hand!
I will not fear because You are with me and for me
and I know you will help me!

We hope you will join us during June for our Write the WORD topic of the month: REST. In this week’s video, Laura shares her thoughts about rest: the command to do it, reasons for it, and a reminder of WHO we find rest in!

Visit our Downloads page today for your own copy of our free REST bookmark, optional S.O.A.P. study pages, and more resources to help you balance your heart for God with the demands of a busy life!