Wednesday Wanderings is time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey with our Holy Jesus.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering with Dr. Sherri, we reviewed how to Crown Christ in the Crisis. This week we will consider our Wondering Eyes. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive, and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you.”

PROMISE: Matthew 6:22-23  “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!”

PARABLE: I definitely do not think this is what Jesus had in mind when He taught that one eyes are lamps to our bodies!  What He was teaching was the our eyes allow things into us that influence who we are and what ultimately comes out of us. We are going to look at a bit of juxtaposition of the two words, wondering and wandering as prompted by the hymn text for the day and the meandering with Jesus we hope to do together here.

The angels are described to have wondering eyes.  They are overcome with the scars of the Savior as we will see below.  That left them overwhelmed and in awe of His sacrifice.  Those are the kinds of eyes we need.  Eyes that flood our souls with the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. [2 Corinthians 4:6]

The kind of eyes we do not need are wandering eyes.  This describes eyes that end up looking at things or in places that generally create trouble for us.  Wandering eyes are more prone to invite darkness in, rather than light, or so the phrase normally goes as it refers to someone in a relationship who has eyes that wander away toward someone other than the person with whom they are in relationship.

PSALM: Crown Him with Many Crowns
by Matthew Bridges,(1851), v. 3 by Godfrey Thring, pub.1874

Crown Him the Lord of love!
Behold His hands and side—
Rich wounds, yet visible above,
In beauty glorified.
No angel in the sky
Can fully bear that sight,
But downward bends His wond’ring eye
At mysteries so bright.

Thring proclaims he will crown Christ as Lord of love.  We could learn from the angels who bend their wondering eyes downward.  Seeing Jesus and His love rightly help us to fill our souls with the light of this transforming truth. We must cultivate wondering eyes. But how do we do that?

PONDER and WANDER:  If you choose, Ponder the question: How can I develop wondering eyes?
Trying to formulate this answer makes me think about the difference between different kinds of meditation, in the simplest form.  While some forms focus on emptying our minds, which can be a very dangerous practice, I believe Christian meditation is a filling of the mind with the ways and will of God, by way of His Word in particular and His Spirit in general.

What does this mean practically?  In this context I believe it means asking God to reveal to the eyes of our souls Himself, His purposes and His ways.  Start with Scripture and use that as a solid foundation for creating God a context to speak to you.  We could return to our Scripture above and use it as framework for prayer asking God to fill our eyes and our souls with His light, as in the exercise below.

Soul care training exercise: If you choose, complete this week’s soul training exercise and consider taking time to let the B.R.I.G.H.T. mystery of God to flood your soul as you seek to develop wondering eyes.

• When you are ready, clear your mind and invite the Holy Spirit to Begin by helping you center in on God a passage of God’s word.  We will use Matthew 6:22-23 for this exercise.
• Next, Read the passage and ask the Holy Spirit to make it come alive for you.
• Then, begin to pray the Scripture. Inject yourself into the passage by personalizing it. For example, “Lord I confess my eye is the lamp of my body. Make my eye is healthy, so my whole body will be full of light.  Keep my eye from looking at things that are bad, so my whole body will not be full of darkness. May the light in my body be the light of your glory, so as to escape the darkness of this world!”
• Give the Holy Spirit time to speak to you as you wait quietly, silently before the Lord.
• Hold your soul before God and ask Him to reveal any darkness, then be quick to confess it and determine to welcome light in its place.
• Lastly, Thank God for the light of His Word and His presence, and the forgiveness and mercy that allow you to walk in them.

PRAYER: Lord of love, I bless you for the light of Your glorious sacrifice for me. You will ever bear the scars that purchased it for me, and want to always be quick to give you praise for doing so. Fill my soul with the B.R.I.G.H.T. mystery of Your incredible love for me.  In the wonderful name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to crown Jesus with your praise. Let the work of your wandering fill you with the love of Christ.

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

The post Do Your Eyes Wonder or Wander? appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
Eye is a Lamp – https://www.pinterest.com/pin/282741682826220610/
Downward Bend – https://pixabay.com/illustrations/fantasy-angel-mystical-wing-magic-4122152/

Wednesday Wanderings with Dr. Sherri is biweekly and a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey with our Holy Jesus.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering with Dr. Sherri, we reviewed being True to the Cross. This week we will consider a Praise Pause. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive, and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you.”

PROMISE: Psalm 57:9 Amplified Bible:

I will praise and give thanks to You, O Lord, among the people; I will sing praises to You among the nations.

 Crown him the Lord of life,
who triumphed o’er the grave,
and rose victorious in the strife
for those he came to save;
his glories now we sing
who died and rose on high,
who died eternal life to bring,
and lives that death may die

Bridges proclaims he will crown Christ as Lord of life. Why? Because He triumphed over death, rose victoriously IN the strife, saved him, and lives so death may die.  How? With an attitude of gratitude reflective in his singing.

PARABLE: During Easter we remember the crown of thorns that was placed upon the head of Jesus that represented His victorious resurrection power and his honor and glory. There is a way we can rightly crown Jesus. We can crown Jesus as Lord of our Life by adorning Him with praise. Even in a crisis!

I admit that my praise was held captive by the catastrophic 12:00 noonday update, 2:00 Governor update, and the 6:30 World news. As the media counted the number infected and the death toll, I forgot to count my blessings.

On Good Friday, as the dots popped up on the map showing the number infected, my spiritual sight was refocused. All of a sudden, I could see dots of blessings. When I zoomed in, the dots represented the people all over the world who are taking an opportunity to  praise and pray through our panic. Facebook Live and Youtube has become a place to share God’s word. Church People are church hopping without the judgement and watching multiple services daily in cities they could never physically visit on the same day. Non-churched people are listening to “Real Talks” and contemplating Christ. Those whose gifts and talents have been dormant are taking to the streets singing, dancing, miming, and teaching. Even the Lieutenant Governor of Ohio, a state employee, read Galations 6:9  and encouraged us to not grow weary. All over the world people are uniting to crown Christ with praise IN the Crisis.

PONDER and WANDER:  If you choose, Ponder the questions: What crown of praise can I give Christ during this crisis?

When I pondered this question, God brought back to my remembrance my encounter with Him in Haiti where there is the plague of malnutrition. His mesmerizing presence at The Sea of Galilee and the burial slab of Christ in Israel even while two rockets were fired at Tel Aviv from the Gaza strip. His protection from COVID 19 as borders closed and we were evacuated from Rwanda and shoulder to shoulder with thousands of people. Our God of the Nations has always blessed in the midst of suffering.

Easter is the perfect time to crown Christ with praise for the victory of His suffering. We can offer praise and thanksgiving and count my blessings in the crisis because our faithful God WILL turn this around just like he has always done. Thank God that the blood will always win every battle.  Yes, if I choose to offer thanksgiving for my blessings in spite of the dreariness of the circumstantial rain.

Soul care training exercise: If you choose, complete this week’s soul training exercise and consider taking time to let the R.A.I.N. clear the path to help you crown Christ with praise in the crisis.

• When you are ready, clear your mind and invite the Holy Spirit to Recognize what is distracting you from praising God and offering Him thanks.
• Next, Allow the Holy Spirit to help you to remember specific blessings.
• Then, begin to pray with the grace of Christ. Investigate and implement a time each day to dedicate to contemplating thanksgiving and how you can share your attitude of gratitude (text a friend, Facebook, call a friend, tell a family member, or journal your blessings).
• Lastly, Nurture your praise (read a praise scripture, listen to a praise song, or look at a movie that reminds you of your blessings).

PRAYER: Daddy Jesus, I adorn your head with my crown of gratitude. I thank you for the crisis you endured on the cross so that I could have victory in my crisis. Corona is not a surprise to you. You arose with all power in your hand to conquer COVID 19 and any other crisis. RAIN on me on the dry days and keep my eyes on all the blessings that are being bestowed upon us during this time of pause. In the victorious name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to crown Jesus with your praise. Let the work of your wandering fill you with the love of Christ.

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

The post Crown Christ in the Crisis  appeared first on Resonant 7.

Wednesday Wanderings is a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey with our Holy Jesus.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering with Dr. Sherri, we considered the Old Rugged Cross and the the meaning of  being True to the Cross. This week we begin our journey through another hymn Crown Him with Many Crowns and another set of powerful truths. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive, and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you.”

PROMISE: Revelation 6:2 ESV  And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer.

Matthews Bridges, author of Crown Him with Many Crowns having listened for the heavenly anthems heralding the honors of Christ endeavored to awaken his soul to join in the eternal refrain. Jesus is indeed worthy of of the crowns and the praise we could ever bring, but there is another reason we should offer it to Him. It changes us. Giving praise to our matchless King reorients our life to Him, His ways, and His purposes, as it revolutionizes our perspective on the every aspect of our lives, including even the pandemic we find ourselves in today.

PARABLE: Why should I awaken my soul to sing? As a worship leader I have often looked out at a group of people and spotted those who were reluctant or struggling to sing.  I realized that part of my responsibility to them and our Lord was to help them sing, and to do so without admonishing or exhorting them in a heavy-handed, guilt inducing way.  Instead, I always tried to offer encouragement to the weary traveler and modeled hearty singing as I offered my own worship to Jesus.

Often I would think of the singing instructions that John Wesley wrote to encourage those who were finding his teachings to stir their souls.  His brother Charles wrote some great hymns to give them fresh expressions of the ancient faith they were experiencing.  We even examined one of his best known following last Easter here at Resonant 7, Christ the Lord is Risen Today.   Here is the first of those blogs.

Though I appreciate all of John’s words in his Directions for Singing which you can find here, This is probably my favorite, at least today.

IV. Sing lustily and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sung the songs of Satan.

So does that describe your singing?  I certainly want it to describe mine!  Why?  Because Jesus is worthy of that praise, and offering it changes me and my perspective.  When was the last time you sang lustily and with good courage?  Maybe cooped up at home makes it harder for you, but I want to encourage you, put on a song and join in today, and certainly Sunday as we celebrate the resurrection.

PONDER and WANDER:  If you choose, Ponder the questions: Might there be another aspect of lifting my soul to sing I am truly missing these days?  

I would say yes.  We are missing the communal aspect of our singing.  It is something we do together infrequently in society outside of church and the Star-Spangled Banner, but it was encouraging to see Italians singing from their apartments a few weeks ago.  Singing is a powerful medium for our souls, but singing together is even more so.

You probably already now that is true but check out this short video for some of the why…

Soul care training exercise: We find safety and comfort when we sing together.  We need singing together now more than ever, but we are isolated.  I think those first church services when we can come back together are going to be filled with some incredible singing by God’s people.

If you choose, complete this week’s soul training exercise and consider taking time to be transparent with Christ. 

• 

  When you are ready, clear your mind and focus on being authentic with Christ.

• Next, allow the Holy Spirit to stir your soul to give Him praise for He is worthy.  Pray something like “Help me find my voice in this time of isolation Lord.  Help me discover new ways to lift my soul to praise Your name.”
• Then, begin to pray with the confidence of Christ. Acknowledge the longing, even God develops it in You, to offer your courageous praise among His gathered people. Say, “Give me a newfound courage to offer praise to You when I can be among Your people again.”
• Lastly, ask for patience. Say, “Even as I long for that to come when I can offer praise to You with Your people, give me the patience to wait for it and until then welcome Your work in me.”

PRAYER: Father, thank You for giving me a reason to sing. Help me find my voice in these quiet days, and anticipate offering my praise with your people once again. May I develop in this unusual season and even greater courage and desire to sing lustily for the glory of Your name, and may it continue to transform me from the inside out. In Jesus worthy name I pray.  Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank our loving God for the many crowns that Jesus is worthy to wear. Let the work of your wandering fill you with the love of Christ.

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

The post Why Should We Sing Heartily? appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image attributions:
Conquering King – https://henrytrocino.wordpress.com/2018/02/04/jesus-is-called-faithful-and-true/
Singing – https://pixabay.com/vectors/singing-kids-child-group-children-304617/
Singing Together – https://pixabay.com/vectors/singing-kids-child-group-children-304617/

Wednesday Wanderings with Dr. Sherri is biweekly and a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey with our Holy Jesus.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering with Dr. Sherri, we reviewed how God’s love helps us to love the world that may despise us. This week we will consider the meaning of  being True to the Cross. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive, and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you.”

PROMISE: 1 Corinthians 1:18 Amplified Bible ¹⁸ For the message of the cross is foolishness [absurd and illogical] to those who are perishing and spiritually dead [because they reject it], but to us who are being saved [by God’s grace] it is [the manifestation of] the power of God..

To the old rugged cross I will ever be true
It’s shame and reproach gladly bear
Then he’ll call me someday to my home far away
Where his glory forever I’ll share

Evangelist George Bennard, author of The Old Rugged Cross proclaimed that he would be “True” to the cross. What does that mean? The cross is the symbol of Christ and Christianity. Therefore, Bennard was stating that he will be true to Christ in his crisis by examining his truth, and choosing to cling to the cross. Though the times were different, during this global crisis of the Covid-19 pandemic, we too can choose Christ IN the crisis.

PARABLE: What does it look like to be true to Christ in a crisis? Chaos has a way of challenging our true self.  Over the last few weeks as I completed a mandatory fourteen day self-quarantine and experienced symptoms of the coronavirus which lead to being tested, as I waited for the test results, I became afraid. BUT, I chose to be true to Christ about my emotions, invite Him into my chaos, and to take my fear to the cross. 

It is true that someone is experiencing fear in unemployment, fear in being the physical target of the fear experienced from unemployment, fear of mom’s boyfriend being home and having more time to creep into the room, fear of how they will feed their family, and fear of being evicted. During this global crisis and social distancing and social isolation, it is more important than ever that we don’t cause those who need encouragement to suffer silently in depression, discouragement or danger by using Christian language of faith over fear and prayer over panic without providing a context of truth.

Being true to the cross is about being authentic and admitting our behaviors, sensations, feelings and struggles to Jesus and others. This is how we access the saving power, help, and the hope of Jesus IN fear, IN panic, IN chaos. This is the way we lead others to the power of God that saves us IN fear.

PONDER and WANDER:  If you choose, Ponder the questions: What am I truly struggling with during this time of social distancing? What part of this is hard for me?

Perhaps the message of faith OVER fear, and prayer OVER panic, and calm OVER chaos does not accurately reflect the journey of a crisis. Over implies above, but over also means extending directly up from. Those of us who are willing to be transparent will admit that faith OVER fear came after we experienced fear. Maybe you are experiencing fear, panic, and chaos right now. Take a moment and honestly ponder with Christ what you are truly struggling with during this time of social distancing.

Soul care training exercise: The word of the cross saves and is more powerful than our circumstances. It is Christ and the hope of the cross that empowers us to exercise faith OVER fear, prayer OVER panic, and calm OVER chaos.

If you choose, complete this week’s soul training exercise and consider taking time to be transparent with Christ. 

• When you are ready, clear your mind and focus on being authentic with Christ.
• Next, allow the Holy Spirit to help you admit the struggle you are having with the coronavirus, social distancing, and the effects of Covid-19. Say, “This time of social distancing, this uncertainty, this temptation is hard, and I need help to make it through.”
• Then, begin to pray with the grace of Christ. Acknowledge that struggle, even your struggle, is common to humanity. Say, “I am not the only person struggling with this issue but the power of Jesus can deliver me.”
• Lastly, administer self-compassion. Say, “I will extend grace to myself and to others when fear creeps in and I will ask God to help my unbelief.”

PRAYER: Father, thank You for the reminder of the cross. When fear, anxiety, and depression come to our paths, help us take them to Jesus and cling to the redeeming benefits of His death, burial, and resurrection. Help us choose the benefits of peace IN the storm, hope IN distress, light IN darkness, and help IN times of need. In the power of Jesus and the deliverance power of the cross I pray. Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank our loving God for the Old Rugged Cross. Let the work of your wandering fill you with the love of Christ.

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

The post True to the Cross  appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image attributions:
The cross is foolish googleimages with text.
True to the cross googleimages with added text.
Cling to the cross googleimages with added text.

Wednesday Wanderings is a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the journey with our Holy Jesus.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering with Dr. Sherri, we considered the Old Rugged Cross and the concept of being despised because of our association with it. This week we will consider the beautiful grace that flows down from the cross and what it accomplishes. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Prepare my heart to receive, and illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter you.”

PROMISE: Ephesians 1:7 ESV In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,

The Old Rugged Cross invites us to remember Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and the grace that flows down from it which covers our sin and shame.  His blood accomplishes our redemption, ushering in forgiveness for every wrong, and all this according to His grace.  We get what we could have never deserved.  The cross reminds us of this remarkable truth.

PSALM: The Old Rugged Cross was written by 1912 by Evangelist and song leader George Bennard who was a native of Youngstown, Ohio.

PARABLE: So what is your story and how does it relate to the cross today?  Maybe you first experienced the flow of grace year ago and have learned to walk in its mighty streams.  Maybe you are just beginning to realize just how great that grace was which you have received for the first time only recently.  Wherever you are in that continuum, you need His grace today.

We know that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  (Romans 3:23) But we must acknowledge that as long as we are on this side of glory, the temptations of the flesh remain very real.  We are all guilty of choosing our own desires over God’s at times, some of those times being after we have been pardoned and sanctified.  It is the difference of our standing before God and our experience of it.

For as much as we endeavor to live cherishing the old rugged cross, there are times when the allure of other things pull us away.  We cling to the cross with one hand and reach for something else with the other.

What is your something else?  What competes with the cross in your heart?

PONDER and WANDER:  If you choose, Ponder the question: What do I need His blood to cover today, or this season?

Thankfully, it already has and it will.  When Jesus died for you, He was paying for everything wrong you would ever do.   Everything.  You are covered.  That is good news.

It reminds me of the words of another song, Grace Glows Down.

Amazing grace
How sweet the sound
Amazing love
Now flowing down
From hands and feet
That were nailed to the tree
As grace flows down and covers me

It covers me
It covers me
It covers me
And it covers me

Soul care training exercise: I invite you to take some time to let His grace cover you today. 

If you choose, complete this week’s soul training exercise by setting aside time to think about what needs covered.  Maybe listen to Grace Flows Down as you are praying, or just reflect on the text.

• When you are ready, clear your mind and focus on the pardon of the cross.
• Next, allow the Holy Spirit to bring the guilt of any unconfessed sin from deep within your soul.
• Begin to ask for forgiveness. List the things that come to mind and believe that Jesus has covered them.  Declare that in faith  as things come to mind.
• Then, thank God for covering you.
• Lastly, ask Him for the strength to walk in that flow.

PRAYER:  Jesus, thank You for giving your life for me knowing I would sin, even after I have been pardoned.  Sanctify me by continuing to invite me into a life of surrender where I cherish your cross above all the things that might otherwise tempt me to choose my way.  Empower me to cling to my cross, until the day I exchange it for a crown.  Amen. 

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank our loving God for the Old Rugged Cross. Let the work of your wandering fill you with the love of Christ.

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

The post What Needs Covered Today? appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image attributions
Grace Flows Down – https://www.dreamstime.com/christ-cross-shining-sun-heart-drops-water-blood-image149917168
And Covers Me – https://pixabay.com/illustrations/guilty-imprisonment-for-debt-sinful-3096227/