DAILY DOSE OF HOPE – BLOG – NAIMA LETT
“I’D LIKE TO THANK…” | DAY 4 of 40 (LENT)

“I’d like to thank” will begin many speeches at the Academy Awards tomorrow. Recipients will gush thanksgiving to the Academy, their agents, parents, spouses, even God.

This got me to thinking… what if we lived our lives with this constant “I’d like to thank” refrain in mind? Not just for rewards we receive, but for everything, good and bad?

When the SUV cuts us off in traffic or almost side-swipes our car, what if we said, “I’d like to thank…you, for not actually running me off the road. I’m not hurt. You’re not hurt. Breathe in. Breathe out. OK.” Is it possible to flip it?

Whether attending Oscar festivities, hunkering down at a survival-job-to-make-ends-meet gig or giving birth to a beautiful bundle of joy (shot out to Skyler), what if we took a moment today and found a reason to say “Thank you”.

Life may currently be the pinnacle of our dreams or the tailwind of a nightmare, but finding something to be grateful for could make all the difference in the world.

Last Thanksgiving, the New York Times ran an article by John Tierney called “A Serving of Gratitude May Save the Day“. He reported that psychologists found that “cultivating an ‘attitude of gratitude’ has been linked to better health, sounder sleep, less anxiety and depression, higher long-term satisfaction with life and kinder behavior toward others…” Awesome, right?!

Tierney continued with a study that found that people who wrote 5 things for which they were grateful once a week for 8 weeks (1 brief sentence per item) reported being more optimistic and happier and had fewer physical problems.

Life is not always easy. As a matter of fact, it can be downright difficult, especially with this economic roller coaster we’re on. But somewhere along the way, if we can muster up a ‘Thank You’ at least once a week, science says, things look a little better.

King David taught us how to do this in PSALM 30. I really like this translation from The Message Bible.

READ PSALM 30, The Message.

As we see, David does not ‘pretend’ bad times aren’t bad. He acknowledges when things are crappy. Then, he thanks God for when “the nights of crying your eyes out give way to days of laughter”(Vs.5). David credits God for changing “wild lament into whirling dance”(Vs.11); and says, “I can’t thank you enough”(Vs.12).

What if we did that today?
What if we didn’t pretend?
What if we looked over the last week and acknowledged the good, the bad and the ugly, and said, “I can’t thank you enough”?

Even if we are angry about a horrible situation that we’re in, at no fault of our own (job loss, bankruptcy, sickness), what if we said, “I’m angry, but I’d like to thank you God that I’m actually alive another day, and I can feel something. Bring on the day when my wild lament becomes whirling dance”, or hip hop, or bungee jumping… whatever our thing is.

Is that possible?
C’mon! Let’s imagine we’re in our designer dress or tuxedo (or maybe we’re in our pajamas); but now it’s our turn to approach the microphone.
Let’s do like those mentioned in the study above and say 5 brief things that we are grateful for this week.

I’d like to thank:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Not so bad, right?!
Now, I’d like to THANK YOU for participating.
Go forth!

FYI, our weekends during our 40-day journey of devotions through LENT season (ABOUT LENT), will be a time of reflection and thanksgiving. Traditionally, during LENT, SUNDAYS are considered mini-celebrations (symbolizing Christ’s resurrection) following FRIDAYS’ special times of fasting (symbolizing His death). Thus, LENT starts on Ash Wednesday and goes for 46 days ending Easter, but the 6 Sundays are excluded, equaling 40 days. Get it? We make a sacrifice of something meaningful for the entire 40 days, but Sundays are excluded. So, Saturday, you’ll get a devotional that you can meditate on for the entire weekend. If you have any questions, please let me know. Thanks!

DAILY DOSE OF HOPE – BLOG – NAIMA LETT
The Greatest Award | DAY 3 of 40 (LENT)

Hollywood Blvd is closed. Red carpets are rolling out. Festivities are cranking up.

That means one thing: It’s Academy Awards weekend in La La Land.

Many of you have joined me on this 40 Day journey of devotions through Lent season, a time of reflection, fasting and prayer, and you may be wondering: What in the world does the Academy Awards have to do with Lent?

I promise that we’ll return to the Testings in the Wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11) on Monday. I have way too much honor and respect for God’s Word than to try to force a particular scripture on top of an example if it doesn’t fit. And this is that case.

So, let me share a thought that does fit.

When Jesus’ disciples argued about being “great”, He dropped the most disturbing paradox ever:
The one who is the greatest is the one who serves.
WHAT???!!!!!

Seriously, I’m not making this up. Read it here:
LUKE 22:24-27

The entire crew is at the Last Supper, no doubt, and Jesus is about to be arrested and crucified, and these jokers are arguing about which one of them is THE GREATEST!

Never mind that Jesus is in the room. Did no one think, “Jesus is the Son of God. Of course, He would be the greatest, seeing as He is God and all”? Nope! They argue amongst themselves, and Jesus has to jump in with, “The greatest is the one who serves.” And just so they all know what that looks like, He points out that HE is the greatest and HE has come to serve. Whoa!

Jesus’ messages are often times the exact opposite of what we experience on a daily basis, particularly in America and especially in Hollywood.

I can guarantee you that as my fellow artists sashay and swagger down the red carpet on Sunday, no one will be asking how they serve others, how they give of themselves. We will celebrate their professional accomplishments, and rightly so, but it will be a parade of ‘greatness’ by our standards, not necessarily God’s. Does that make sense?

I am truly challenged by this scripture.
How does my own life have to change?
How can I serve?
Some things to ponder and pray about!

What do you think?
What has been your greatest award? When you were winning something? Or when you were serving someone?

PRAYER:
1) Confession & Repentance – Let’s spend some time confessing our wrongs and asking for forgiveness
2) Complete honesty & transparency – Let’s talk to God about what’s on our hearts and minds, concerns, praises. Let the guard down.
3) Listen – Let’s quiet ourselves and listen to God’s Spirit concerning what we have shared with Him, what we read in the scripture, etc.
4) Intercession for others – Let’s pray for our family, friends, coworkers, church, government, etc.

DAILY DOSE OF HOPE – BLOG – NAIMA LETT
A Beautiful Test? | DAY 2 of 40 (LENT)

Remember high school? The first test of the semester, regardless of the subject, was usually always the hardest. Didn’t quite know what to expect. How long? Multiple choice? Essay? Extra credit? The exam could be described as many things, but “beautiful” was usually not one of the adjectives that came to mind.

Yet, I’d like to submit that the tests we experience over the next 40 days together might be considered beautiful. Huh???!

Let me back up.
OK, how was your first day of fasting and prayer yesterday? Was it easy to decide what you’d sacrifice?

Maybe, you experienced some withdrawal symptoms i.e. headache, irritation, etc. That’s normal as the body and mind adjust to their new reality, whether dealing with food or whatever we’ve chosen to sacrifice. Let’s extend grace to ourselves and/or a grace period of adjustment. Can’t promise that the cravings will go away, but I can promise that those cravings can remind us to pray.

As mentioned on yesterday (ABOUT LENT), the LENT season symbolizes the 40 days in the wilderness, testing and temptation that Jesus endured before launching into his public ministry. Let’s look at that passage today and His first test. This is where I think the beautiful part comes in.

DAY 2: Scripture meditation
Tested in the Wilderness
READ: MATTHEW 4:1-11

INSIGHT:
Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, after he was baptized and before he began his public ministry. After his 40 day fast, he was tested.

The first test hit Jesus in His immediate need – hunger. No, that’s not beautiful. Jesus hadn’t eaten for 40 days. Surely, he could turn the stone into bread and chow down. The devil said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Since Jesus is the Son of God, what’s the big deal? Do the miracle. Prove it! Right?!

This test ultimately was to see if Jesus would satisfy his immediate needs independent of God. Isn’t that a test that we too face often? Will we satisfy our daily needs outside of depending on God?

The scripture does not deny that Jesus had a need. Matthew 4:2 says that Jesus was hungry. Hunger is a REAL need! We all have to eat to live. The question is will Jesus “prove” His identity as the Son of God by satisfying that need? Jesus knew His identity. He didn’t have to prove Himself to satan or anyone else. Besides, it was not yet time to reveal Himself as the Messiah, the Christ.

Instead, [here’s the beauty], Jesus pointed to His and our dependance on God.

The definition of beauty is “the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind, whether arising from sensory manifestations, a meaningful design or pattern, or something else, as a personality in which high spiritual qualities are manifest.”

There is something downright beautiful (deeply satisfying in seeing such high spiritual qualities manifested) in how Jesus handled this test. No doubt, He was ‘gangsta’ with satan; and he didn’t give in to his flesh. To me, that’s amazing. I am just not always that successful, especially when depending on my own strength. Geez!

Jesus said, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God”. This quote was from God’s word through Moses to God’s people when they were in their own wilderness, Deuteronomy 8:3: “He [God] humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD.”

Deuteronomy 8:1-10 is worth looking at if you have time. The scripture says that God’s people were tested “to know what was in your heart”, and that was not just 40 days, but 40 years in the wilderness. They received a 40 year wilderness stint after rejecting a good report from 2 of the spies’ 40 day journey into the land of milk and honey. Numbers 14:33-35 NIV. But that’s a whole other story!

What’s the point?
Our tests don’t have to be painful and drenched in anxiety. We don’t have to walk on pins and needles. We can embrace the tests because they are meant for our well being – to show us what’s in our hearts.

It is very likely over the 40 days that we are committing to the Lord, as we fast and pray, areas will be revealed where we don’t trust God and want to meet our own needs outside of His will.

For example, we all need clothes. But if we’re an artist on a shoestring budget struggling to pay rent, though tempting, it might not be the best thing to run up thousands in debt trying to dress in the latest greatest. Wouldn’t we want to know this is in our hearts and curve the appetite before financial disaster?

Or, we all need food. But if we find that there’s no way we can live without that quart of ice cream every night… Want to avoid diabetes, right?
We all need income. But if we lie on our taxes to get a refund that’s not deserved… Want to stay out of jail, right?
We all need relationships. But if we’re living a double life and not being honest with ourselves and the ones we claim to love… Want to live, right?

Let’s pray for the Lord to reveal anything that’s not like Him and give us His heart.
Let’s pray for the Lord to show us what we live by and depend on. Do we live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God?
What or WHO is our trust in?
Just some questions to ask ourselves.

So, maybe the test isn’t what’s beautiful.
But the way we respond to the test can reveal the beauty that is within us.
What do you think?

SONG OF REFLECTION:
VIDEO: LIVING WORD, by Fred Hammond

PRAYER:
1) Confession & Repentance – Let’s spend some time confessing our wrongs and asking for forgiveness
2) Complete honesty & transparency – Let’s talk to God about what’s on our hearts and minds, concerns, praises. Let the guard down.
3) Listen – Let’s quiet ourselves and listen to God’s Spirit concerning what we have shared with Him, what we read in the scripture, etc.
4) Intercession for others – Let’s pray for our family, friends, coworkers, church, government, etc.