Wake Up Smiling E-Book

Audrey Meisner

• Herausgeber: BroadStreet Publishing Group, LLC
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Seitenzahl: 173

Beschreibung

Before you open your eyes or say a word each morning, a few precious moments have the potential to place you on the pathway of peace and hope. Make these seconds count. They are more important than you can even imagine! In Wake Up Smiling, Audrey shares her very personal journey of taking three simple Bible verses and believing them in a way that some may say is outrageous. Living heaven on earth has become very real for her, and every morning she wakes up with hope. If you're ready to live, dream, and experience freedom from worry and fear, Jesus really is as close as the mention of His name. He's waiting to share His secrets with those who will abandon all and say, "I am ready." God has a recipe for hope for you. It is practical, it will turn your life around, and it starts as you wake up.    

Leseprobe

Who doesn’t like a smile? Whether it’s from a child or your best friend, everyone loves a smile. Wake Up Smiling by Audrey Meisner is a wonderful book. You might just Wake Up Smiling as a lifelong habit after reading through this daily devotional. Allow Audrey to take you by the hand and show you her discoveries. You’ll learn the secrets of maintaining your peace no matter what surrounds you and how to keep your Joy-Light switched on. And when people ask you, “Why do you wake up smiling?’” tell them about this book! You better buy a few, because you’ll want to share it with your friends. Enjoy the next forty days of your joyous journey into finding your smile again!

—DR. BRIAN SIMMONS, The Passion Translation Project

It’s been over twelve years since we personally witnessed Audrey experience a dramatic breakthrough when she completely received the beautiful forgiveness of Jesus. It was tangible and real. Since that moment when she “threw off” the cloak of shame, she hasn’t looked back. We prayed for her that night in her parents’ living room, and since then we have seen her walk in an authority of joy and freedom that is contagious and miraculous. You can’t help but smile and receive practical strategy as you follow the journey to happiness that Audrey has walked and laid out here in this book. Read every page of Wake Up Smiling. It will help you see how much you were created for new levels of breakthrough!

—DR. DON AND MARY COLBERT, New York Times best-selling authors

Wake Up Smiling is a book every person should read. The reason this book is so powerful is because I know this about Audrey Meisner. She is completely authentic. Her words emerge from a life of applying God’s truth. There’s nothing theoretical in her teaching. She is completely transparent. For the benefit of others, she never holds back. She is a true Jesus girl who bases her every belief in the life, teaching, death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

—JAMES B. RICHARDS, PhD, ThD

Audrey Meisner is by nature a happy, joyful person. But that’s not what qualifies her to write this book. Audrey has walked through deep valleys of grief, heartbreak, and impossible circumstances, only to emerge with profound passion and a firmer grasp of God’s great love for her and for others (like you). This is not a surfacey book about the benefits of smiling (although, Audrey definitely points out the benefits of smiling). This is an honest look at what hinders our joy and why it matters. Do you believe it’s possible to embrace life with a heart of expectancy and faith? Do you want to wake up smiling because you’re someone Jesus loves and sings over? Read this book. It’s like a cup of cool water: good for the heart and good for the soul.

—SUSIE LARSON, national speaker, talk-radio host, and author of Your Powerful Prayers

Audrey’s writing and her ministry are real, raw, and honest. The truths in her book, Wake Up Smiling, will help others held in captivity find their freedom. The healing in her journey with God will give so many their own pathways. If you are looking to be challenged and set free, this book is for you!

—MATTHEW AND CAROLINE BARNETT, founders of the Dream Center, Los Angeles, CA

Practical and powerful, Wake up Smiling reflects Audrey’s authenticity and zest for life. Each chapter is packed with doable strategies for joyful living. Audrey inspires us to allow the peace of God to rule in our hearts—no matter the circumstances. What a timely message for a weary world! This is the type of book that you will turn to again and again for encouragement and renewed hope.

—DEBORAH SMITH PEGUES, best-selling author of 30 Days to Taming Your Tongue

Audrey’s book, Wake Up Smiling, is not just a daily devotional. It is a training manual with practical steps to living a hope-filled life. She leaves nothing hidden as she shares with vulnerability and openness about her own journey to personal victory. She combines her story with biblical truth to make this a very powerful read. We highly recommend diving into this book and letting your life be impacted daily by the truth of her message. As Audrey says, “Let’s make a choice to line up with heaven and live in hope everyday.”

—STEVE AND WENDY BACKLUND, Bethel Church, Redding, CA, and founders of Igniting Hope Ministries

Anyone who meets Audrey is instantly caught up in her zest for life, her love for Jesus, and the contagious joy she emanates. So I read her new book, Wake Up Smiling, with great anticipation, knowing I would be encouraged. But I found so much more. In this book she shares hard-earned wisdom that is made easily accessible and can be practically applied. Her passion will inspire you, and her story of grace will disarm you from any dread of the future so that every day you can confidently Wake up Smiling.

—JUDITH CRIST, Lead Pastor, Hillsong, Phoenix

BroadStreet Publishing Group, LLC

Racine, Wisconsin, USA

BroadStreetPublishing.com

Wake Up Smiling: 40 DEVOTIONS FOR A HOPE-FILLED LIFE

Copyright © 2017 Audrey Meisner

ISBN-13: 978-1-4245-5380-8 (hardcover)

ISBN-13: 978-1-4245-5381-5 (e-book)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™ Scripture quotations marked TPT are from The Passion Translation®, copyright © 2014, 2015. Used by permission of BroadStreet Publishing Group, LLC, Racine, Wisconsin, USA. All rights reserved. ThePassionTranslation.com. Scripture quotations marked VOICE are taken from The Voice™. Copyright © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked AMPCE are taken from the Amplified Bible, Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Stock or custom editions of BroadStreet Publishing titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, ministry, fundraising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail [email protected].

Art direction by David Meisner

Cover design by Chris Garborg, GarborgDesign.com

Interior design and typeset by Katherine Lloyd, theDESKonline.com

Printed in China17 18 19 20 5 4 3 2 1

To my dad who has the widest smile,the most infectious joy,and the best made-up morning songs.How can a girl not wake up smilingwith a dad like you?

Contents

Our Lives Tell a Story

Fun Facts about Smiling

P

ART

O

NE

:

The Happy Me

Day 1

Happy People

Day 2

Peace Regained

Day 3

A Key to Happiness

Day 4

Transferring Trust

Day 5

An Invitation to Happiness

Day 6

Peace No Matter the Season

Day 7

Happy Like a Child

Day 8

Pain as a Gateway to Joy

Day 9

Keeping Joy amid Sorrow

Day 10

Monuments of Joy

P

ART

T

WO

:

The Invisible Me

Day 11

Deepest Craving

Day 12

More than Meets the Eye

Day 13

All the Days of My Life

Day 14

The Substance of Spirit

Day 15

Understanding Spirit Substance

Day 16

Aligned with Heaven and Led by the Spirit

Day 17

The Earthly Things Seem So Real

Day 18

The Things That Lurk

Day 19

What Do I Look Like?

Day 20

Spiritual Eyes

P

ART

T

HREE

:

The Surrendered Me

Day 21

My Happy Place

Day 22

Aligned for an Open Heaven

Day 23

Who’s Driving?

Day 24

Surrendering My Mind

Day 25

Surrendering My Will

Day 26

Surrendering My Emotions

Day 27

Surrendering My Stuff

Day 28

Surrendering My Appetites

Day 29

Surrendering My Opinions

Day 30

Surrendering My Idea of Success

P

ART

F

OUR

:

The Hope-Filled Me

Day 31

A Recipe for Hope

Day 32

Living above the Hope Line

Day 33

The Weight of Anxiety and Concerns

Day 34

The Weight of Unanswered Prayer

Day 35

The Weight of an Offense

Day 36

The Weight of Regrets, Guilt, and Secrets

Day 37

The Truth about Wanting to Give Up

Day 38

The Truth about Hard Times

Day 39

Oh, to Be a Prisoner

Day 40

Hope for True Rest

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Our Lives Tell a Story

My earliest memory is twirling around alone in my tree-house, singing “Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna to the King of Kings!” I grew up with normal childhood challenges but continuously experienced God as my best friend. As the baby of the family, I thrived on love and attention, and being funny and silly brought me plenty of both. I’ve always loved a good party—and to be the life of the party.

Laughing my way through life got me through full-time ministry, three kids, and pioneering a church with my dreamy husband. But that last endeavor also ended every dream and launched the beginning of a horrific nightmare. The responsibility involved was overwhelming, the lack of success began to define me, and my enthusiastic zest for life started dying fast. Determined to push through, I buried my loneliness, disappointment, and sheer exhaustion.

My escape was laughter, and my desperation led me to search out a friend who had nothing to do with responsibility. Our laughter eased my pain, and because he was so much younger, I believed I could break the rules of opposite-sex relationships. I felt in control and experienced welcome relief. But then the friendship grew into a physical relationship, and I rationalized the e-mails, the attachment, and the compromise. “That Audrey” was winning—the desperate Audrey who suffered silent pain, gasping for breath.

The path of adultery led to confusion, chaos, secrets, and shame. Not a pretty picture, and after three weeks I couldn’t live another day in my dual lifestyle. I ended the relationship and confessed to my husband, Bob. Not knowing what to do, we reached out for help, and God began a rescue plan for our lives and our marriage. Our pain was intense yet separate, but we prayed together, cried together, got mad together, and determined to find out what kind of dysfunction had led us to such a sorry state.

The plot thickened when we learned I was pregnant as a result of the affair. The baby would be biracial and would not look like the rest of our family. The enemy whispered into my fragile heart, You’re going to be known for the rest of your life for the most stupid and selfish thing you have ever done. Your kids are going to be messed up because of your mistake. You’re disqualified from ministry, and you never ever deserve to laugh and enjoy life again.

I called an abortion clinic and found out I could place an order for ten little pills that would “take care of my problem.” I fell to my knees and cried out to God, “I can’t abort this baby, but God, if you love me, you will take this from me.” I begged Him for a miscarriage. Even now, years later, I get emotional as I write this, because out of love for me, God did not answer that prayer. Instead, He met me in my pain and healed my broken heart.

My healing took years, but it was worth every tear I shed. Jesus comes to heal the broken-hearted. Bob and I have written books together that chronicle our journey of how God rescued us from the darkest season of our life, and, in His mercy and grace, developed character in our lives and poured His favor and reward on our family. One of the greatest gifts He has given me is His righteousness. Let me explain.

During the pregnancy, I asked God to help me hate what I had done. I figured that if I hated the sin, I wouldn’t do it again. If only I could be righteous enough. If only I could turn back the clock and make the right choices. If only I could have avoided all this pain I caused my husband, my family, and myself. But that’s not the way life works.

Our marriage toiled through rough terrain during the pregnancy. We had good days and bad days, and then on one of the scariest days of my life, October 7, 2001, we went to the hospital and I gave birth to a teeny-tiny black-haired boy. Bob looked into my eyes and announced that he wanted to name this little boy Robert, after himself. He chose the name Theodore as his middle name, declaring its meaning of “divine gift,” and truly, that is exactly what Robert has been to our family. Our little guy was not an accident, a mistake, or the result of a sexual affair; he is a gift straight from heaven.

Our first book, Marriage Under Cover, gives a transparent account of the whole story, and is full of hope and healing for marriages. Now, every one of our four children is experiencing God’s love every day, and our creed is “We are a family who loves God intimately, each other openly, and the world radically.” I could not be more thankful for God’s redeeming love and for my husband, Bob, who has loved me unconditionally.

I am fully aware that not all stories end the way mine did. But if you’re reading this and you had the abortion or experienced the pain of divorce, that doesn’t disqualify you from experiencing the extravagant unconditional love of God to redeem your life, your dreams, and your future.

When Robert was about three years old, Bob and I were at my parents’ house for dinner. Also there were Don and Mary Colbert, ministry guests who had come to our city to appear on my parents’ TV show. After sharing great food and fun, I suddenly felt the need to ask them to pray for me. They agreed, and before doing so, they checked my emotions through muscle testing. (Each of our organs is attached to an emotion, and our body reveals areas of weakness.) The testing showed that acute grief was trapped in my lungs. Without knowing the story of our marriage crisis three years before, they asked me if I knew what loss or death may have attributed to such intense grief and regret. I proceeded to fill them in on the events and painful emotions that filled our last few years.

With a gentle smile, Don asked, “Do you want to be free?”

I said yes. I would have said yes a million times if I knew it would help. Everything about that moment secured the feeling of hope. Don and Mary didn’t seem to have even a smidgen of doubt that this would end well.

In the company of my mom and dad, my close friends Stephen and Pam, and Bob, what happened next was nothing short of a miracle. Don checked my belief system before we prayed, and then he asked me to repeat statements of truth—declarations. If my heart truly believed what I said, my arm would stay strong. This muscle testing was simple and accurate. I repeated after Don as I declared the following statements:

I believe it’s a good thing to forgive myself.

I believe it’s good for Bob that I forgive myself.

I believe it’s necessary to forgive myself.

I believe this is a good time to forgive myself.

I was passing the test as I repeated these statements. Everything in my heart was in agreement with my words. That is, until they came to the final statement:

I believe I deserve to forgive myself.

Forget it. No way. There was no way I deserved to forgive myself after what I did! My act of adultery had opposed everything I believed in, and it had sent everyone I loved into a state of excruciating pain. And as King David confessed in Psalm 51:4, that pain didn’t compare to the damage done to my Jesus: “Against you, and you alone, have I sinned.” I had hurt the very heart of God, my best friend, my confidante, my trusted Savior. In fact, if I could’ve taken “that Audrey” out of me, I would’ve pointed my finger in her face and told her I hated her. I hated what she did, I hated the pain she caused, and I hated the compromise that polluted her future.

With gentleness and compassion, Don said, “Jesus loves that Audrey. Jesus has forgiven her. And because you have Jesus living in your heart, you don’t get what you deserve, you get what He deserves.” I didn’t necessarily feel deserving, but I chose to respond to this challenge from a heart of faith.

“Okay,” I said. “Because I want to be in agreement with how Jesus feels, I believe that I deserve to forgive myself.”

Now my heart was prepared to pray. Don asked me to use my memory to reach the buried pain in my heart, to remember the most painful moments of grief. I recalled the fear that paralyzed me the moment I learned I was pregnant, and how I’d fallen on my knees and lay on the floor for hours in the fetal position. Alone, scared for my life, with no hope for my future. I recalled the panic that overtook my children’s faces as Bob and I told them about what had happened, and I remembered the countless nights I faced the wall with tears drenching my pillow as I tried to stay completely still so Bob wouldn’t know I was awake. I felt imprisoned by my own selfish mistake, drowning in the newfound feeling of sheer worthlessness.

As I remembered, I allowed these buried emotions to rise to the surface. I whimpered, I cried, and then I let go and finally gave expression and ownership to what had been trapped for three years. I felt as if I was walking out of a prison cell, with each release of emotion being another step into a new land. As the fear, regret, and remorse received acknowledgment, I got closer and closer to a place of green grass, hope, freedom, and still waters. Jesus invited me to walk free, and I took His hand with faith abandoned to Him and let myself receive His forgiveness in full.

That’s when I saw myself as He sees me. I’ll never forget this image. I saw myself wearing the most beautiful glistening white robe of righteousness, with all the exquisite details of a wedding dress exuding sheer brightness. Light surrounded me. Then I looked closer and saw that my robe was slippery. The oil of joy covered it, and I immediately knew its meaning.

Up until that day, whenever I had left the safety of my home, I’d opened myself to the public ridicule that attacked me as rumors about my affair circulated. Although nothing was said, I could hear people’s judgment, and I could feel their accusing fingers pointing at me, saying, Look. There’s that girl who says she loves Jesus, and does that. She doesn’t deserve to smile. Did you hear that she’s back in ministry? The nerve. She’s disqualified. I sure hope she’s getting the punishment she deserves. In a world invisible to everyone but me, people possessed big black Sharpie markers and I felt defined by the Xs that covered my soul.

But now my robe was slippery. In that moment, in my parents’ home, on that night that changed my life, every one of those painful Xs fell to the ground and disappeared. There was no space for them on my beautiful robe of righteousness. Jesus had paid the price when He died for my sins. He bore my mistakes, my failures, and my pitiful selfishness. He was perfect and became my righteousness. My righteousness didn’t atone me; He did. In fact, my efforts to be righteous in my own strength were like wearing a filthy rag. On that glorious night, I received the gift that had been mine all along because of what Jesus did for me.