A Sling, A Stone and A Small Child

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him." 2 Cor. 2:14

A couple of weeks ago I experienced David and Goliath in 2009. It is a battle I had seen previously waged against my daughter. Her Goliath, drug addiction, had made its way to the landscape again taunting her, luring her, and daring her to approach.

She carried around her small waist a sling with the stone buried deep. She reached in her sling at first and brought out a white flag, a move towards surrender instead of battle engagement. She approached her giant half armed, half committed but no less God-armed somewhere deep in her psyche.

God saw her approaching the giant and allowed her to get very close, feeling the breath of the beast and reminding her of the destruction and loss of self. She got close enough to feel the shadow of the giant and the chill of his reflection but God would not allow her to cross. He reached His powerful hand deep in her little sling and pulled out that smooth perfect stone the day before Christmas and hurled it into the forehead of her giant and sent him crashing to the ground.

She still looks upon her slain giant wondering when his first approach happened, why she didn’t recognize him and how she could once again be deceived. She has much to determine, to ponder upon and to realize but one thing she knows for sure…on that day with a sling, a stone and a small child her God was mighty to save!

As you are taunted by your Goliath, stay strong in the LORD and know that you will follow Christ in triumphal procession.

He Remembered....

“Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving, and I have remembered my covenant…The LORD had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians.” Exodus 12:36

I know that the Old Testament can be very intimidating to read and somewhat confusing but I have taken some of my greatest lessons from Exodus and the process of the Israelites being delivered from their slavery and captivity. It is not difficult to place yourself in the sandals of these slaves of Egypt. We are all prisoners of something that controls our lives with a destiny to be freed through Christ.

The first verse states that God remembered…not to say He had ever forgotten them but rather the perfect time of the covenant fulfilled was upon them. Whenever the Bible states that God ‘remembered’ there is always a move on the part of God to act on the behalf of the person for whom God is delivering. God not only delivered the Israelites from their slavery but He arranged a set of circumstances and attitudes among the Egyptians for them to allow the Israelites to plunder their riches. The Israelites owned nothing but were delivered with the best of riches possessed by the Egyptians.

God does the same for us as we are being delivered from our captors. Our riches may not be tangible items for which we can hold but they will be items of polished beauty such as compassion, humility, God-focus and a stronger faith. There will be plunder that we attain through the remembrance of God and the action He takes on our behalf. We will not be delivered from slavery to victory without the riches of God no matter what the length of stay in our slavery. Only through the remembrance of God and the timing of His deliverance are we able to live beyond our human responses in our wilderness and reside in the divine grace of His riches.

There will always be plunder to attain from our escape from slavery. Don’t just retake already surrendered ground – allow Him to expand your territory and enjoy the plunder.

Fact or Fiction?

“Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, ‘It is true.’” Isaiah 43:9

When my sisters and I were young growing up in Lancaster there were many times two of us would tease or mislead the other two. We would spin stories and situations that on the surface seemed unbelievable but our younger sisters seemed to want to believe. On many occasions they would yell that battle cry that we always tried to redirect or avoid, “Prove it!” This was when the fantastic stories in which we were weaving unraveled and the truth was exposed as false.

As we walk on our Christian journeys our actions will weave a story for others opposed to the story our mouths may tell. While walking on our paths of calm we spin our beliefs with the beautiful threads of our faith. But what will our actions show when the harshness of adversity hits? Many will witness our walk to see if we can prove that our faith can stand up against the storms or if it is nothing more than a game, a roust and empty stories of fiction.

If we are to display the splendor of Christ our walk must be able to bear credibility and authenticity like the manner in which Christ walked on earth. He provided the proof needed to authenticate faith over fear, love over ego and sacrifice over self.

When spinning our stories of faith are we weaving fact or fiction?

Bring It On!

“Do not show partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be afraid of any man, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too hard for you, and I will hear it. And at that time I told you everything you were to do.” Dt. 1:17-18

I have never read this verse before or if I have it didn’t carry the same weight in my heart as it did this morning. Another example of His daily bread being served to us fresh! It is so easy to judge people, to measure ourselves against others and to determine other’s responsibility in our circumstances.

I sometimes exhaust myself from trying to play judge and jury in dealing with my unmet expectation of others. Somehow I tend to lose myself in the middle between the altar and the door as the song from Casting Crowns states. I rise from the altar of humility, repentance and a fresh word from God only to lose it in my mind before my feet hit the pavement. Why does the mind of man have to be so deceitful? This verse tenderly states that in our judgment there will be instances that are too hard for us to reconcile and that God expects us to bring them to Him. He has all of the evidence and will hear our case. He will guide us into truth, action and resolve if we trust in His justice and faithfulness.

We are to maintain an open mind, a kind heart and a forgiving spirit towards others instead of being closed minded and unforgiving which threatens a spirit separated from God.

Through this verse I joyfully take comfort as I hear God saying, ‘Bring it on!’

Beetles!

“Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit.” Matthew 12:33

As many of you know, I love my roses. There is nothing like spying a large bud perfectly formed and anticipating the grand splendor of its opening. Each day I witness the tiny awakenings of that rose with great anticipation of its presentation. Sometimes my anticipation is dashed by the appearance of a small hole in the base of the rose – Japanese beetles! I hate those pesky destroyers of beauty! They steal the beauty of the rose’s full capacity and shorten the life of the yield.

God plants each of us so He may have a means to display His yield, His workings and His beauty. Our yield is recognized by the manner in which we grow ourselves up. Many of us do not protect our growth by covering ourselves in prayer and meditating in His Word. We bare ourselves to the elements of the brutal seasons without protecting our fruit.

We are like the beautiful rose whose growth is never fully realized because of bitterness that we allow to invade the very base of our growth. God has given us everything required to reach our destinies in Him and become recognizable as His children, His planting to display His splendor.

We must align ourselves with Him to protect our yield so it will always reflect the beauty intended by our Gardener.

The Inmost Place...

“Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place…Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit, to sustain me.” Psalm 51: 6, 10.

I am sure that God would like a day off from creating. Just in my own life alone, I am constantly requiring the creation of a pure heart. Seems like my thoughts allow impurities to seep in and compromise God’s truth that He places in my inner parts. Some of my thoughts are habitual thoughts of being a victim and some of my thoughts are deceitful lies from the enemy that he is so successful in controlling me.

God’s goal for every one of His children is truth and wisdom in the inmost place. The word inmost means deepest, private, secret and intimate. God has access to each of these places and with our repentance and permission He will teach, create, renew and sustain.

Our thoughts primarily appear in the flesh and through choice we replace them in the spirit. We must recognize that the flesh thoughts will always be lies the enemy provides. “The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.” Rom 8:6. We must tear down the arguments in our minds that contradict God’s knowledge and truth. Once these arguments or justifications are imploded, replacing them with new truths is the essential key in a steadfast spirit that will hold up to the lies the next go around.

“Either our thoughts have control of us through the power of the enemy or we have control of them through the power of God.” Beth Moore. There is no middle ground and no compromise.

Every thought must be categorized as truth or lie according to the Word. There isn’t great difficulty in discerning which is which, just difficulty in possessing the self-discipline of the process. Some lies have kept us nourished for so long they have become somewhat of a comfort food for us.

I say, “Starve the flesh and feed the spirit!” as I once read and our Creator will not have such a big job ahead of Him!

Belonging to God...

“He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding on to truth, for there is no truth in him…He who belongs to God hears what God says.” John 8:44, 47

I wish to begin this morning with heart felt humility and thankfulness of all of the prayers you have lifted on behalf of my family. It is been a challenging few weeks but one laced with freedom and truth.

In the past when drugs were a part of my daughter’s life Satan would continuously bombard me with his lies. “I was worthless… I was not a good mother… She didn’t deserve my love… This would end in death…. I should walk away…. I had done many things wrong… My other children will follow her…” The lies went on and on and I was truly held captive in my own prison.

It wasn’t until I pursued an intimate relationship with God that He tore down the wallpaper of lies in my mind and heart. He showed me who I was according to my Creator not some fabrication of who the enemy tried to convince me. 1 Peter 2:9 tells me that I am a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, and that I may declare the praises of him who calls me out of darkness into His wonderful light! These are my truths and they held up over the past few weeks. The enemy definitely came to wallpaper my mind again but this time God and I had another plan, a plan that matches His truth of who I am and not who the enemy says.

No matter what you circumstances are do not buy the lies! Take a few moments and write down the lies that wallpaper your mind and stack them next to Scripture. You will see that with each lie God has given us the final Word in truth.

Today marks Truth wrapped in flesh, being enough for all of us no matter what are we are experiencing and facing. We are a people belonging to God, holy, chosen, royal and saved!

What greater gift can we ever be afforded than Truth wrapped in love! Merry Christmas and love to you all!

High Places

“Destroy all their carved images and their cast idols, and demolish all their high places. Take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to possess.” Numbers 33:52

Throughout the Old Testament, God set up kings to rule over the Israelites. With each assignment God had one recurrent command – tear down and destroy all high places. High places were places of the worship of other gods literally up on high hills. They stood as representation of altars extending to the heavens. Many of kings served God but stopped short of this command. In every instance their reign was negatively impacted and their rule was cut short.

We do the very same thing in our approach to God. We build altars in our minds and hearts that we exalt above the focus of God. We elevate our thinking and consume our thoughts with fear, unforgiveness or bitterness. Even worse, we follow through on actions in an attempt to allow something to satisfy our needs in place of Jesus.

Each of us have in our lives these temptations of leaving that carved image on the high hill just in case we need to resort to our fall back plan. We must remove anything that blocks the intimate flow between our heart and the heart of our God.

He has given us everything we need to survive our situations and He is faithful in everything He does. In settling my mind over the past week God has given me many sweet verses but the one that keeps infiltrating my mind is Psalm 143:5. “I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done.” I gave this to my daughter yesterday as she has revisited her high places and carved images. But, she too can use these truths of faithfulness to replace and tear down her places.

Once we destroy these areas of our lives and replace them with truths from the Father we will settle in to the land He has given to us and claim our territorial rights.

Saddle Up!

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery…But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope…You, my brothers, were called to be free.” Galatians 5:1, 5, 13

Boy, do I need these verses this morning! Through the toil and strife of the night I managed to pick up my burdens of the past and allow them to take me to places of uncertainty and slavery. I know that some of you have heard that my daughter has relapsed in her slavery of drugs. It has been three weeks of devastation and dashed security landing me right back on old battlegrounds. I have to remind myself that Christ broke both my daughter’s yoke and my own yoke of fear and despair previously almost 6 years ago.

Satan has resurrected a powerful stronghold in the life of our family. He holds no power over the eternal for us so he must use the here and now to try to manipulate our circumstances and lessen our ministries. Satan attacks where success has been had before so the importance of me maintaining my freedom in Christ in this situation is paramount.

Upon leaving my daughter’s house yesterday pleading with her to go into detox, I received a phone call from a friend whom I haven’t talked with in about a year. Her husband had just relapsed on cocaine and will not leave the home. She has dealt with this off and on for over 18 years. As soon as she told me her situation I couldn’t help but to feel the presence of God in a mighty way. Oddly enough, her phone call resonated in my spirit that God is in complete control. He placed us together through similar circumstances in an effort to recognize that in our chaos there is perfect order.

Through the night I had to “take every thought captive and set itself up against the knowledge of God.” (2 Cor. 10:5) The Greek translation for set itself up is “to hoist up as a sail…to lift up the eyes.” Spiritual sails determine the direction for which we will guide our focus and power our minds. In order to stay free in adversities that enslave we must continue to focus and hope on the righteousness of Christ which will be present in all of our circumstances.

We must stand firm in our faith to receive the medal of freedom apart from our circumstances. As the song states, “Saddle up your horses, we have a trail to blaze!”

Please pray for our family and the victory will be ours!

Framing Life

“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3

One process that I really enjoy is the process of framing a picture for which I have connected. I spend time looking deeply into the picture in an effort to draw attention to certain beauties within its landscape. The mats must be carefully chosen to bring out certain subtleties and the selected frame with the purpose of encompassing the beauty as a whole.

Our first verse talks about having a steadfast mind. The Hebrew translation for mind is “frame.” I cannot think of a better image for our mind as it relates to the level of peace in which we will experience. As we approach situations and circumstances we frame their contents with our thoughts, our ideas and our emotions. We build this “supporting structure” around everything based on how we think. Once we have framed the events of our lives, we hang them in the hallway of our hearts displaying the manner in which we have approached them.

The importance of framing these events through the mind and heart of God is paramount in obtaining peace in all situations. If every event is framed with the steadfast truth of God’s word we will align ourselves to obtain a constant peace and unwavering belief in resolution and deliverance. A steadfast mind is a “firm and unwavering belief in purpose, loyalty and resolve.” God promises all of this and more but we can only have this possession by following His word in framing our situation.

A former battle has arisen in my family again and my old emotions, fears and scars have been resurrected, but God has lay upon my heart and mind different framework this time around. My new framework has a Psalm 143 luster which will hang in the hallway of my heart through this battle.

“I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done. I spread out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails…Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go…lead me on level ground…bring me out of trouble.” Psalm 143:5-11

Framing your adversities with past graces and future faith will always create a picture of beauty!

With Scarred Hearts

“For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God…But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps.” 1 Peter 2:19-21.

The scene is a place called Golgotha (The Place of the Skull) and the event is the crucifixion of Christ. He hangs on the cross between two criminals as He is ridiculed, mocked and beaten. He suffers not for anything He has done but for what we would do. He is at the height of suffering yet He reaches out to one of the criminals to minister, to serve and to save.

Over the past year I have been the recipient of this “serving in suffering” attitude of Christ. Many people have reached out from their own crucibles to soothe, to comfort and help heal. I have had mothers who reached out in their own pain of losing children. I have had daughters of deceased parents who extended their loving hand of comfort. I have had sisters who had to bid farewell to a sibling in their community of childhood playmates who served as spiritual sisters in my time of grief. God even used the pain and suffering of my 19 year old daughter as she reached out to me to bind up my broken heart three weeks after her boyfriend had been killed. These are the indwellings of Christ as one Body, one Member and one Church. These are the sufferings in which we share that the Bible speaks of consistently.

With Christ in us and in those surrounding us, we don’t just ache in suffering but we do as Christ did and extend that scarred hand and heart to other suffering hearts who accompany us in our pain. We not only endure but we conquer our graves and our hearts are resurrected through our fellowship in suffering.

Some seasons you will be asked to extend your scarred heart and some seasons you will receive and endure. We must embrace all seasons as “God works all things together for the good of those who loves Him.” These words are not empty words but promises fulfilled.

With Certainty...

“For God so loved the world he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

I have never lived one day of my life without this truth being in my mind. Like many, it was one of the first Bible verses I memorized and it flows off my lips with fluidity and belief. The word belief means “the acceptance by the mind that something is true and real, often underpinned by an emotional or spiritual sense of certainty.”

This definition is right on with my absolute belief in the sacrificial love of God as He surrendered His own Son for you and for me – no exclusions. So with this absolute belief which affords us everything in the eternal, I pose the question, “Why don’t we believe Him with a sense of certainty regarding the earthly?”

We believe in the grand principles of Christianity but we suffer from unbelief in the lesser things of this world. Do we believe when we lose a loved one? Do we believe when jobs are lost and children become wayward? Do we believe when that devastating phone call is received?

If we truly believe that all things come from God who works everything to our good then our walk should be one of peace, resolve and freedom. Our belief seems to be conditional at best based on what are circumstances bring. The definition of belief does not state that it is based on the heart which is powered by emotions. It states that belief is the acceptance by our minds apart from our emotions. Since God gave us His only Son then it makes no sense that He would withhold anything else from us that heals, holds and carries us through all of our circumstances.

Belief is not the acceptance that everything is going to be easy or painless but the acceptance that everything is going to be alright.

Let Freedom Ring!

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” 2 Cor. 3:17.

I cannot stress enough the importance of this short little verse. It is my battle cry when things get me upset and when my focus is taken away from the security of my God.

A person’s walk on this earth will have scatterings of unmet expectations, unresolved situations and extended seasons of suffering. Our journeys are determined but the challenge is how we respond to these scatterings of events. Do we approach them knowing that through the Holy Spirit that indwells we have freedom from despair and freedom from defeat? Do we move in and through our circumstances shackled and imprisoned only to carry the heavy burdens of our hearts? Or do we put aside our anguish and allow the flow of the Holy Spirit to navigate, guide and pilot our walk?

By learning how to loosen or release the Holy Spirit in every aspect of our lives we hand over the authority and the responsibility for the outcome to someone much greater than ourselves. Without this relinquished control we approach our situation in bondage dragging the weight of our burdens along the road wearing us down, depleting our strength, and saturating our spirit with doubt and despair.

We were not meant to live life enslaved, burdened and oppressed but were rather created to be free in Christ, through Christ and because of Christ. Only the places we allow the Spirit permission to move in and through will we experience freedom.

If I worry financially, I have withheld the Holy Spirit access to that place in my life. If I worry about my daughter’s sobriety I have placed that room off limits and denied Him residency. Any area of my life that holds worry and anguish carries the truth that I have not extended an invitation to Christ. I have hung a Do Not Enter sign on that door so I will never experience freedom in that area of my life.

Christ did not die for us to stay chained and shackled but rather for us to experience the freedom we have in Him….LET FREEDOM RING!

You Complete Me

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” 2 Peter 1:3-4

There are few movie scenes that are as familiar as when Tom Cruise stands before Renee Zellweger in Jerry Maguire and proclaims that she completes him. It is the final ingredient missing in someone’s life that keeps us from true happiness. We all search for this completeness when in fact we already have everything we need to experience complete satisfaction for this life.

This passage is chopped full of information regarding our level of satisfaction in both life and God. In a world that offers its own definition of satisfaction we reach out for the lure every time always searching for that something or someone who will complete us. God tells us through this verse that whatever we face will be met head on triumphantly through His divine power. The way we access this precious power is through getting to know Him and becoming more mindful of His character, His love and His ways.

He will never force His power upon us but will wait until we pursue Him for a better understanding of who He is in our life. The scripture states that we may participate through choice and that only through this participation will we be able to escape the many evils of the world.

God desires to complete us with the same passion we desire to be completed. With both pursuing the same goal why is it so difficult for us to live our lives with a complete sense of satisfaction? Why do we constantly search for that missing piece of the puzzle? God is that missing piece and we will live a complete and victorious life when we decide to seek Him, know Him and trust Him for every “great and precious promise” He has held in reserve for us.

Calling Out for Clemency

“Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom, prisoners suffering in iron chains, for they had rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High. So he subjected them to bitter labor; they stumbled and there was no one to help. Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble and he saved them from their distress.” Psalm 107: 10-14.

Let’s face it – we all have sin in our lives. Even the mere mention of the word brings some aspect of our life to most of our minds. Even if we are not presently walking in sin we have all experienced the consequences due to our sinful choices in the past. We look at this passage with detachment since we know that we would never fall into the category of “despising” God. The original translation for “despise” was not to hate which was my first impression of its meaning. The translation for this word in its original context “contains the idea of disdain for one who formerly received favorable attention and then rebelled.” That would encompass both you and me and every person on this earth.

Our sin imprisons us and places chains around our lives that keep us burdened down and oppressed in our spirit. Oppression is the manner in which God pursues us to return to Him. He sits by our prisons patiently and faithfully waiting for us to cry out for clemency. He provides the only escape and allows us to sit in our darkness until we realize that He is the only way out and will always be faithful in pardoning our sins and flinging open the doors of our prisons. Many times He allows us to sit in wait until we have appealed to every means for deliverance in place of Him. He desires for us to know without doubt who is saving us. We need to see those hero moments wherein God sweeps in at the last minute once we cry out to Him and brands upon our heart who rescues, who saves and who delivers.

The key to our prison will always be repentance.

Perfect Love

“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us…There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:16-19

The greatest love story ever told is the same love story that we can live out daily. It is a love story between a Father who sacrifices to save and a child who dies to live. The only unfailing and enduring love that can be deemed perfect is the Ambassador of Love – Christ Jesus.

His love remains constant and faithful never to lessen or grow. It is perfect from the start and will remain constant throughout eternity. It is the one type of love for which we never must question and never fear of losing or changing. It is perfect. Our capacity to receive this love is what is fluid based on the priority we place on this love. The more we align ourselves to receive His perfect love the less fear we will experience in all situations in our lives.

That is what is meant by the statement “perfect love drives our fear.” The more deeply we love God we less fear we will experience in our daily walk.

Our love for Him is our response to the love He first showed us. We will never be the initiator of perfect love but will always be the recipient.

Listen Up!

“Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and who seek the LORD: Look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn…The LORD will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins…Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing…Listen to me, my people; hear me, my nations. My righteousness draws near speedily, my salvation is on the way, and my arm will bring justice to the nations.” Isaiah 51:1, 3-5

I don’ know who I exhaust more – myself or God! You readers unfortunately are victims of my lessons as God “continues to work out my salvation.” There is one relationship in my life that spans 25 years that requires more work on my part than any other I have experienced (no, it is not my sweet husband). Once it gets reconciled something else will occur that takes me right back to my ruins - that place of deadness, bitterness and nothingness. It erects stones of resentment and beckons me to once again do the work required to forgive, forget and love again (which I can only do through Christ alone.)

My biggest hang up about this situation is my desire to see justice served and consequences experienced which is none of my business. I feel that God is constantly pounding the gavel when dealing with me saying, “I will have order in this court!” He tells me three times in this verse to “listen to Him and really hear” which indicates He is trying to get my attention. He wants me to recognize that only He will bring justice to all situations and for me to believe, to trust and allow Him the right to rule!

Why is this ruin so difficult to walk away from as I pursue righteousness and seek Him in every aspect of my life? I know that my concern should be the manner in which I am responding to this instead of the manner for which I wish Him to respond.

If I am not experiencing joy and gladness even in my wastelands, my ruins, I am not trusting Him to rule. I know He will help me get this right as I work out my salvation and am so grateful for a Savior that doesn’t save us once but keeps on saving.

Thank you Father for continuing to have compassion in my ruins.

This Little Light of Mine...

“But now, all you who light fires and provide yourselves with flaming torches, go, walk in the light of your fires and of the torches you have set ablaze. This is what you shall receive from my hand: You will lie down in torment.” Isaiah 50:11

Don’t ask me why this image came to mind but it did and as a mom it still makes me chuckle. It was Thanksgiving, 15 years ago, and I was hosting Thanksgiving for my husband’s family. My oldest daughter Kristen who was 12 at the time decided that she wanted me to take her to Harris Teeter so she could buy something – I cannot remember the item. I told her no and she would have to wait until everybody had gone. She continued to badger me to the point that she resorted to getting on her bike and taking herself. I decided to let her go knowing that it was about 4 miles (we live out in the country and at the time it was very safe!) About an hour later we received a phone call from her saying that she had abandoned her bike on the side of the road and walked the rest of the way due to her legs being too weak to continue peddling. In addition, she didn’t have the strength to even walk back home! I have to be honest and say that as I hung up the phone I laughed and said to myself, “Mission accomplished!”

She had decided to walk by the light of own fire, her own plan and agenda, without heeding the guidance of her parents. She lit her own torch by saddling up on her little bike and forging ahead. This is so characteristic of the way in which we live our lives. We don’t like some of God’s answers so when badgering God doesn’t work we just get on our little spiritual bikes and hit that bumpy road.

The beautiful thing about this is picture is that as we sit on the side of the road with abandoned plans we too can call Home and know for certain that God will come to where we are and rescue us. I don’t know if He chuckles and has a sense of satisfaction as I did but I know that He is happy when we reach for the Light of His fire to replace ours.

Two Cups...One Choice

“For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.” John 6:38

“’My food,’ said Jesus, ‘is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.’” John 4:34

“My Father, if it is possible may this cup to be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Matthew 26:42

In a world where we seem to always be running from something or towards something, I can’t help but to think of how our example approached life on earth. Christ spoke throughout the New Testament about His one constant goal on earth – to do the will of His Father. These were not the mere words of a mere man but a man’s total heart surrendered to the authority of God- no aspect of His life was off limits. Jesus was sent to exemplify the manner in which we should walk and was not just some character in a story. His walk paved the way and provided a manual of how to live victoriously on earth as a shadow of what we can expect in the eternal.

His complete surrender afforded Him total access to God on earth even in suffering, fear, anguish and despair. He chose to drink suffering over not doing the will of His Father. His desire and love to accomplish God’s will outweighed His desire and will for Himself.

We all have a destiny for ministry during our short time on this earth poured specifically for us to drink. This drink may sometimes be bitter but will always nourish and fulfill its purpose. There will always be two cups on the table, one which God asks us to drink and one that we pour for ourselves.

Which cup will you reach for?

Losing Our Heads

“But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all duties of your ministry.” 2 Tim. 4:4

How hard is this! How many times a day are we tempted to speak our minds and say what is on our hearts? It doesn’t matter whether there is justification or not, I know God expects me as a Christian to carry out His commands. The word discharge means to carry something out, to complete a duty, responsibility, or promise successfully.

I have promised things to God that will enhance, build and further His mission but those same promises are sometimes threatened by my attitude, my thoughts and my actions. It is so easy to feel justified in our emotions and in our entitlements.

We all are expected to be evangelists for God and we all have our own specific ministries for which God has placed in our hands for the benefit of others. Previously, we have seen very public ministries be destroyed through mismanagement and misappropriation along with other malfunctions of the heart (as I like to call them). Satan’s #1 job is to destroy the ministries for which we are called. We will never be put in a situation wherein God will not provide a way out. He is the Afforder of freedom – not the preventer of freedom!

Satan will always offer his counterfeit of freedom by convincing us that we deserve, are entitled, are justified...but know that his offering doesn’t last beyond today. Another definition for discharge is “to pay a debt in full.” I love this definition since we owe Christ our life in return for Him giving up His.

As we live in and live out our ministries let us not discredit them by losing our heads but rather enduring the situation knowing that "...the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed…the Lord will rescue me from every evil attack.” 2 Tim. 4:17-18.

He Hungers....

"Yet, the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him." Isaiah 30:18

When my daughter Kristen lived in her world of drugs I couldn't imagine why she chose to rebel against everything she knew. I knew the life we could offer her along with the love of our family. I was hungry for her to experience what blessings I knew she could receive. I craved the opportunity to lavish love on her and take her in my arms and protect her as only a parent can protect. But instead, I had to sit on the sideline and watch as I would watch a horror film.

Rebellion is a powerful drug in every aspect of life. We all have some form of rebellion in our lives that displaces God to the sidelines. The word "longs" means to crave, to ache for, to yearn for according to the Thesaurus. God has this same hunger for us to be the recipient of His divine grace and never ending compassion in our lives. The verse states that God rises to show us compassion which indicates that He, too, has been sidelined in our lives by our actions much like a second string hero. The good news is how He sits by and waits on us always yearning for, aching for and anticipating our return to Him. When we turn to God calling Him into the game and away from our rebellion He cannot rise quickly enough to scoop us up and pour His lavish love over us and our lives.

We should be careful to pursue God instead of allowing our rebellion to pursue us!

On The Run

“Jesus answered, ‘Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.’ Jesus answered, ‘A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean.’” John 13:8b, 10

This was an exchange between Peter and Jesus after the Last Supper. Peter had rejected the gesture for which Jesus was making in washing the feet of all of the disciples. Peter felt that he was unworthy for the Master to wash the servant’s feet….a gesture for which any of us would probably feel undeserving and uncomfortable. Yet, Christ does this everyday for us as He kneels and bathes our sins with His forgiveness and wipes away any dirt our walk has accumulated.

When Jesus answered that our bodies are clean but it is only our feet that need washing, He was referring to the fact that we are once and for all pure in the eyes of God once we accept Christ. Spiritually speaking, we have been saved by His grace and there is no need for additional cleansing. Because of our natural tendency to sin, it is our daily walk that requires on-going washing to remove the areas of filth.

We cannot have any part of Christ on earth without allowing Him to wash away our sins. Through the humble act of Christ washing our feet we develop more humility in receiving this gesture.

We must take the time to sit in His presence and the humility to “bare our feet” and expose the dirt on them so He can brush away the dust we have picked up along the way.

It is tough for Christ to wash our feet when we are constantly on the run!

Being Rooted and Established

“And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Eph. 3:17b-19

I love my rose bushes and the beauty and fragrance for which they provide to me throughout the year. When I originally planted one of them I was fearful it wouldn’t make it since I have never had a green thumb. I planted it as a baby bush according to the directions and left a little of the dirt ball exposed. I cut into the thin roots and gently pulled them apart to ensure greater success in absorbing the water required to help the bush thrive. Years later that rose bush is very tall and produces the largest roses I have seen with a wonderful fragrance. As it ages, the fragrance gets stronger and the roses get more beautiful.

Such is the same with our relationship with Christ as we experience Him in our lives. We are planted as baby Christians with some parts of our self exposed while other parts are securely tucked away and protected in Him. When we plant ourselves deep in the rich soil of the Word we align our growth to be rooted in truth, established in love and be the conduit for His power to produce amazing bouquets of blessings and fruitfulness. As we mature as Christians we get on-going nourishment and saturation with His water ensuring constant and healthy growth. We are not immune to His pruning as we are cut back through our trials but have the endurance and strength on the branch to stay rooted and established as an important part of the total growth.

It is only through our planting of our total heart in Him that we may access the power and the fullness of God in our lives producing a beautiful fragrance.

Be Strong!

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” Ephesians 6:10

This short verse has been what has powered my heart the past few days. On Saturday night, I spoke at a church for a Sunday School class Christmas party. I was both nervous and anxious leading up to this speech since the topic was courage, strength and faith in the face of deep adversity. The theme was ‘Be Strong in the Lord.’ Obviously, I would be speaking on the most difficult times in my life and was worried that I would end up broken apart. Upon many people praying for me prior to that evening, I felt the peace of God settle on me to give me the strength and courage to get up in front of everyone exposing my most private wounds. The audience was very warm and welcoming and the speech went well.

The next day at church I found out that the mom of a family we know has been referred to Hospice and given less than 6 months to live. She has 5 children under the age of 20, all who live together in a tiny rundown house. She asked if I would find out how to transfer to the Hospice organization we had used since I had gone on and on about the level of care they had given to Beth. I knew that meant going back to the Hospice House, the place where my heart broke on a daily basis last year.

As I was approaching Hospice I felt this heavy pressure fill up my car as if I couldn’t breathe and I began crying. I explained to the Lord that I had neither the strength nor the composure to accomplish this favor. I told Him that this was His idea so He needed to give me the tools necessary to accomplish the meeting. He was so faithful as He once again lent me His power, His courage and His strength. As I opened the door to Hospice I saw the friendly faces and the familiar hallways that I had walked almost daily this time last year. We visited for a bit, met with the intake director and I bid them farewell. As I walked down the hall towards the door to make my escape, I saw the Christmas tree in the lobby and smelled the aroma of cinnamon. These were leftover memories of last year. I had prayed by this tree, cried by this tree and had waited on Beth’s dear friends for a Christmas party by this tree. I felt myself getting ready to shatter so I hurried out of the door at which point I fell apart and sobbed the entire way home. The pain was as fresh as it was one year ago. It was at that moment that I realized how much pain God was holding back from heart and that "Be strong in the Lord" were more than just words.

As I pulled into my driveway, I heard the song by Sidewalk Prophets, The Words I Would Say. The chorus basically says, ‘Be strong in the Lord, never give up hope, He’s going to do great things, I already know, God’s got His hand on you so don’t live life in fear, forgive and forget but don’t forget why you’re here, take your time and pray, and thank God for each day, His love will find a way. These are the words I would say.’ When the song was over I had a flashback of Saturday night at the party. The placemats at our table said Be Strong In The Lord.

Whatever you are facing in your life, ‘Be Strong In The Lord!’

"I Do"

“My lover spoke and said to me, ‘Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come with me. See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land. The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. ‘Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me.’” Song of Solomon 2:10-13

Although Bruce’s actions after 25 years together show me his love for me I cannot picture him saying these words to me. I find it hard to believe any spouse would say these words to their beloved after so many years together. (It does make me smile to picture the words coming out of Bruce’s mouth in my mind!)

This morning after 48 ½ years Christ still speaks these words to me in such a tender way through Scripture. He knows the winter I have had and rainfalls that have drenched me. He brings me flowers each day through His blessings and I can sense the fragrance of His emerging presence.

Christ is that lover of unconditional love for each of us and for His eternal bride – the church. He wants His bride to know that even in the cold and rainy seasons He will burst forth with flowers of blessings, singing songs of joy over us and satisfying our deepest desires when we are living in His land – His will. He calls to us with His tender spirit extending His arms like a groom as He welcomes His bride.

How can we pass up this offer and not take our place beside Him?

Here Comes the Bride

“I remember the devotion of our youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the desert through a land not sown.” Jeremiah 2:2

Remember when we first married our spouse? Everything seemed sweeter, everything seemed more joyous and everything seemed exciting! We had each other’s undivided attention and adjusted our desires according to what the desire of our spouse was for that day.

Bruce would always take me to the movies knowing how much I loved that and I would always help him with projects even if it meant crawling under the house with him as he put in a french drain system. I can only imagine the look on my face if he approached me with that request 25 years later as I sit in my recliner watching television – I don’t think so, stallion!

The same is true with our relationship with Christ. The Bible describes us as brides preparing for our Bridegroom as it relates to the anticipated intimate relationship between us and Christ. We are to prepare ourselves for Him as He receives us as His bride only to lavish His unconditional love and protection upon us. This marriage of two spirits will span over the course of our lives and must be kept alive and passionate just as required in our earthly relationships.

Christ asks us to follow Him anywhere He leads and to trust that His desire for us will never be harmful to us. He will never ask us to go where He is unwilling to go ahead of us to assure we will be completely prepared and protected.

We must recapture that early passion and excitement of knowing our Bridegroom and passionately following Him to the ends of the earth. So get your veil, adorn yourself and let that sweet music begin!

Child, Come Out!

“Lord, if you had been here…Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying…Take away the stone…Jesus called in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out’…The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face…’Take off the grave clothes and let him go.’” John 11:32b, 37, 39, 43-44.

I have lifted several verses from the story of the raising of Lazarus from the dead. This story brings fresh truth for me this morning as Christmas is approaching. Christmas is about new birth, new hope, and new life in Christ.

Like many of you, my family experienced great loss this year as Beth was called to her eternal home. I am sure over the past 8 months my heart has beat once or twice to the same drum as Martha and Mary’s – Lord, where were you? Couldn’t you have done this as you have done for others?

I had a marathon lunch with a dear friend from high school the other day who has experienced such levels of loss and grief it amazes me how she still has such a level of joy. She lost both brothers, her father to cancer only to be followed up with her mother’s death to cancer. She spoke of moving between the two hospital rooms of her parents in an effort to be there for both. But she does seem happy and joyful thanks to the relationship for which she experiences with Christ. She continues to believe that God loves her, He is working for her good and He is ever present in her life. With so much loss it would be easy for her to be the one in the tomb, in the darkness, in the aloneness of her circumstances. Her stones of loss could have easily entombed her but Christ stood at the opening and removed the stone.

No matter what or who we have lost, Christ stands at the door of our hearts desiring freedom for us and calls out to us knowing we are on the other side of that tomb needing a resurrection. Notice that when Lazarus came out he still was bound with the grave clothes and his face covered. It was only when Jesus commanded the clothes to be removed that full life was experienced by Lazarus. Upon the devastating loss of something or someone we must not die with them for Christ came to bind up the brokenhearted and set the captives free! We must remove the grave clothes that bind our hands and feet, and the cloths that blind our sight from experiencing abundant life. I have watched my mom especially remove those grave clothes and experience life in Christ through her heartbreak. She did not allow her circumstances to entomb her but rather allowed Christ to embrace her and carry her out of the depair.

The real miracle is living through the impossible and still seeing possibilities!

A Kiss Is NOT Just a Kiss

“If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were raising himself against me, I could hide from him. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend, with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship…” Psalm 55:12-14

Betrayal goes back to the beginning of time and will span future generations. This passage was the anguish David was experiencing when he realized that his close friend, King Saul had betrayed him and was trying to kill him.

Betrayal is one of the most difficult pills to swallow and hurts more than anything that our enemies could ever dish out. For me, I endured betrayal after betrayal from my daughter who was being held captive by heroin addiction. On the flip side, I betrayed my husband’s trust when I secretly mounted up debt earlier in our marriage. I am sure everyone has had some form of betrayal that has shattered hearts.

Christ experienced the ultimate betrayal when Judas gave Him that incredulous kiss on the Savior’s cheek. Judas premeditated and sought out the plan to betray Jesus, his close teacher and loving companion. “From then on, Judas watched to hand him over.” Matt. 26:16.

These words brought chills to the back of my neck this morning so I ask myself as we go into this Christmas season, “Do we betray Jesus without realizing it?” Do we plant that kiss on His name by holding grudges against others, being unforgiving and selfishly seeking our own will? Are we holding grudges against others for their betrayals as we carry our Bibles high?

It is easy to lose sight of the fact that Jesus was the recipient of such a betrayal that the cost was His life. We may be betrayed in this life but it will never be as great of cost as what our sweet companion in Christ paid. When He lost His life on earth on that cross all sins were swept away including the betrayal of Judas.

Christ Jesus, please help us to be imitators of You instead of initiators of unforgiveness.

The One Who Sees Me

“She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: ‘You are the God who sees me,’ for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16:13

In Genesis, we have this wonderful encounter between Hagar and the LORD during her moment of intense heartache. Hagar is Abraham and Sarai’s maidservant who has fled from their home. She had fled into the desert after becoming impregnated with Abraham’s baby at the manipulative hands of Sarai. It is her private moment when she encounters and embraces God as her very own. It is no doubt that she grew up in a culture that worshipped many gods so this was a very defining moment for her.

Hagar was a chess piece used by Sarai as a means to have a baby since Sarai seemed to be barren. Once Hagar became pregnant, Sarai’s bitterness overcame her and eventually caused Hagar to flee. Hagar did nothing to deserve this but was being obedient to her masters ending up being a victim of circumstance. As she was brokenhearted, scared and feeling all alone in the desert, an angel of God appeared to her and gave her direction and a clear picture of the one and only God.

There are “God encounters” for which we can only experience in the sacred aloneness with God in our deserts. Yesterday, I learned that one of my long time friends lost her brother unexpectantly on Thanksgiving Day. That dear family has just journeyed into the desert as they are experiencing the suffocating heat of grief. It is a heat that prevents us from thinking clearly and can only be relieved through seeing the One who sees us. God knows what it is like to lose someone in our heart whatever their departure involves as He had to separate Himself from His Son in order that we may experience eternal life. He had to choose between His son and mankind as His heirs resulting in sacrificing one to save the other. But then there is the good news! He gave up the temporary life on earth of His Son to provide the eternal life in Heaven for all of His sons and daughters!

It is inevitable that we experience intense seasons of heartbreak but we can be assured that God sees us and will act on our behalf in the desert with such an amazing experience that we will know that “we have seen the One who sees us!”

Got Room?

“She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” Luke 2:7

I just finished reading an article entitled A Homeless God which triggered the image of Christ’s birth. The article was speaking more of finding God in churches but it got me thinking more on an individual level.

God was about as far from home as He could get when He wrapped Himself in flesh and stepped down from heaven to become the Sacrificial Lamb. God desires for each of us to build a home for Him within our hearts for Him to take up residency. This home should be holy, honoring and glorifying Him as He becomes Head of this household. He is not looking for a place to visit – He already has many places from which He moves in and out of lives but He rather desires those homes that will not only invite Him to move in but give Him full authority to arrange things the way that He most desires.

I love the following excerpt of this article but I will replace church with individuals.

“If God ‘visits’ the heart of an individual, it betrays the fact that it doesn't belong to Him. A homeowner doesn't visit his own home. He lives in it. In a divine visitation, God will bless His people. But He will eventually move on and search for a home that He can call his own. Thus if the headship of Jesus Christ is not fully yielded to any given place, the best the Lord can do is visit. He cannot take up residency.” From Eternity to Here: Rediscovering the Ageless Purpose of God - Frank Viola.

As we turn our calendars from November to December and approach the Christmas holiday let us be reminded that not much has changed. Christ is still looking for a place to lay his head and call home.

Will you make room in the inn?

Revisiting Ancient Ruins

“Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Phil. 3:13b-14

Throughout the world ancient ruins can be found from civilization to civilization. Our culture has a deep fascination with these ruins as they speak to us from the rubble regarding their past. They tell stories to enrich our imaginations helping us catch a glimpse of their motivations, beliefs and passions.

In an eerie way our past emotional ruins beckon us in the same manner as worldly physical ruins of the past beckon our imaginations. In our own lives there have been takeovers, defeats, building up and tearing down of our hearts. We look back at our circumstances that both wounded and defined us as the skeletal remains still lay scattered upon the landscapes of our hearts. We revisit the grounds in an effort to rehash, reconsider and sometimes resurrect what needs to stay undisturbed. We kneel to the ground and plunder through the rubble knowing nothing will change but resurrected emotions, entitlements, regrets and guilt.

God exhorts us to stay forward focused in both our walk and our faith. Our emotional ruins will never be what they once were and will never provide the community in which God desires us to dwell. Our ruins are abandoned places in our hearts that cannot provide any protection from the elements, and lack stability in its structure. While there is importance in looking behind it is only in recognizing the deliverance and protection God provided through our experiences. God knew the difficulty of “straining toward what is ahead” as He walked the earth in flesh through the body of Christ. The manner in which He suffered was great but necessary for the benefit of each of us experiencing eternal life. He left behind the sins of mankind and strained towards eternal life for each of us.

The base of the cross is a much more life giving place to visit than the ancient ruins of our hearts.

In the Hand of the Potter

”But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as it seemed best to him. ‘Like clay’ in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.” Jeremiah 18:4, 6

Back in the day of Jeremiah, clay was plentiful in that region and every household could be found possessing lots of pottery. It was only natural that God used this analogy to instill a better understanding for what He was trying to communicate.

I have heard people say, “God has a lesson for you in this adversity.” Do you ever feel like you are “lessoned out?” That you have been put on that potter’s wheel for one too many spins around the studio? I know I have in the past. There is great truth, though, in God using the experiences in our lives to teach, mold and reshape us. His warm and gentle hands cap our lives creating pressure on the areas of our lives that require the removal of impurities and imperfections. We are all marred and require constant inspection and reworking in the hands of the Master Potter.

The potter has the gift of looking at a lump of clay and visualizing its potential for something unique, beautiful and one of a kind. Its destiny is not realized by sitting on the shelf but by being placed on the wheel and receiving water, motion and applied pressure to achieve its greatest beauty and purpose.

God uses the turning of events to shape His children like the potter uses the turn of the wheel to shape his piece of work. God deems the shaping of our lives as it seems best to Him as the verse states and requires neither our permission nor understanding. If our hearts are not open to His reworking, reshaping and remolding our destiny will never be fulfilled.

Remember, God has the perfect vision in mind for each of our lives and knows exactly what is required to achieve our greatest beauty and His highest glory.

The Slider Rule

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Matthew 7:1-2

Some verses are meant to be experienced with a heavy hand from God as a warning in our lives. There are fewer things in life than the natural tendency to judge the actions of others. We live our lives being a set of balance scales with fulcrums and weight pans as we judge others against our own lives. We load our pan with our own righteousness, heavy on the judgment of others while their pan of unworthiness will never be equal against ours. In precision balances, a slider weight is moved along a graduated scale. The slider position gives a fine correction to the weight value.

Christ is our slider as He determines a better balance for our lives adjusting and aligning our hearts to better approach our view of others and ourselves. He knows that our natural tendency is to be the judge, jury and executioner when dealing with others.

If we do not take steps in guarding our hearts against this tendency we will become off balance in our thinking and out of sorts in our hearts. He will enact the appropriate tension and adjustment in our lives to ensure that our hearts are more balanced on both sides.

The Bible exhorts us to “take every thought captive” and to aspire to the “renewing of our mind.” As the urge to judge others arises, we should remind ourselves of our responsibility to not only remove self-righteousness from our own pan but to place compassion and mercy on the pan of others.

With Christ as our slider, we will be successful in creating that perfect alignment and balance in the scales of life.

Seek and Go Hide

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” Col. 3:2-3

Growing up my family lived on the outskirts of Lancaster in West Manor in the middle of the woods. It was a great place to play Hide and Go Seek with all of the trees and lack of street lights as in most neighborhoods. I was always the first to want to play but usually quickly became bored with hiding or seeking. I don’t really know if my boredom came from laziness or my lack of heart for the game.

To be hidden in Christ we must first be the seeker. We must search for Him in our lives and search for ways that we can exemplify His walk. The more we seek Him the more we will be hidden. The less we seek Him the more the world will be exemplified in our lives. We will determine for ourselves which master to serve, which life to exemplify and which role model to be for our children.

It’s Always Something by the late Gilda Radner contains a disturbing story of a little dog which I will share with you.

“When I was little, my nurse Dibby’s cousin had a dog, just a mutt, and the dog was pregnant…She was out in the yard one day and got in the way of the lawn mower and her two hind legs got cut off. They rushed her to the vet and he said, ‘I can sew her up, or you can put her to sleep if you want, but the puppies are okay. She’ll be able to deliver the puppies.’ Dibby’s cousin said, ‘Keep her alive.’ So the vet sewed up her backside, and over the next week the dog learned to walk…she just learned to walk by taking two steps in the front and flipping up her backside, and then taking two steps and flipping up her backside again. She gave birth to six little puppies, all in perfect health. She nursed them and then weaned them. And when they learned to walk, they all walked like her.”

Our walk will be determined by whomever we seek out to exemplify. Our deficiencies will be hidden in theirs and our limitations will be based on their perspective much like these little pups. We will learn to walk in the same manner for which the world teaches if we do not seek out Christ in this game called life. If we are hiding from Christ and seeking everything in His place we will lose the game. If people are seeking answers from watching our walk they will always have a limp because our walk is not perfect. Only through seeking and walking with Christ as our Master do we have the perfect example of a spiritual walk.

Now that we are all grown up let’s change that childhood game to Seek and Go Hide.

In All Circumstances....

“Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thes 5:18

How easy it is to give thanks when we are experiencing a blessing in our lives. Our hearts sing and our spirits soar with gratitude and thankfulness. But what about when death steals the life of a loved one, when that spouse abandons his life with us, or when we are riddled with disease? This verse clearly states that it is the will of God to give thanks in ALL circumstances.

I remember a certain day in April, 2008 when I learned this first hand. I went with my daughter and son-in-law to the ultra sound of our little baby. As we learned that the baby was a healthy girl I was thankful but also saddened as I faced the possibility of losing another little girl – my little sister. The day continued as I took my father-in-law suffering with Alzheimer’s to three doctor’s appointments. It was a grueling day as he stayed confused, frustrated with his situation and agitated. As we sat in the doctor’s office of his last appointment I received a phone call from my son at college. His apartment had been robbed while he was in class and his laptop along with other items had been stolen. I began the process required to report this to the police. In the meantime, my dad called to discuss his fear of Beth’s possible death. It was all too much! My father-in-law sat absorbing all of this the way a child watches their parents.

When we got in the car my precious father-in-law summed up my present situation from his perspective. Allow me to share his view with you. “Brenda, have they found a cure for your sister?” I replied no. “Brenda, does your dad still have cancer?” I replied yes. “Brenda, did your son just got robbed?” I replied yes. He turned and looked at me with that simple truth of a child and stated, “Girl, you are shooting dice with no spots!” I realized at that moment how thankful I was for God’s humor and the love He provides through different means.

Later that day on my way to Beth’s I got overwhelmed thinking about all of the challenges and sadness facing me. I began sobbing so hard I could barely see to drive and began crying out to God to remove the pain. The pain was too great to contain within my heart and I knew relief had to come. I heard God say, “Thank me.” Honestly my first response was “For what?” I heard Him repeat the command so I began thanking Him. The more I thanked Him the harder I sobbed but just kept thanking Him for certain things in my life. I called Becki and asked her to pray over me which she did and she prayed a beautiful prayer of deliverance of my pain. The pain subsided and peace returned to my heart.

In remembering that day, I will always know that we cannot control what the dice rolls for us in life but if we give thanks to God in ALL circumstances we place spots on those die ensuring a winning roll.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving and remember to give thanks in ALL circumstances.

But In Everything...

“Be anxious about nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And, the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Phil 4:6-7

I can see so many things through the eyes of experience that I wish I had done differently. When my children were little, like many of you, we tried getting them in the habit of bedtime prayers. I would kneel with them by their bedside and help them recite their list of prayer items to God. We learn early in life to recite prayers, not to experience them.

In hindsight, while we taught them the importance of prayer I really didn’t teach them that prayer was more than just a one-sided laundry list until their habits had already been formed. Prayer is a conversation in which God can reveal things and an on-going relationship in which He responds. I must admit that there are times in my adult life when I am like that child kneeling beside my bed in an effort to check prayer off of my list for the day. Even the definition for prayer seems one sided. The definition for prayer is to implore, to plead, to beg, to ask, to request, to call upon. God’s definition for prayer is more about fellowship, exchange, relationship and revelation.

Prayer is another channel through which God comforts, guides and loves. It is when we can experience His most sacred and divine indwelling. It is where He accepts our offerings before we even lay them on the altar. Prayer is the platform for which intimate exchange is experienced.

I remember reading in my grandmother’s journal that there is no specific prayer time for her for there is constant communion throughout the day. That has become the desire of my heart and has been realized without my awareness. Sunday, as my day began very early I had an awareness of His presence in a powerful way until around 1:30 in the afternoon. It was a very private day experienced only between Father and child. We hung out all day and I was deeply blessed (and worn out). Prayer was more of a state of mind and attitude that day – a day I aspire to repeat increasingly as I grow more in Him.

I have a long way to go in my prayer life but the joy I feel when I am in constant communion with Him is like none other. Don’t just pray but experience prayer.

Casting Idols

“All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing?” Isaiah 44:9-10

Before I begin this subject allow me to acknowledge that many of you are in an extended period of suffering due to the loss or absence of a spouse. I know that my loneliness is very temporary compared to yours, but all discomfort is relative to what we know.

In the past 30 days, Bruce has not been home more than 5 days at the most due to numerous problems at one of his client’s work locations. I have found myself becoming increasingly discontent and longing for my best friend to return to our life as we knew it and I know that will happen in a few months. Between surrounding myself with family, getting in the Word and listening to inspirational Christian music throughout the day I can usually feel content. However, Saturday seemed different as I was very uneasy and unable to settle myself long enough to approach God.

When the Israelites were tired of waiting on Moses to come off the mountain from speaking with God, they threw into the fire their own personal belongings in an attempt for something new to emerge. “The Israelites had been given everything, yet they refused to be satisfied. They traded in what their hearts could know for what their eyes could see.” Beth Moore, Breaking Free. Yesterday, I decided to go shopping which in the past has been what I have “thrown into the fire creating my golden calf.” This morning I awoke with no profit – I am just as lonely and unsatisfied as I was yesterday. God used the golden calf image to tenderly and lovingly remind me that I have “shaped and cast” this image before and it never provides, comforts or satisfies.

At certain times in our lives, we all shape our own gods in an effort to fulfill a need. Some of us attempt to receive temporary satisfaction through picking up that drink or using that drug. For some it is finding relief in the arms of someone through an affair or gambling to scratch that itch. For me in the past it was spending which always brought me nothing more than additional feelings of alienation and guilt.

An idol is anything for which we seek to comfort us that substitutes God. Don’t shape that god or cast that idol – what will emerge will never be gain compared to what you threw into the fire.

Higher Ways...

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts…so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.” Isaiah 55:9, 11, 12

This passage is a two-part promise that God gives us all as we relate to the changing circumstances of our lives. He begins comparing our understanding of Him to the relationship of earth to heaven. Planet Earth is only one small element of existence in a vast atmosphere canopied by Heaven and is only one piece of the larger picture.

Like the earth as it relates to Heaven, we too operate with limited understanding of the big picture in the heavenlies. God acts in our lives not in a vacuum but in a concerted manner directing different circumstances for the purpose of all. What He wills is going to be fulfilled whether we understand it or not. We will never understand all of the spiritual workings in our lives and how they relate to the Great Commission – bringing people to Him.

The second part of this beautiful passage is the promise of comfort in whatever He purposes in our lives. I remember when it was obvious Beth was not going to receive an earthly healing, while God didn’t explain the purpose He did lead me triumphantly into peace through a Bible Study. I felt Him say to me that losses on earth are critical to the Kingdom in accomplishing more in the eternal than in the temporary. No earthly loss of life is futile in the heavenlies. Our loved ones' presence in Heaven is critical in God’s divine plan and they have been specifically chosen by God. I remember as Beth lay there I told her that her work on earth was beautifully accomplished and that God was waiting on her to begin her eternal work. Her eyes showed a peace and understanding so I knew He was also touching her spirit with this knowledge. I was led into peace through that exchange of spirits and He has been bursting forth in song every since. I never thought I would be able to experience joy in grief, happiness in pain and comfort in chaos but it is what my God does best.

The key to this passage is allowing God to lead instead of allowing our circumstances to litter our way.

Help Me....

“But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us. ‘If you can’? said Jesus. ‘Everything is possible for him who believes.’ Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, ‘I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief.’” Mark 9:24.

Few stories in the Bible are so short in words but long in truth as the story of the father who begged Jesus to heal his son whom had suffered his entire life being possessed by an evil spirit. It displays a hindrance Christian’s battle daily without evening being aware.

This poor father states a contradiction once his faith is put to the test. Christ basically explains that his son’s healing is only one belief away. The verse states that the father immediately claims belief but then sorrowfully realizes those are only futile words in his heart of hearts. He then asks for another favor from God – to help him overcome his unbelief. This must be accomplished prior to his original desire of healing for his son.

Unbelief is a crippling obstacle in the life of a Christian. We are no better than this dear father as we plead our case to God asking, crying out and longing for some type of deliverance. We asked to be delivered from exhaustion, a bad marriage, a grieving heart or some other type of suffering but do we really believe?

When I was 15 I had to have knee surgery requiring a leg brace for almost 6 weeks which covered my leg from mid-thigh down to my shin. Trying to move around created such awkwardness and cumbersome movement that everything I did seemed counterproductive and unsuccessful. It was one of the most frustrating situations for which I experienced as a teenager. I hoped healing would come but constantly lost belief that healing was going to come. The leg brace hindered me from the freedom I once knew.

Our unbelief is just as crippling as the knee surgery and rehab was for me. We know what we want to believe like this father but our actions state the opposite. This little verse shows our words verses our true belief. Our God is not a fickle God. When He speaks a promise we can take it to the bank. Anything short of experiencing His fulfilled promises is unbelief on our part that He is trustworthy in our situation.


Hope without belief is just wishful thinking but faith makes it a certainty. Belief breathes fresh possibilities into the impossible.

Passing Through

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” Isaiah 43:2-3

This passage continues to beckon me as I face life with Christ. Many people feel that walking with Christ guarantees liberty and freedom from difficulties. So it is no wonder that they doubt God when adversity emerges. Based on their suffering, they question the whereabouts of God, feeling abandoned and excluded from His promises. The Bible states over and over again to expect suffering when we choose to fellowship with Christ. We cannot enjoy the benefits of Christ without experiencing the suffering. Our suffering summons God’s presence and His all transcending ability to deliver us through love.

It is similar to my marriage as Bruce and I face life together head on. We enjoy each other’s presence, our time together and both the friendship and intimacy of our marriage. A big part of our intimacy and love is the bond we developed while walking through the trials together of past experiences. We have cried together, prayed together, despaired together and hoped together. We have longed for and believed in a better day. There is no other tool that carves, deepens and moves the heart like holding hands and walking through pain together with Christ in the center. It knits the fibers of two hearts together forming a permanent bond in the relationship.

The same is true with our intimacy with Christ. As He walks with us, hurts with us, cries with us and hopes with us our relationship with Him is transformed and permanently bonded together in heart and spirit.

To be burned is to be permanently scarred without reversal. While He states that we will walk through the fire He also promises that we will not be burned. He will not leave us with our wounds but will heal, restore and release us from our suffering. When struggling with feelings that God has forgotten you in your suffering recite the above passage in personal terms and believe it intellectually even if you don’t feel it. He will not let you down. I will include the beginning of this passage in the reversal reciting to God His promises to us.

You created me, you formed me. You have summoned me by name. I am Yours. When I pass through the waters, You will be with me; and when I pass through the rivers, I will not be swept over. When I walk through the fire, You will not allow me to be burned; the flames will not set me ablaze. For You are my Lord, my God and You are my Savior.
“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believed.” John 20:29

The Wind Within Us

“If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea.” Isaiah 48:18.

Wind waves are ocean surface waves that occur over a vast stretch of fluid surface generated by the blowing wind. Some waves can travel thousands of miles in the ocean before reaching land. The waves endure above the currents of the sea until they reach their destination of land marking its completion.

The same endurance is given to us through our long running trials through the power of the Holy Spirit. As we journey through this fluid life, life that continuously moves and changes, we are promised peace through righteous living. By allowing the Holy Spirit to power and guide us, He blows His gentle winds creating swells of peace and the ability to glide above our fluid surface with grace and beauty. Righteous living allows the Spirit to raise us above the sea of life with peace, power and purpose.

We view life atop our changing circumstances and glide across the landscapes of our lives with a directed path towards the ultimate land of Heaven. We are not caught up in the chaos when living life catching the winds of the Holy Spirit.

The Wind that blows within us is greater than currents that rush beneath us.

Famished?

“Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.” Isaiah 55.2

Growing up I was always very insecure and felt as if I must do for others to receive their love and approval. This carried throughout my life and was an encompassing motivation for how I related to others. The approval of others was an insatiable beast that could never be fed enough. There was always an emptiness in the corner of my heart that nothing or no one could satisfy.

It wasn’t until almost four years ago that I began truly hungering for God developing such an appetite that I knew the only dish that would satisfy would be Him. I began nibbling on the Word, then eating upon its contents and now feasting on Him is a necessity in my life. It is the only thing that has permeated into that hidden corner of my heart and engulfed it with acceptance, approval and complete love.

The world attempts to offer appetizers as the main course so it is no wonder that we are always in a state of hunger for something else. An appetizer is defined as a “starter, nibble, a sample of something that is meant to stimulate an interest.” Why do we partake in the world’s appetizer when we can be fully fulfilled with the main course of the Bread?

I believe that everyone is born with some type of hunger and unfulfilled need that only God can satisfy. The earth holds nothing over this longing but only God holds the answer to the question of our hearts. So eat up! The fare you will be served will be like none other and you will never be satisfied with appetizers again!


Because it was He who created it is He who satisfies.

Emerging Glory

“And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18.

As Christians we say things that we have heard others say for which we really have limited understanding. We all hear and speak about glorifying God but what does this really mean? In my study, I have found that God’s glory is the vehicle for which we can recognize Him and for which we can reveal Him to others.

Without Christ taking up residence within us His character and presence can be neither experienced by us nor displayed through us. We walk our lives with veiled faces, faces that reflect the kind of person for which we want others to believe we are. Once we unveil who we really are and accept our destiny of who God created us to be will we reflect His glory – the glory that make Him recognizable to ourselves and other people. Glorifying God is not something we do but instead a way that we are to live.

Many Christians go to church believing their purpose for going is to glorify God in His house. God never intended worship and glory to be a specific act on a specific day. His intention was that worship and glory would be an ever-increasing and continual state of mind and heart.

We should be both grateful and humble that God does not set aside an hour or two on a specific day of the week to show us how much we are loved by Him. So…let us….with unveiled faces….

Knowing Him...

“I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart.” Jeremiah 24:7.

One definition of the word know is to experience, be on familiar terms with and to live through. To know is to acknowledge something that is an absolute truth based on our experience. Knowing God is a reward from our pursuit and willingness to experience Him.

When our daughter Kristen was a teenager I would place myself between her and Bruce in an effort to maintain some control and harmony in the house. I wanted each to know the other in the same light in which I knew them with all of their wonderful attributes. I found out quickly that I couldn’t make one know the other as long as I was the bridge. It wasn’t until they began truly experiencing each other – the good, the bad and the ugly – that their relationship could take root and have a foundation for which to build. They enjoy a very loving and committed relationship as a result of spending time together, working through experiences together and sharing the ebbs and flow of life.

I can know of something but until I live in and through that experience I have no true ownership in that knowledge, just a vague image through the eyes of someone else’s experience. I knew of God because of the fellowship for which my parents and grandparents had with God. It wasn’t until I began pursuing Him for a more intimate relationship that I began knowing and experiencing Him. Experiencing God is the ticket to knowing Him and knowing Him is to knowing love firsthand.

We have all been given a heart to know Him but we must first choose to pursue Him.

The Great Escape

“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of despair.” Isaiah 61:1-4.

This passage was originally given by God to Isaiah in relationship to the children of Israel, but was publicly read by Christ as fulfillment following Christ’s 40 days of temptation in the wilderness. This is one intense job description, one that only One can pull off.

We have all heard of prisoners whom upon release will immediately break the law only to return to prison. The confines of their cell are all they know and provide a false and limited comfort in living their lives. They have settled for less, and settled for confinement and captivity in an effort to remain in the comforts of what they know.

We do the exact thing in dealing with our own incarcerations. The cell that holds us could be our unforgiveness, our insecurities, our perfectionism, our fears or anything else that binds, holds us, controls or confines us. We ‘white-knuckle’ our bars as we peer out of our cells wishing for more, craving the different, but not anticipating freedom.

There is One who has the key to our cells, the key to our release and the key to our freedom – it is Christ alone. Christ was there and Christ is here and “binds (unites, attaches, joins)…proclaims (state publicly, assert, make known)….releases (frees, let go, liberates)…comforts (soothes, consoles, reassures)…provides (make available, endow with, grant, supply)…bestows (presents, bequeaths)…” Take a few minutes and really allow these words and definitions to sink into the depths of your heart and spirit as it relates to Christ and His present and active workings on our behalf.

Anyone can temporarily escape their cell but it takes a Savior to keep on saving.

Look at Me!

“There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them…The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your fathers have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon…your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away…For he thought, There will be peace and security in my lifetime.” Isaiah 39:4b-8.

Well just when we thought we have found a king who doesn’t have a misstep he really steps in it! God places these stories in the Bible to show over and over again that all mankind is subject to fall at any point in their life. This story happened soon after God granted him the miraculous healing of his disease. How soon the wondrous acts of God are laid upon the path of forgetfulness as we journey out of one season into another.

Hezekiah has developed an enormous case of the “I did’s” as he boasted and bragged on every type of riches for which he accredited himself for achieving. He has removed any God focused gratitude and replaced it with his own pride. He shows the representatives from Babylon everything amassed in his treasury. When Isaiah points out that as a result of his pride God is going to take everything away, including the freedom of his children, his response blows me away. He basically answers “Oh, well. I’ll escape it in my lifetime so it is not my problem!”

As Proverbs 6:18 states, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” Don’t I know this one all too well. When my father-in-law was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s I jumped into action setting up all kinds of things to be accomplished to provide for the future. I was continuously pointing out the things I got accomplished on their behalf in the beginning. God quickly showed me the haughty manner in which I was dealing with others and I spiritually fell. He knew I desperately needed this lesson to move ahead in my spiritual life and prepare me for the things I would need to apply in my heart at a later date.

Pride is one of the most deadly diseases for which we can contract. It is a disease that moves in and out of our lives corroding both our testimonies and relationship with God. Pride is a god we create to worship which cannot be contained as it grows and requires continuous feeding. More people from the Bible and in every walk of life have lost immeasurable relationships, power and fame through their insatiable pride.

The only fall I want to experience in my life is the fall to my knees – it is a much shorter fall than the one from pride.

Pressed To The Wall

“Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD…And Hezekiah wept bitterly…This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: ‘I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life.’” Isaiah 38:2,3b

On the hills of his great defeat of Assyria, Hezekiah receives a devastating blow when Isaiah, the prophet informs him that God wanted the king to put his house in order for he was going to die. The verse states that “Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD.” The tenderness of this verse makes me feel that I have interrupted a very private moment between Hezekiah and God. His world has just fallen apart and no royal court alive can help him escape this battle.

Like Hezekiah, we have all had instances where we are the recipient of some type of communication that takes the very life from us, drops us to our knees and our nightmare begins. We realize that life for which we have known has taken on a new kind of normal and we scramble to find order in our chaos. We are acutely aware of our powerlessness and turn to the wall within ourselves with urgency for answers, comfort and aloneness with God. We plead our case to God and assure Him that if He will …..then we will….

In this instance, God extended his life by 15 years so we can assume Hezekiah’s prayer request didn’t change the will of God but worked into His will. Being in a family where cancer was the vessel for which one family member went into the eternal and another family member is suffering it would be easy for me to question why God heals in one family but not the other. Applying God’s will in one situation to another will never bring the hope and comfort for which He desires us to experience. It will only tear down trust and faith in a God who always saves in the big picture on His terms and in His perfect manner according to His will.

We cannot know why God chooses to answer certain prayers and others go unanswered as we define answered and unanswered. However, we can know with absolute certainty that He is always good, always loving and always right.

Hook, Line and Sinker

“Now do not let Hezekiah deceive you and mislead you like this. Do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to deliver his people from my hand or the hand of my fathers. How much less will your god deliver you from my hand? Then they called out in Hebrew to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to terrify them and make them afraid in order to capture the city.” 2 Chronicles 32:15, 18

Sennacherib, king of Assyria kept his promise and the battle was about to be on! This king used fear and intimidation to try to make his prey vulnerable in their faith and paralyzed by their fear. Doesn’t the king of evil do the same thing to us? We sit up on our “wall” of circumstances scanning the landscape of impending battles creating fear and discord in our lives when we haven’t even been attacked. It says that “they called out in Hebrew to terrify them and make them afraid.” I cannot help but to consider that the enemy calls out to us in our own language much like our futile king of Assyria did. Satan knows what makes us tick, what makes us weak and what makes us vulnerable. He speaks our language and uses his threats of God not coming through for us, not coming to save and not being able to be victorious in our situation.

I love a happy ending and this one definitely has one! The Bible says, “And the LORD sent an angel, who annihilated all the fighting men and the leaders and officers in the camp of the Assyrian king.” No matter what happens in our circumstances it will always be a happy ending if we are focusing on the eternal. Satan would have us focus on the temporary but focusing on the eternal brings us hope, freedom and victory.

All of us have either just come out of a war, are presently in one or will enter into one in the future. The promise is one that has never and will never be broken. “So the LORD saved…He took care of them on every side.” 2 Chronicles 32:22b

How does your battle taunt you? What does the enemy say to you as he stands at the edge of your kingdom intimidating, calculating and manipulating?

Don’t buy into the press!