Search and Rescue

“…tell him:  ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand.  Before our eyes the LORD set miraculous signs and wonders…But he brought us out from there to bring us in and give us the land that he promised on oath…’”  Deut. 6:21

She was 22 and had made choices that led her down a dark path of destruction and drugs.  She had reached out to God so many times she no longer felt she had the right.  She had made promises to the only One who could save her, only to fall into darkness again.  She was gripped by the enemy and had neither the strength nor the ability to break free.  This is not a TV movie or one to be seen on the big screen, but rather the life of my little girl.  But eight years ago on Mother’s Day she told the enemy, ‘No more!’  She committed herself in mind, body and spirit to break free from her slavery.  She knew she couldn’t accomplish this on her own and turned to the only One who had the ability for a miracle – her Father, who was in Heaven, hallowed was His name!  When turning her face to Him, she accessed the power of God who came down to earth and brought her out from there and gave her life in our land once more. 

There are others enslaved in our family who are waiting for the prison doors to open.  Our faith tells us ‘when, not if’ and we bank our lives on it.  We only have to remember our past to be at peace in our present and have hope for our future.  To look forward in faith is to look backwards in remembrance.

We must look in our rear view mirror and recognize the amazing ways for which God has delivered us from past trials.  This remembrance will remind us of the sustaining grace and power of a Savior that never fails to save.  Upon our recollection of His mighty acts and wondrous ways in our lives, we must tell others our wonderful stories of deliverance.  Our testimonies must have a voice to keep our hearts focused on our faith and to encourage others in their walk.

May we never be too busy nor too proud to tell everyone who will listen to our great stories of search and rescue by our great God.

Meaningless Striving

“I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children…through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life…By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food…” Gen 3:17, 19. What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless. A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat and find enjoyment?” Eccl 2:22-25.

It all began when sin replaced perfection through free will. Because God could not tolerate sin, the fall of man put into motion a curse which we all live under. For women it is the pain of childbirth, and for men it is the burden of work until death brings them home. For me personally, I realize the heavy burden in considering the lives of my children. The physical births were easy in comparison with the mental and emotional toil motherhood has placed upon me over the years. I see the same burden in my husband as he toils and strives in a business to which God led him. We have both suffered many sleepless nights and so many of our efforts in both arenas have been meaningless. Once our dependency became more on God and less on ourselves, we were able to experience more peace and satisfaction in our souls, apart from all of our striving.

Ecclesiastes tells us that we will have these burdens all the days of our lives, but we can be encouraged that God is the giver of all things, and in Him we must lay down our heavy burdens. For each time we choose to lean on Him and give Him full access to our lives, He provides us with His peace, strength and satisfaction. Apart from seeking God, trusting Him, and surrendering our lives we will live under the heavy burdens of the original curses of mankind.

God never intended on us abiding in our own strength in our heavy burdens, but leaning into Him as the original Creator of all good and perfect things from Him. ‘Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.’ James 1:17.

Ambassadorships

“We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.  We implore you on Christ’s behalf:  Be reconciled to God.  God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.  As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain.” 2 Co 5:20 – 2 Co 6:1.

The summer between my son’s eighth and ninth grade he traveled to thirteen countries as a student ambassador with a group of other teens.  Leading up to that trip there were meetings for logistical purposes, but also meetings to explain and train them as to the meaning of being a student ambassador for our country.  They were going to be representing the United States so a certain standard had to be presented to them as an example.  One of the principles shared was one that taught them that while in that country their rights were few as visitors.  They had to embrace the fact that they were simply visitors allowing the character of the US to be revealed in their actions.

Because the flawless perfect Lamb climbed up on that cross we are reconciled to God.  Jesus Christ died to His own rights, agenda and entitlements so that we could approach God in purity and righteousness.  Because the cross stands empty, we have been given a voice by receiving Christ as our Savior.  We have died to our own spiritual country and have been given a standard to show the character of Christ in a fallen world.  We are no longer residents of a flesh society but citizens in the society of Christ.  ‘…you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household.’ Eph 2:19.

Just as the student ambassadors operated as one body showing their character, we too are called upon to operate as one voice in our ambassadorship in Christ.  We cannot receive God’s grace in vain, meaning we cannot accept the gift of reconciliation and still live for self.  By accepting a citizenship in one country we lose all rights in the other country.  We cannot be residents of both.

To which country are you a resident?

The One He Loves

“Now a man named Lazarus was sick.  So the sisters sent word to Jesus, ‘Lord, the one you love is sick.’” John 11:1, 3

The book of Luke lends an entire chapter on a family in Bethany with two deeply spiritual sisters, Mary and Martha.  Luke gives voice in rich detail of the extravagant worship of Mary and the unselfish service of Martha.  These sisters loved Jesus and lived their lives with a strong focus on His ministry.  In the book of John, just one chapter later, we are introduced to their brother Lazarus whom Luke never mentioned.  Was it because Lazarus was a silent follower of Jesus?  Was the brother less than spiritually active, or did he have a quiet faith even stronger than his sisters?  The Bible stays silent on the life of Lazarus leaving us less than impressed with any contribution prior to his resurrection.  We will never know the extent of his contributions, but what is evident in Scripture is that Jesus loved Lazarus regardless of any service or worship. 

I have shared many times through my writing that my inner battle has been fought with faulty armor.   I wore a helmet of false perceptions of who God was and how He deals with His children.   In a nutshell, I believed that God’s love was withheld or received as a result of my performance. 

I was so blessed by an experience with a man whom I met through Griefshare after he lost his wife of 60 years.  He stated that he had not been in church in over 70 years, although he believed in God.  Throughout the time we spent together I was amazed by his attention to grief and the work he was investing to navigate through his pain.  His healing is obvious and God is lavishing His grace and comfort upon him.  My friend had not served God over the course of his life like other brothers and sisters in Christ.  He was neither known for his extravagant faith, nor was he commended for any church service.  But, this man was sick in heart and the Lord loves His children, apart from our lip or hand service. 

Our Father’s love is not based on our performance, but based on His original love.  ‘We love because he first loved us.’ 1 John 4:19.  Just like Lazarus, when my friend needed God he called out and God was there. 

The Lord's Battle

“Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him…‘Are you for us or for our enemies?’ ‘Neither,’ he replied, ‘but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.’” Joshua 5:13-14.

This was certainly a humbling moment for our fearless leader.  He had been led by God to miraculously cross over the Jordan and take the city of Jericho.  No doubt, his confidence was high and his heart was impassioned for the call.  As he approached his goal he looked up ahead and saw a man with a drawn sword whom he failed to recognize.  He posed the question of allegiance and received an answer that made him drop to his knees, realizing this was a messenger from God.

At first glance I wondered why the messenger from God stated that he was neither on their side nor the enemy’s side.  My commentary explained that both Joshua and Israel needed a reminder that God was not fighting alongside either opponent but that this was His battle, His plan, His agenda and His initiation.  It was as if the messenger slightly turned Joshua’s binocular lens into focus to reveal the sharp truth of God’s reality.  This was not to be Joshua’s battle, and it would certainly not be his victory.

When we begin to determine our own abilities for our future, God will send us messages that will put into focus the reality of His leadership.  Our lives should be surrendered to the commander Who leads and is already up ahead of us with a drawn sword.  His sword is the Word and His message will be revealed through getting into His word. 

When we see our efforts in life aligning with His agenda, we realize that everything experienced is a requirement for His victory.

When Fear Emerges

“Here is this man performing many miraculous signs.  If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” John 11:47b-48.

Fear is a powerful motivator.  As we see above, earthly power and position is never fully attained because it is rooted in the insecurity of losing it.  The chief priests and Pharisees of Jesus’ day could see the reality of losing their effectiveness, influence and control among the people.  Instead of feeling the gratitude for the blessings of their people they felt the fear of losing the respect of their people.  Their fear was their motivation while faith was the motivation of Jesus. 

So I ask you this morning, which will you choose?  Although you see the hand of God all around you, does your fear cloud your faith, causing you to manipulate and calculate a plan to alter the direction God is moving? 

There is another who tries to alter God’s plan by infiltrating and dominating – Satan.  He lays in wait knowing that our fear will resurface, and takes his place on stage in our minds when fear emerges.  He knows the effectiveness of our testimonies and the transforming work of those who are sharing their miraculous stories.  Just as the fearful leaders in the time of Jesus plotted, Satan will plot to murder our Lazarus stories.  ‘So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and putting their faith in him.’ John 12:10.

Does your life reflect a walk that encourages others to go over to Jesus?  Are you experiencing a fear motivated faith instead of experiencing a faith motivated life?  One is death to our testimony and one is life to our witness.  We must choose life if we are to spread the knowledge of Christ through our faith.

‘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…To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life.  And who is equal to such a task?’ 2 Co. 2:14-16.

Who indeed?

Entanglements

“Let us throw off…the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance…” Hebrews
12:1

Yesterday we considered the things of the flesh that may hinder or be barriers in our walk, preventing the success of our call.  Today we will look more intently at the word entangle.  The New International Version speaks of this term as the experience of being surrounded by and attacked from every side.  (Lazarus Awakening, p. 179) 

During our earthly walk we unfortunately have a walking companion who is not one we would choose…our own fleshly mind.  As we walk, we try to rehearse new thinking, new attitudes and new behaviors but our moral weak spots seem to surround and attack us from every side.  We trip over the old fears that have been so prevalent in our lives.  Our pride and judgment seem to forever be wrapped around our ankles making us sluggish in our faith. 

 
We know the faith and hope in Christ for which we want as our race companion, but yet we only know it with our head instead of our heart.  We recognize the faith in others that we want for ourselves, and act like it is out of reach.   Three steps forward and two steps back is still faith moving forward.  We cannot drop out of the race when perfecting our faith but must give respect to the progress we are making.  Paul speaks of this in Romans 7:15, ‘I do not understand what I do.  For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.’

We all have been there and we will all be there again – allowing our past attitudes and behavior to entangle our thinking.  But with each intentional casting off of the old thoughts, we will develop a faith that will stand fast.

‘…stand fast…in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.’ Gal. 5:1