A Comtemplation: Choosing Life or Death

In the midst of confusing and challenging life circumstances, we can find ourselves asking a barrage of questions.  Why is this happening (to me)?  Where did it all go wrong?  What can I do to change or fix this?  All of us experience this in our lives.  We, as humans, tend to lean toward negative emotions and take responsibility or blame, sometimes when we shouldn’t.

I have learned and still in the process of learning how to name the challenge honestly and take it to the Lord.  My history has been one of overanalyzing everything to the point of exhaustion.  The Lord has been beyond patient with me.  He has allowed me to try to control things so that I could understand that I have no power without Him.  He has allowed me to complain and freak out so that I could understand the destruction that comes from being stuck in a negative mindset.  He has allowed me to worry and be fearful so that He could show me how faithful He really is. 

This process has taught me that God is ALWAYS faithful and His Word is a source of true encouragement and strength to me.  The Lord has been my guide (even when I have been reluctant to follow His lead).  Years ago, the Lord brought my attention to the words that I spoke.  He reminded me that words are powerful and have an inherent creative power.  

“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.”  Psalm 33:6  

Also look at Genesis 1, He created everything by His Spoken Word.  We, humans, are created in His image, so that means our words have creative power also.  “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”  Proverbs 18:12

In the last couple of years, the Lord has been teaching me how to question the words I speak about myself and others.  Are the words we speak really true?  How do they compare to what God’s Word says about God, ourselves and others? What do we really believe about God and His Word?  Are these words fruitful or good for the building up of God and His Kingdom?  He’s teaching me how to identify lies and assumptions and to ask Him what He says.  Even recently, He has shown me that sometimes I am asking the wrong question(s).  He wants me to see through His eyes not mine.  If I can step back from the situation, refuse to be offended or a victim, then I can see more clearly and He can speak life into whatever is going on.

For example, if my question is “what am I doing wrong?”, I find my mind bogged down with all of my failures, shortcomings, and faults.  In my experience I then descend into a relentless attack of my mind as I berate myself for being a terrible parent/wife/friend/person and that I will never be good enough to deserve anything good.  I sadly get stuck here at least for a while. 

Recall that words have power.  As I look at the “answer” to this question above, all I hear are accusations.  So, who is really speaking?  My conclusion is the enemy, Satan, and/or my flesh (because we want to be perfect or innocent and realize we aren’t).  The enemy of our soul will always take every opportunity to attack and discourage us.  His goal is to monopolize our life with doubt and to make us as ineffective as possible.  So why are we opening the door for The Liar and Accuser of our souls by asking what’s wrong with us or what we are doing wrong?

We do have a choice.  Do we want our words/thoughts to invite life or death?  For the question to be helpful and informative, let’s change it to a request to God.  Ask Him to reveal any sin, false beliefs or lies that we are believing:  “Lord, is there any sin or wrong beliefs or lies that are preventing me from hearing what You say about me/others/God in this challenging circumstance?” 

There is a paradox here because we must surrender and relinquish control, dying to our selfish ways of thinking and acting.  As long as we try to hang onto control, we’ll live in turmoil and chaos.   As we release control, the Lord can lead us in His Way, His wisdom and He can freely speak to us.  He will convict us of sin so that we can repent and be restored to fellowship and grow healthier. He will reveal the truth of a situation and give us His direction. 

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10    

Often, we want the Lord to help us understand what’s going on; however, we also bring our opinions and solutions to Him also.  Can we lay that aside so we can hear from Him?  By the way, I believe that He is fine with us bringing our complaints to Him as long as we are willing to surrender them to Him so we can hear His perspective or direction.  God wants to speak to you about your challenges.   Invite Him into the conversation.  

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him."  James 1:5 

Mow Us and Grow Us

I was listening to a podcast recently.  I don't remember the name of it or even the topic being discussed.  While I was listening, this phrase "Mow & Grow" come into my mind and it has lingered in my thoughts.  I've asked the Lord to guide me in this journey of thoughts and questions around that phrase.  I started writing down my random thoughts and questions.   But are they really random?

For You are my rock and my fortress; Therefore, for Your name’s sake, Lead me and guide me. ~ Psalm 31:3

So here are some of my thoughts.  In this season, Autumn births the gray, brown and dying.  The trees and plants begin stripping down to the essentials in preparation for the coming winter.  They're shedding the things that are no longer useful or helpful.  However, those leaves, the dried-up flowers and browning grasses, all of them provide protection for the soil.  Even in that state of being they are useful as they feed nutrients back to the fields as they break down.  As the season changes and the days get shorter becoming darker by the day, it feels discouraging and sad.  The colors are beautiful in their own way, and the cool and crisp air can be invigorating, but this season is not my favorite.  I need the sun and all the growing green plants and trees and the bright colored flowers and the garden produce.  I feel myself becoming gray and spent as the plants and flowers fade.  

Has this feeling of gray-ness just become a habit within me?  This happens every year.  Are the trees and plants sad when this season arrives, or do they rejoice in the rest or the challenge this season brings?  It doesn't catch them by surprise--they know the drill.  Why don't we "know the drill"?  Change is inevitable and this life is a journey of learning how to live a life that honors the Lord.

So are these habits hanging on for routine's sake?  Can we change our perspective to be more like the trees and plants of the field?  Can we prune off all those things that are no longer useful or helpful?  And set our perspective to expect the new growth that will come in its season?  And also allow the Lord to use those dying parts to nourish the next season?

What feels weighty and burdensome to you?  Are you in need of prayer support or do you simply need to lay down and abandon some things?  I feel the Lord saying:  "Take what I've taught you in this season and disengage from anything that's holding you in a "stuck" position."

"Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever."  Psalm 136:1

Crisis seems to be all around us nowadays.  It can be so discouraging and seemingly futile to even hope for something good.  I'm reminded that we get to choose our focus.  Do we focus on all the shortcomings, failures, and deficits that we bump up against Every. Single. DAY?  Or do we "see" that deficit and choose to ask the Lord to reveal the "diamond" in it?  How can that adversity work for our good or someone else's good?

There's always a lesson, a treasure, or something of value present in the midst of weakness and brokenness. Maybe this is the place you discover the Lord's very Presence--in the middle of the gray times.  Do you ever stop and ask Him for enlightenment or understanding?   Is He the treasure you are longing for--the knowledge that He is ALWAYS available?  Not as a "once-in-a-while" answer but as an always constant, present, and dependable God who loves us beyond measure.

"...“Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you." ~ Jeremiah 31:3

The Lord always invites us to approach Him.  Can we get into the habit of inviting Him into our circumstances?  You know He is a good good Father.  He is ready to answer those questions.  Are you listening?  

Lord, thank you so much for the privilege to be able to approach you with our questions.  Thank you for loving us so much that you stand ready all the time.  Help me remember to invite You in, to allow You the opportunity to answer my questions and to finetune my focus on those things You have reserved for me. Help me to lay down all the things that are weighty and "none of my business".  Lord, I want to honor you with my life.  Remind me I don't have to figure it all out and that You see from the beginning to the end.  You are the Source--the Answer to all of our questions.  I love You Lord and Praise You!  In Jesus' precious Name! Amen!

Hope In The Lord

 

Days of whirling thoughts

reviewing failure and mistakes

Recalling the days of

chasing the illusive 'dream'

of security and happiness

Years have come and gone

Hearts are tired and

flooded with regret and grief

Then the Lord reminds...

He is the Redeemer of the lost

heart, mind, soul, dream

He transforms the heart and mind

of the one who seeks Him

Nothing is truly lost when He is in the picture

Hope is His name

He is the One that brings

beauty from ashes

He is the One who brings

what is dead to life

Truly there's nothing better than Him.

What Path Will You Chose?

When facing challenges and tough decisions, we all wrestle with what the right thing to do is.  We want to get it right and if we are honest, we want to hold on to as much control as possible.  We struggle because we want to stay in our comfort zone, chiefly due to hating change.  However, staying in the midst of “sameness” brings its own challenges.  Many times in my life, I have been wrestling with  racing thoughts as my mind is dealing with a wide variety of “doom and gloom” scenarios or fantasizing about the “perfect” outcome. 

• For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. ~ Ephesians 6:12  

The Lord eventually gets my attention with a simple question:  “Are you going to exalt your problems or Me?”  That usually stops me in my tracks and then I start mentally reviewing the results of either choice.

• casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ ~ 2 Corinthians 10:5

If I chose to exalt my problems, I will continue to experience confusion leading to depression, obsession, bondage and brokenness.  I become stuck and tied to unbelief, judgment and disobedience. 

If I chose to exalt the Lord, I will experience peace beyond understanding and clarity of mind even though I don’t know how everything is going to work out.  I can love those I don’t understand without trying to control the situation or them.  I can experience freedom I didn’t know was available to me in the midst of uncertain times

So without a doubt, I choose to exalt my Lord and Savior, My God---even though I don’t understand or see how things are going to work out. 

Because I know:  He is Sovereign.  He is Trustworthy.  He is Faithful. 

Once I take this stand, then I can pray God’s will in those situations surrendering the outcome to Him.  He will accomplish His purposes.   He always cares for His own—disciplining us as needed and nurturing our hearts to love and forgive and to show others His heart.

• Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. ~ 2nd Corinthians 5:20 

He has always been patient and gracious with me as I have had my pity parties and when I have tried to tell Him how to “fix” things.  What a great love He has for us!!  We could never work hard enough or be good enough to earn His Love and Grace.  It is readily available to anyone who asks for it.  Praise the Lord!!  He is mine and I am His! In Him I have everlasting Hope and you can have it too.  Just ask!

Prayer:  Lord, Thank you for Your patience, grace, wisdom and discernment.  Forgive me for forgetting You some days.  Help me to be mindful that nothing catches You by surprise and ALL my challenges, whether difficulties or blessings, come through you.  Your eyes never leave me  and your heart is always near.  Remind me to sit down, be silent and listen for You.  Help me to be sensitive to your Spirit’s leading and to be obedient in all things.  Adjust my desires so that they line up with your desires.  Teach all your children to pursue You and your desires.  In Jesus name. Amen.

Awaken to the Call of The Good Shepherd

We like sheep have all gone astray

But God our Father does not just give us away

He sent His Son that we may be found

Jesus came to search and to save

Those who wander in confusion and doubt

As we learn to trust and obey

He reveals Himself trustworthy and sovereign along the way

He is our God, the Creator of the sun, the stars, the earth,

The One Who puts breathe in our lungs each day

He awaits our awakening to His call

So He can grant us freedom and power

To live out His plans and use our life stories

To minister to the lost as they search

For acceptance and love in a world so empty

Of heart and of soul and of love

Only the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit

Can satisfy that longing within us all

Oh call on to Him today

To transform your heart your mind your soul

Allow His Holy Spirit to awaken you

The children of this world need you

Sons and Daughters, Ambassadors of His love

Go forth and sow His love His kindness His hope

Awaken their souls to His calling

Why Witness? Why Hope?

I believe we are in the days, among a culture, that requires us as believers to be able to articulate our beliefs.  We need to be able to express compassion through our testimony which allows the hearer to respond freely to the work of the Holy Spirit.

God gives us each free will so we can choose for ourselves.  There is no need to make someone feel pressured or "less than" because they do not "get it" or if they disagree with us.  We must have faith and demonstrate a faith that believes the Holy Spirit is at work in the life of our loved ones even if they appear to be hostile.

We can plant the seed and trust God to complete the work.  We may be the one who gets to harvest it but we may not.  Either way I will rejoice in knowing that My God is big enough to bring my loved ones Home.

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear ~ 1 Peter 3:15

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” ~ Acts 16:31

ARE YOU IN THE WAY?

Oh, the “small” things that get us off track! 

Do you ever find yourself in a conversation and suddenly you are “hijacked” and taken down a path you do not want to go?  In the Christian community, this happens all too often.  Sometimes these topics come from the most unlikely sources.  I have been guilty of the same error in my journey and continue to catch myself even now.  Lord, forgive us for our prideful attitudes! 

I struggle with how to handle these “hijackings”.  I want to be bold and pull out the scripture that addresses the situation.  However, all too often I am unprepared.  If you are wondering what I am talking about, allow me to provide an example.  You are talking with a dear friend and the conversation turns into a critique of the pastor or a fellow believer.  Notice I said “critique”.  This is not an expression of concern for their well-being but a list of how they are falling short of expectations.  This breaks my heart.  First I am reminded not to judge.

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. ~ Matthew 7:1-5

Now, does this mean that I do not see the “shortcomings” of the person they are talking about?  Not at all!  I do see it.  Scripture cautions us in two ways:  Do not judge and look for fruit.

“Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?”  ~ James 4:11-12

 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.”  ~ Matthew 7:15-18

As a believer, we have a responsibility to preach or share the gospel and to train others to share the gospel.  If we truly see error, we have a responsibility to go to the person not everyone else.  If God has given you the nudge to go talk with them, do it in a spirit of humility and through the power of the Holy Spirit.  We have a Master and need to be about His business.  If the Lord has not impressed you to talk to the person, then make it a matter of prayer.  Only He can bring that person back into line.

Another thing that I notice in scripture is that Jesus was the most upset with the religious crowd (Pharisees and the scribes).  They knew the Law and could not see or hear Jesus because of their pride.  

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness" ~  Matthew 23:27

None of our “talking” about others is helping anyone.  If fact, it can be harmful to our relationship to the Lord and the Church.  Paul addresses the issue of unity in the Body of Christ.

"I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." ~ Ephesians 4:1-6

In conclusion, we all need an occasional checkup to see if we are in “The Way” or “IN the way”.  Is your life a testimony to the goodness and graciousness of Christ?  Or do you advertise your dissatisfaction with the church and its members?

The Lord has called us to live a higher life.