Tag: #Gratitude

Consequences

“Be not deceived; GOD is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap Life Everlasting.” – Galatians 6:7‭-‬8 KJV

What an unpopular scripture! “Girls just wanna have fun….” “Love the one you’re with….” “Love ’em and leave ’em….” Take a few minutes and listen to the top songs, look at the publicity of Hollywood stars, see what is being said about top athletes and politicians in the news. Our society is all about “me” and having a good time. People are so busy chasing the “dream” and complaining about others, that God and consequences for our actions are pushed back and forgotten.

“Be not deceived; GOD is not mocked….”

“Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the Justice of GOD. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.” – Galatians 6:7‭-‬8 NLT

If you take the time to consider this statement Paul made in one of his letters to the Christ-followers in Galatia, it should probably stop you in your tracks and give you pause in your life. Harvesting what we plant can be a good thing, or it can be a nightmare. I think that for most Christians, this is recognized and acknowledged. We reap both good and bad, and we know it is consequences. However, we must also learn that the bad things that happen to us (illness, deformities, cancer, rape, abuse, and more) are not always OUR consequences. The bad and the ugly in our world is courtesy of our enemy Satan. We suffer the consequences of his rebellion against the Almighty God, through the choices of Adam and Eve, and because of our own rebellions. We shouldn’t just dwell on the consequences, and we DEFINITELY shouldn’t try to justify someone’s lives as their own consequences. Many, no, MOST of the “bad” comes directly from the enemy as he tries to break us into blaming God and turning our backs on Him. Satan has made great strides on the earth in turning people against God through the introduction of atheism and agnosticism, and through false prophets such as Buddha and Mohammed (and many others).

Consequences hurt, but they don’t have to derail us or destroy us. “Seek the LORD, all who are humble, and follow His commands. Seek to do what is right and to live humbly. Perhaps even yet the Lord will protect you— protect you from his anger on that day of destruction.” – Zephaniah 2:3 NLT

It is vital to recognize our responsibilities. Whether our struggles are the consequences for our own actions, or roadblocks thrown into our lives by the enemy, we have to keep our eyes and our hearts focused on Jesus. We have the added benefit of the Holy Spirit on our side. For me – and you – to live is Christ, and to die is gain. To help me keep my focus where it should be, I listen to positive music infused with the Love of the LORD. In my home and in my vehicle, that means the radio is tuned to K-LOVE at 88.9 FM and 103.7 FM, or AIR-1 at 91.9 FM (Oklahoma City OK area…..), or online at http://www.klove.com. (Yes, this a shameless plug for K-LOVE Radio, and no, I am not compensated by the station.) Try it! You might just find the inspiration or encouragement you need to make it another day, or at the very least, it can help adjust your attitude to a more positive one….

“As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died. Dear brothers and sisters, may the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. AMEN.” – Galatians 6:14‭, ‬18 NLT

(https://bible.com/bible)

Here I am LORD, arms wide open…. (Jeremy Camp, Gracefully Broken)

Persecution Today

Do you feel like your efforts to live as a follower of Christ are being met by a rock wall? Is it that with every effort, it seems that something bad happens to you, and you are plagued by hard times? Are you going against the flow of what is popular and ‘fun’, and your peers laugh and mock you, or even bully you? Does it feel like you are the single light in the darkness? If all of this is true, then Paul’s words to Timothy will be especially poignant for you:

“In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is GOD-Breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of GOD may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:12‭-‬17 NIV

Not all of us are like Timothy, fortunate to grow up in a Bible-believing, Christ-following home, praying and reading scriptures, and learning the ways of a Christian. That is a wonderful blessing, but not required in order to live for Christ and to hold up His Light for the world to see. No matter what age we are when we come to JESUS, we can be hungry for the Word and learn it in order to share it. Persecution comes with Salvation. It comes in different forms. As a child, it can be in mocking and bullying. As a teenager and young adult, peer pressure can be brutal. As an adult going into the work force, bosses and coworkers can discriminate and keep you from advancing. Even as adults, we are subjected to mocking and bullying.

Becoming a Christian, a follower of Christ, guarantees you will be persecuted. It may be subtle and covert, and it may be blatantly overt. The enemy uses every weapon in his arsenol to strike Christians down, and the more we live and represent Christ, the bigger the weapond he employs. As adults, it can be a job loss and being unable to provide for ourselves and our families. Disease and illness and injuries are used by the enemy to make us doubt the Sovereignty of GOD. Families and friends will turn against us – look at Jesus. He was rejected by his neighbors and had to leave His home in order to begin His ministry.

Remember Paul? He lost everything to serve His LORD. Home, possessions, friends, status….

“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of CHRIST. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my LORD, for Whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from GOD on the basis of faith.” – Philippians 3:7‭-‬9 NIV

We have to choose for ourselves what is most important, the things of man or the Salvation offered by Christ. By choosing to follow Jesus, we are accepting that we will be targeted by the enemy. HOWEVER, by choosing the Freedom of Christ, we are also ensured of a home with Him FOREVER, with NO pain, NO sorrow, and NO tears. Today is fleeting, and our lives on earth will end (soon!), but the eternity after death lasts forever and ever, Amen.

Photo credit: Mark Campbell, Big Sur, California 2017. Used with permission.

Grace and Peace

Are you searching for a way out of the chaos and messiness and the ugly of your life? I relate to that, because I was stuck in all that for many years. Chaos isn’t easy to walk away from. An acquaintance made a comment once, regarding a woman who was in an abusive situation. Her comment was that the woman was just stupid and weak for not leaving her abuser. It isn’t easy to leave. You may not be physically or verbally abused by a partner, but there are many things that create chaos and ugliness besides that abuse. Your physical state, or a mental disease or syndrome like autism or PTSD, can create plenty of messiness and chaos. We can’t just walk away from those, either. Maybe it’s an extreme example like Stockholm syndrome, or muscular dystrophy. It could be hidden, like a mild form of autism, or fibromyalgia, ….. or the threats you have received that if you should even attempt to leave a situation, you, your children, you family/friends will be hurt or even killed. Extreme? Yes, and no. There are counselors and psycologists, psychiatrists and physicians and other health care practitioners to assist us, but first we have to acknowledge and admit the issue. That can be excruciatingly difficult, especially when we think It’s our fault – for whatever reason. There is also the stigma that is attached to many of our situations. Many times in my life, I’ve wanted to run screaming to get away from something or someone, but i didn’t have the mental or physical strength to do it.

The first step is to admit we cannot ‘fix’ it ourselves. We have to admit we are broken. True healing, after we acknowledge our brokenness, comes only from GOD through His Son Jesus.

“May GOD THE FATHER and our LORD JESUS CHRIST give you Grace and Peace. Jesus gave His Life for our sins, just as GOD our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. ALL GLORY TO GOD FOREVER AND EVER! AMEN.” (Galatians 1:3‭-‬5 NLT)

It is never easy to admit there is something we cannot fix ourselves. We should be SELF sufficient, and not rely on anything or anyone to help us …. Right? No. Wrong. Humans were created to desire fellowship with one another, and especially with our LORD. Without Him, our lives will always have the hole that we try so hard to fill up with relationships or booze or drugs or food, shopping or sports or material things. ONE answer, and ONLY one, will satisfy our souls and give us the Grace and Peace we so desperately are looking for. The Name of JESUS. Can I get an Amen??

I AM

“God replied to Moses, “ I AM Who I AM . Say this to the people of Israel: I AM has sent me to you.” (Exodus 3:14 NLT)

and again:

“This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow.” (Isaiah 48:17 NLT)

No equivocation, no hestitation.

“Then Nathanael exclaimed, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God—the King of Israel!” …. Then He {Jesus} said, “I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of GOD going up and down on the Son of Man, the One Who is the stairway between heaven and earth. ” ” (John 1:49‭, ‬51 NLT)

“Then the disciples worshiped him. “You really are the Son of God!” they exclaimed.” (Matthew 14:33 NLT)

Why, why, why do we doubt God’s Sovereignty? How can we not see Him in every bit of creation, from the absolute tiniest organism or cell struction, to the immensity of the higest mountains and the deepest canyons in the seas? Researchers are finding more evidence every day that supports the Bible accounts, and yet we still have skeptics and denial from every quarter. Yes, it takes faith to believe in the unseen. Do you believe in the air we breathe? It is unseen…. Do you believe in sound waves, and wireless signals; in electricity and radio and television signals? We can’t see them, either. “But wait,” you say. “We can see the pictures on the television. We can talk on our phones. We hear the radio, so it doesn’t require faith to believe in them. There is evidence to support their existance.”

Then i can only say this: look around yourself, at the grass and dirt and flowers and trees; look at the animals – dogs, cats, birds, horses…. they just evolved from slime?? Picture this: a scientist is arguing with God, trying to prove the theory of evolution. God says, “Okay, let’s each create a living being.” The scientist grabs a handful of dirt to get started, and God says, “Put that down! Create your own dirt!” Simple choice: believe in a THEORY of evolution, or believe in I AM, Creator God….

I have a Friend in Jesus; He is my Hope, my Cleansing, my Protector, and my Salvation. There is no one like Him. He makes me WHOLE. Amen!

It’s A HEART Problem…

“Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses.” – 1 Timothy 6:12 NLT

Cain killed Abel with a rock. It’s a heart problem, not a rock problem. OJ, a black man, killed his wife Nicole, a white woman, with a knife. It’s a heart problem, not a skin color or a knife problem. One person gets angry and shoots another person. It’s a heart problem, not a gun problem.

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?” – Jeremiah 17:9 NLT

Who can know another’s heart? Certainly not me; my “picker” has chosen badly too many times! I see what I want to see, and for years I was in ‘rescue’ mode, trying to save the next lost puppy (that’s a euphemism for a man, rather, a little lost boy in a man’s body). In the process, I lost money from buying things for them (computers, vehicles, tools, etc.); I lost emotionally through lies and cheating and affairs. My strays were not all men; there was a woman I befriended who thought nothing of using her friends to clean up her messes with their time and money and emotions. Through all of this, I forgot the faith I had grown up with, and wandered through it on my terms, without my Lord. Oh, I knew Him, and I prayed and called on Him for help, and He delivered me time after time, but I didn’t fully rely on Him.

Jeremiah had it right about the human heart. From the very beginning of humanity our hearts have gotten us into trouble. Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3). Their firstborn, Cain, murdered his brother, Abel. The Old Testament is full of man’s deceitfulness, and even within the twelve men privileged to be with Jesus on earth there was the deceiver, Judas. Every man’s heart, every woman’s heart, is full of deceitfulness and wickedness. If you don’t believe me, just look at the around you. Everyone lies, everyone cheats, everyone deceives. It’s in our DNA, from the beginning. The GOOD NEWS is that we don’t have to sit back and take it! We have the Power of Jesus, the Power that calmed the raging sea, the Power of the burning bush, the Power that rolled away the stone that was holding His body in the grave…. we have access to the good faith, the true Faith, that comes though Jesus Christ. It is up to us, to those who have that Faith, to share it with the world. Fight the good fight. Hold tight to the LORD. Declare His Love and His Faithfulness to your world, without being self-righteous or condescending. Remember that there, except for the Grace of God, goes me, or you.

Don’t let your HEART problem keep you from the Great Physician, Jesus Christ.

46 Degrees

Bright sunshine, no clouds, a hint of a breeze…. It’s 46° outside. I can live with that. In fact, I adore this weather. Cold isn’t as difficult to deal with when the sun is shining. I think it got down in the mid-30’s last night (Fahrenheit, not Celsius!), which is fabulous weather to snuggle up with the pups under flannel sheets and a quilt. If the plants could take it and still produce flowers and fruits and grains and veggie, it wouldn’t bother me to have those low temps every night and 60’s and 70’s every day so the pesty bugs would die. (I don’t like bugs). Wouldn’t that mean we lived in an almost perfect world? Of course, that almost perfect world would also mean that everyone, every single human, would have a warm, soft bed to go to every night, and food so their bellies were full. It would mean that all of the violent, evil people were neutralized, too…..

I think I must be dreaming of heaven. When God created the seasons, He filled them with beautiful symbolism. Spring is new life. Plants are bursting out with beauty, and the animals are filling the planet with their offspring. Babies and flowers and newness, purity, are everywhere. Even in the big cities, grasses poke up through sidewalks, trees leaf out, and birds are busy singing. He created Summer to give everything time to mature, to provide us with the foods we need to survive. Summer is also a time of trials, with too much water or not enough water; with heat that can be both pleasant and devastating. Fall is full with harvest and preparation for the coming Winter. It’s a time to be out and savor the beauty of our earth, the smell and taste and feel of the air around us; a time we prepare what we will need to survive the period of rest for the earth. Finally, Winter is a time to slow down, to relax with the fruits of our endeavours; a time of reflection and contemplation of our lives. It’s the time we need to reconnect with loved ones; to enjoy times with friends and family that we neglected in our times of labor. Then Springs comes again, and the cycle repeats.

I think it’s important to look at the seasons and apply them to our lives. Physically, it easy to see the correlation. Spring is birth and childhood, Summer is young adulthood, finding our way into productivity. Fall is mature adulthood, where we are preparing for retirement and learning to savor our lives. Old age is like Winter, with time for reflection. It should be a time where we can enjoy looking back on our lives and sharing the lessons we have learned with the next generation. Spiritually, I believe our personal Fall and Winter are the times we need to be contemplating our God and perhaps evaluating our relationship with Him. Our personal seasons don’t have a set timeline. Some don’t make it past their Spring because they have died young. Others go out in a blaze, like a fire consuming a forest in the hottest summer. If we make it to our Fall, and I am one of many baby boomers who believed I would have died years ago, some of us find ourselves woefully unprepared for our Winter.

Like the ant and the grasshopper, some are ready for their Winter because they focused on their goal to be ready, and many are like the grasshopper, having spent their productive years playing and jumping around. I was a grasshopper, unable to settle down, too busy having “fun” to focus on anything as unfullfilling as work. Now I am spending my Fall working frantically to prepare. I could be worried to the point of making myself ill, or I can choose to believe that my God is more powerful than anything and place my trust in Him. I choose to believe what Jesus said:

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly FATHER feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to Him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” (Matthew 6:25‭-‬27 NLT)

Do I believe that this means I can just sit back and expect to be taken of; that I shouldn’t be working and preparing for Winter? Not at all! Jesus said not to worry about every day life. He never says not to work. Instead, through Paul’s letter, we are told not to be lazy and to work.

“Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident Hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When GOD’S ’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.”
Romans 12:11‭-‬13 NLT

It’s pretty clear that it is worry we are to avoid, not work. Seems to me that 46° is a beautiful temperature to go to work in….

Fall is Freedom and Thankfulness

Fall. My favorite part of the year. The light changes and becomes softer, muted from summer’s harshness. The winds turn from the south to the north, bringing cooler temperatures. Not yet the unremitting chill from the arctic regions, but a crispness that reminds us to gather in our remaining crops. It puts a briskness into our steps and allows us to breath deep the freshness. Trees and flowers and grasses put on their showy colors in a final burst. The feel of the air; indefinable but deeply felt, invites us to come out and play. It resonates in my soul. I sleep more deeply in the fall. When I can, I put a blanket out in the grass and revel in the freedom to just enjoy.

Do you feel it? Today is a day to be thankful for life. We should be thankful every day, but some days we need to let go of the everyday, the mundane, and just be thankful.

“Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if GOD cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, He will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need. “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” ” – Matthew 6:27‭-‬30‭, ‬33‭-‬34 NLT (also Luke 12)

We are blessed with glorious fall weather today. I pray that wherever you are, whatever you are doing, you will take a moment to step outside and give thanks to the LORD, the Creator, for life and breath. Breathe deeply and make a gratitude list, from having toilet paper and running water, to having adequate shelter and clothing and transportation. Remember how GOOD our God is, even in the the tragedies and losses of our lives. Amen.

Colorado aspens; October 2016.

Filth? Evil?

“So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.” – James 1:21 NLT

What is filth? What is evil? Everything is so skewed in our world… From the time of Adam and Eve, we have been hell bent on proving we are as intelligent as the Creator. We listen as the Father of lies fills our hearts and our heads with the promise that we are gods, equal to the Almighty. The liar assures us that there is no greater God than ourselves, and that we are free to do and live any way we choose. Satan is correct on one point: it is our choice to live how we we. What Satan doesn’t want us to know is that our Creator built free will into our DNA, because our LORD will never force us to choose Him. He wants us; He yearns for us to have a relationship with Him, and He will always leave it up to us. Have you ever loved someone so much that you feel a physical pull towards them, an emotional, even spiritual connection, only to have them choose someone else? If you have never experienced that connection, my heart hurts for you. If you have experienced it, and lost it – as I have – then you know the agony it causes. Anyone who has lost a child knows it. God loves us even more, more than we can comprehend, yet we routinely turn our backs oh His pure Love for the glittery fake the enemy dangles in front of us.

The only way to know truth is to fall back on God’s Word. If you have never read the Bible yourself, I suggest going online to http://bible.com and choose either the NIV or NLT version, and start reading in John, chapter one, verse one. It’s so beautiful. Throughput the history of the earth, God has employed poets and writers and other artists to share His Love for us, with us. It makes me so sad when I read comments on social media or in the news, or hear people stating that a Creator God is myth, and the Bible is a collection of stories written by old men – as if it were fairy tales. I cry for those people who have chosen the ultimate lie.

Jesus Christ was not a good man. He was not a prophet. He is either Who He says He is, the Son of the Most High God, or He is an insane man. History supports the Son of God. Archeological evidence points to the Garden, and every day brings forth new physical evidence to support the Scriptures. When I say we believe it, or not, at our own peril, I do not say it to be fear monger. I say with the strength of Scriptures and science. There is a heavenly, there is a hell, and there is ONE God over all. I pray you make peace with Him, before it is too late.

What Is Your Ministry?

“This is your ministry, and God has gifted you for this assignment: “A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church.” (1 Corinthians 12:7 NLT)

As members of Christ’s body, we are his hands, his feet, his eyes, and his heart. He works through us in the world. But without the Love of Christ in our hearts, we are just additional noise in the world. I believe this to be true, but many days I wake up and wonder why I am here. What is my purpose? I read Paul’s words to the Corinthians and wonder what my ministry is, what purpose there is for my life. I guess that I’ve been searching for that purpose, that vocation, my entire life. I long to emulate Paul, and my Dad, who could turn any conversation into a lesson on Christ and how His Love could save us. Dad put Paul’s words into action with Christ’s Love in his heart and the enormous faith that he had.

“The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. But some people have missed this whole point. They have turned away from these things and spend their time in meaningless discussions…… This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” – and I am the worst of them all.” ” (1 Timothy 1:5-6,15 NLT)

I certainly fit verses 6 and 15. By the time I turned 18, I was turning away from the things of God, things I KNEW to be true, and spent my time in those meaningless discussions. I looked at the teachings of Buddha and other religions. I decided that Jesus was merely a good man, a teacher, and a prophet…. even though I knew better. Satanic things began to worm their way into my heart because of my rejection of Jesus. For years, I was stuck between the world and the faith in grew up with. Never underestimate the Power of PRAYER. My parents hated the way I lived, but they never stopped praying for me, and I know that their prayers are all that stood between me and the enemy. It took hitting bottom several times before I finally, truly, gave up and gave in to Jesus (I’m a slow learner sometimes, okay??)

There is a program called Celebrate Recovery that is offered in many churches, and it is based on the 12 Steps of Alcoholic Anonymous, only with Jesus added. It is not a program that is just for alcoholics, as I quickly learned. In fact, one statement stuck with me: “There are 2 kinds of people. Those who are IN recovery, and those who NEED recovery. “ I began going to support my husband, who was an alcoholic – among other addictions. Through CR, I discovered that I was an addict, too. I was a Codependent, my drug of choice was sex and requiring a man to be in my life. We call it a Relationship addiction, and it is a very real thing. There are many addictions of choice besides drugs and do alcohol. Yours could be work, shopping, food, cleaning; even exercise can be addicting. Cycling, running; these are very addictive. You (and I) can really take any day to day, “normal,” innocuous activity and turn it into an addiction. Actually, WE don’t turn it into an addiction; that would be the work of the enemy. Take something good, and turn it to evil.

My ministry seems to be in writing. I have spoken to groups on recovery and the need for Jesus in our lives, and I would love to do more speaking.

“The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. I thank Christ Jesus our LORD, who has given me strength to do His work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve Him, even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted His people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief. Oh, how generous and gracious our LORD was! He filled me with the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus. Cling to your faith in Christ, and keep your conscience clear. For some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result, their faith has been shipwrecked. Hymenaeus and Alexander are two examples. I threw them out and handed them over to Satan so they might learn not to blaspheme God.” (1 Timothy 1:5‭, ‬12‭-‬14‭, ‬19‭-‬20 NLT)

Like Hymenaeus and Alexander, I was handed over to Satan to learn not to blaspheme the LORD. Unlike Paul, I blasphemed and persecuted without ignorance, but our gracious GOD forgives me my trespass and sin because of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for me. Hallelujah! You can these words for the Truth that they are:

“But GOD had Mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of His great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in Him and receive ETERNAL LIFE. All Honor and Glory to GOD forever and ever! He is the Eternal King, the unseen One Who never dies; HE ALONE IS GOD. Amen.” (1 Timothy 5: 16-17 NLT)