Gifts

When it comes to my children, I would love to be able to give them the world. It actually hurts my heart when they are in need of something and I cannot help them with it or provide it for them. It is like a heavy weight on my chest. On birthday's and holidays I dream so much bigger than what I can actually afford and I find myself wistfully thinking of what I would buy "if only"..... I have never been a materialistic person in any way but the one thing I would like to be able to afford.... to help my children when they are in need. (Okay.... that and good sheets because there is nothing like a bed made with good sheets after a long day!)

The Bible speaks of "our father". Galatians 4:6 says, "Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba, Father." If God is our father, I must assume that He feels as strongly about me as His child as I do toward my earthly children. He must long to give me the world.

Matthew 7:11 says, "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" Wait a minute..... if I want to give my children the world and I am just an evil old sinner..... this says that God wants to give me even more!! The difference though, is not only in the amount of what He wishes to bestow upon me but in that.... He has already done it.

He died to give me dominion and authority over the earth, He lives to give me victory, He has given me healing, power, grace, mercy, forgiveness, love.... and yet, many times I have not taken it. If it hurts me to not be able to provide for my children, how much more must it hurt our heavenly Father when He offers gifts that we refuse to take and He looks down to see us struggling in lack?

Reach out and take the gifts He has given you.

My Shopping List

I keep a shopping list with the intent of writing things down as I notice that we are running low or as I use the last of something. The idea is that the house never runs out of the things we find necessary such as dish soap, laundry detergent, toilet paper, etc. And really.... it's a great plan.

I bought the kind of shopping list with a magnet attached to the back so that I could put it on my refrigerator (somewhere I go far too often) knowing that seeing it would jog my memory and motivate me to write things down. The pad is even a special shape.... not just any ordinary lined paper but this shopping list pad is long, narrow, lined sheets.... perfect for making a list. I even attached a pen to the list so I would never have to look for one. Any time I needed it... it was right there.

My house is two stories high with one bedroom and one bath on the first floor and my children's bedrooms and bath on the second. Why this is significant is because I rarely use their restroom. They are old enough to be responsible for themselves so, I expect them to let me know when their restroom is out of shampoo, toothpaste, toilet paper, etc. Yet, often I find my things gone out of my restroom because they have let theirs run out and not bothered to tell me until it was too late.

When this happens I find myself snapping at them, "why didn't you tell me you were running low?" But, in all honesty, they are no different from me. Here I am with my AESLS (Advanced Executive Shopping List System) and yet.... I run out of things often. I grow accustomed to seeing my list and it no longer motivates me to write things down, sometimes the pen doesn't want to work using it at that angle, etc. I am lazy about it until I am left without at which point I become annoyed with myself at my laziness.

I am the exact same way when it comes to my spiritual life. When my spiritual pantry is full, I become lazy and apathetic. It doesn't seem so bad to run out of just one little thing....when I have so much else. Spiritual laziness carries a much higher price - after all, see Revelation 3:15&16 "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth."

I can just see God in heaven watching as my resources of hope, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness (fruit of the Spirit according to Galatians 5:23) and self-control begin to run low having a reaction much the same as mine toward my children when I, in exasperation ask, "why didn't you tell me?" We need to tell God what we have need of - just like the blind man in Mark 10:51. Jesus knew he was blind and I am sure He could have assumed that he wanted to see but, He asked him, "what do you want?" and the blind man answered, "Rabbi, I want to see."

Let's just look at a few verses together.

Philippians 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

John 16:24 "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete."

Matthew 7:7-11 ""Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"

It's time to keep up on our spiritual shopping list. Time to take inventory and make God aware of what we are running low on. Really, there is never any excuses for running out of any resource when God is just waiting for us to ask.

Hope Like a Child....

Remember those days as a child when you knew exactly what you wanted out of life? I often think back to when my daughter Keeley was little and she loved the color pink. She would tell people, "when I grow up, I am going to be a doctor and I am going to get married to a pink husband and live in a pink house with pink grass." When Drew was little he insisted on being called "Farmer Drool" and he used to tell people that he was going to live in a house that looked like a big red barn that had 37 bedrooms and he was going to have 14 wives and 117 children! Some pretty specific hopes.

The Bible says we are to become as little children. I think the lesson here is to know what you want and what you hope for. We lose ourselves through the pressures of life and we forget what it is we really want or we figure we can't have it anyway so, settle for a plan B, C, D or even F. I know I need more money but I don't know how much, I know I need a new car but I don't know what kind exactly. When I was a kid I could have told you make, model, year and color.

Faith is the substance of things hoped for..... faith brings into being the things we hope for but if our hope is not specific then is it really hope at all? How can you have faith for something vague and nebulous?

Make your list.... what is it that you are believing God for? Imagine yourself with it, see yourself with what you hope for.......hope, after all, is the first step.

Resisting the Devil

In Christian circles you often hear people quote James 4:7 "So place yourselves under God's authority. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you." It's a pretty awesome promise yet, why is it that it seems like he is always there niggling away at Christians instead of running away like the word says? Is there some kind of trick that makes it work?

I believe that where the problem lies is in resisting too late. Just like a weed growing in a garden.... when you pluck out the seedlings.... it's easy.... if you let the weed grow..... the bigger it gets.... the harder it is to pull. We spend our time resisting a headache when we have a brain tumor... we come against the symptom, rather than the root of the problem. The second issue is we stand against the devil without our armor and he comes prepared with his arsenal.

So, let's defeat the devil! Let's walk together through this process....

First, put on the whole armor of God. Don't think you are going to resist the devil without your armor.... you are setting yourself up for defeat. We find how to put on the whole armor of God in Epehesians 6:11-19 "Take up God's instruments of war, so that you may be able to keep your position against all the deceits of the Evil One. For our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against authorities and powers, against the world-rulers of this dark night, against the spirits of evil in the heavens. For this reason take up all the arms of God, so that you may be able to be strong in the evil day, and, having done all, to keep your place. Take your place, then, having your body clothed with the true word, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness; Be ready with the good news of peace as shoes on your feet; And most of all, using faith as a cover to keep off all the flaming arrows of the Evil One. And take salvation for your head-dress and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: With prayers and deep desires, making requests at all times in the Spirit, and keeping watch, with strong purpose, in prayer for all the saints"

Putting on part of the armor of God won't do... you must put on the whole armor. I could go on about how to saturate yourself in the Word, walk in righteousness, etc. But, in simple terms, putting on the whole armor of God is putting on God - period. Cover yourself in God. Fill your mind with God, speak the Word of God, listen to only those things that build up your spirit and give glory to God, look at only those things that build you up, etc. Immerse yourself in God and you have put on the whole armor of God. And by doing this you will be complying with Ephesians 4:27 which tells us to "never give the devil a foothold."

Second, be ever watchful. 1 Peter 5:8 tells us, "Keep your mind clear, and be alert. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion as he looks for someone to devour." We are commanded all through scriptures to be on guard. Mark 13:9 tells us to be on guard. We are told to guard ourselves from false teachings and Godless chatter in 1 Timothy 6:2. Proverbs 4:23 tells us we must guard our hearts. And I just love Nahum 2:1, "The one who will scatter you is coming to attack you. Guard your fortress! Keep a lookout on the road! Prepare for battle! Be very courageous!"

It is not often in battle that the opponent comes right up to you and presents you with the opportunity to steal yourself. In warfare, the attacks that do the most damage are the sneak attacks, those that the opponent is unprepared for. The devil will come against you subtlely tempting you in the little things, planting seeds of the weeds of sin. A simple thought that you let sneak in, a careless word, misplaced anger. As you stand on guard, it is the little things that sneak their way inside your armor that prepare the way for defeat.

Third, have faith. 1 Corinthians 16:13 says, "Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong." How do we stand firm in the faith? We build our faith through hearing the Word of God and we hear it by confessing it. Romans 10:17 "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Speak the word, speak the word, speak the word. And this brings us full circle back to putting on the whole armor of God.

Brand New Boots....

Do you remember that old song, "These Boots Were Made for Walking"?  I was thinking about that today.  So odd how old songs will sometimes pop into mind seemingly out of nowhere leaving you wondering what reminded you of them.  

"These boots were made for walking and that's just what they'll do.  One of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you.  Are you ready boots?  Start walking."  

I used to have a pair of boots just like that.  Being angry and hurt with feet to rush in for revenge.   The key word here being "used".  One of the definitions in the Merriam-Webster dictionary for the word used is "accustomed, habituated."  Pretty fitting in this case.  I was accustomed to fighting for myself at one time and I was wearing my war boots.  Sometimes I habituated the wrong places and wore my party boots..... I could go on but I know you get the picture.  

Let me share a jewel with you found in Ephesians 1:18-23 "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.  And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way." 

Hmmm..... all things are placed under his feet.... guess that means our walking boots are of little effect.  Jesus already has it all under control.  We have a hope now and are able to look forward to a bright future, no more worries of what was in the past.  2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"  So, why is it that we keep trying to put on our old shoes?  Why is that we return again and again to those things that we are "used" to?  Those things that we have grown accustomed to and those places inside of us that we have habituated.  It is a lie from the enemy that those old things are more comfortable.  He would have us believe that we can never escape from those old boots and just when we are feeling good about our progress we either slip them back on or someone comes along to say, "hey, aren't you the girl that used to wear the walking boots?"  

Yep, that WAS me.  But God is doing a new thing in me.  He is making a way in the desert and bringing up springs in the wasteland that was my soul.  Now I wear the preparation of the gospel of peace on my feet!  I like how the Weymouth New Testament states Ephesians 6:15 "as well as the shoes of the Good News of peace-- a firm foundation for your feet."

I have a brand new pair of boots and my feet are set on a firm foundation. But these boots are not made for walking, these boots are made for running headlong into the new life that God has laid out before me.  These boots are made for jumping up and down and dancing in the joy of the Lord.  These boots are made to serve my Father.

Baggage

The other day I was reading personal ads with a family member for the entertainment value.  Funny how some of these people lament their being single and seem to be completely clueless as to why when complete strangers can read a few sentences that they wrote and almost instantly determine why they have yet to find their "soul mate."  At times, we humans seem to be oblivious to our own faults.  Reminds me of the Bible verse in Luke 6:42 which says, "How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,' when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."

There is the ad that makes Star Trek references throughout, the man who calls himself "the wolfman" and references wherewolves and the lady who wants a partner willing to marry her.......the only catch is..... she is already married.  We read through the ads at times laughing so hard it hurt but at the same time noticing some trends.  One of the recurring themes that popped up in ad after ad was people stating that they did not want somebody "with baggage".  Ouch!  Is baggage all that bad?  I mean really, how do you get through this life without picking up some baggage along the way.  I dare say that if you show me a person without baggage, you are showing me a. a liar or b. someone who will fall apart in the slightest storm.

The way I see it, I have a full set of luggage.....the soft-sided carry on, the cosmetic bag, the large roll along, the medium sized roll along, the garment bag, etc.  Yep, a full set of luggage all collected amidst the trials of life.  Believe it or not, there is good news though.  See, God knew we would pick up baggage along the way and would grow weary under the burden, there is no way to avoid it for, "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) and sin produces baggage.  Sometimes it is our own sin and sometimes it is the sin of others that produces baggage in our lives but it is always there.  But, He also promised to be our porter!!!    Matthew 11:28 & 29 says, "Come to Me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."

So, why are we all carrying around this baggage that weighs us down and apparently scares off the high quality folk posting personal ads?  Because we don't know.... we don't know that all we have to do is ask and God is there waiting to take our load.  You see, the promises in the Bible do us no good if we don't know they are there.  The enemy loves to keep us ignorant and struggling when we have a God that is able to feed a crowd of 5,000 with 5 small loaves of bread and 2 little fish and still have leftover, we have a God who gave us the keys to the kingdom of heaven, which we put up on the shelf in our teepee for safe keeping?  Everyone knows that is a ridiculous analogy yet, it's true.  

What baggage are you carrying?  What burdens are you buckling under today?  What hope inside of you, have you let die because of hurt and disappointment?  

He's a perfect gentleman, standing there offering to take your bags but you have to give them over.  Let God be your porter.  Give it all over to Him and don't hold back.  He loves you and He will give you rest.

An Unlikely Instrument

I am a little tired this evening but I had some thoughts I wanted to get written down.  I pray I am able to make sense of them.

The other day my kids and I were traveling down to California from Oregon and as we were driving, we came into a lightening storm.  As we drove into the storm, my son told me about a little girl in his Sunday school class who told the class, "when you hear thunder, the angels are bowling and they are getting a strike."  I rolled my eyes at this story but then proceeded to tell them when I was a little girl, I used to tell people that thunder was the angels clapping their hands.  I know there is a scientific explanation for thunder but I like my story.  

But, telling that story to my children brought the Bible verse in Luke 19:40 to mind, "and he answering said to them, 'I say to you, that, if these shall be silent, the stones will cry out!'  

I used to sing a song in church that incorporated this verse and it went;

"Before the rocks cry out I just want to praise Him, just want to praise Him for all He's done.  Before all nature rises up to shout I just want to praise Him for all He's done for me."

Thinking about these words, I told my children that perhaps the thunder really is the angels clapping and maybe they are clapping and praising God because we aren't doing our job.  So, we decided that we should say, "praise God" everytime we see the lightening.  We continued to drive into a very large lightening storm and for an hour the kids tried to beat each other shouting out, "praise God" first at every flash.  It was a great time together.... one that I know I will always remember.  

But, of course, I am not stopping there....

I love what the Wesley Notes have to say about Luke 19:40 "If these (disciples praising Jesus) should hold their peace, the stones, which lie before you, would cry out - That is, God would raise up some still more unlikely instruments to declare his praise. For the power of God will not return empty." 

An unlikely instrument?  Perhaps  an unlikely instrument crying out from the earth such as thunder, a volcanic eruption, an earthquake..... aren't the rocks crying out more and more?  I think they are as our voices have grown silent.  We have become pressured beneath the load of the world instead of giving Him our burdens (Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.")  We have become embarrassed to speak out His name and we are treading on dangerous ground (Mark 8:38 "If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels.")

In this world with the trials we all face from day to day we have become those unlikely instruments.  People in the world cannot fathom the peace that passeth all understanding.  People in the world live within the dimensions that can be seen and felt and cannot understand how we can see the same picture yet envision a different outcome.  But, I live according to the promises in His word.  And that picture paints me praising God every second of everyday.  

Thank you Jesus for making me an unlikely instrument and for putting your praise in my mouth, your life on my lips and your power in my tongue.  When we see the awesome power of nature rising up..... let us be reminded that WE are to be that instrument of praise and we should have praised Him BEFORE the rocks cried out.