Archive | October 2014

Do I focus more on what concerns me rather than what concerns Jesus?

Oct31

Wow, that’s a soul searching, thought provoking question!

   As Christians, of course, we expect God to care about what concerns us. Scripture assures us of this over and over. But for quite some time now, it seems I am being challenged to consider an additional question:

Am I as focused on what concerns Jesus as I am about what concerns me?

   When I am faced with a problem too often I will be more concerned over how this is going to affect me personally rather than how is it going to affect Jesus. And oh how the fiery darts will attempt to lock my thoughts into focusing more on myself rather than Jesus in these types of situations.

   If focusing on what concerns Jesus, causes me to have to consider giving up something I thought I wanted (or maybe deserved) or humbling myself in a difficult situation then it becomes a struggle to focus on Jesus’s concern. My concerns might get ignored, right? (Fiery dart there you know) 

Consider this verse:

Rom 8:17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

   The idea of being heirs of God with Christ is indeed attractive but not so much to share in His sufferings.  So perhaps I am willing to focus on Christ as long as it doesn’t require me to do something I don’t want to do, make me uncomfortable, or require me to make a sacrifice I am unwilling to make. When focusing on Jesus begins to cost me something, then I hesitate, because my will often takes priority over Jesus’s will.

Therefore, the following prayer has become necessary for me:

Dear LORD, Help me to be more focused on what concerns Jesus rather than being more focused on what concerns me.

   Do you suppose that if we became more focused on what concerned Jesus then we would discover that our concerns were being covered by Christ and that He was doing a more successful job of it that we ever could?

 

 

 

Fear leads to panic! Prayer leads to calmness! We have a choice to make!

Oct26

Dear Readers,

Could we just ponder this post for another week? In light of all that’s going on in our country just now, perhaps it would do us well to pause here to rearm ourselves.

Every time we turn on the tv, browse the internet, or listen to the radio, the poisonous venom of fear attempts to snake its way into our minds. Fear mongers roam the earth seeking whom they may devour. From the looks of it, the fear mongers are progressing with increasing speed in taking victims hostage. 

You know what concerns me in all this? That Christians are suffering from a dangerous loss of memory!

THEY ARE FORGETTING:

 that ‘the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.'(1 Corinthians 4:20 NIV)

 about His all-consuming power, ‘who rules by his might forever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations—let not the rebellious exalt themselves.’Psalm 66:7

 that ‘the one who is in us is greater than the one who is in the world’. 1 John 4:4 (NIV)

Beware the Spirit of Fear running rampant in our world!

The Spirit of Fear is armed and powerful. It’s agents such as terrorists, deadly diseases, weak and dysfunctional leadership, and vulnerable borders (to name the most obvious at present) stage a formidable force. Believe me, this is powerful fodder on which fiery darts feed. So, what’s a Christian to do?

Remember these Truth thoughts?

 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)

Focusing on fear leads to panic.

Focusing on what God has given us–power, love, and a sound mind–gives us the power to resist fear and equips us to utterly defeat and destroy its agents. Reminding us that our God, is greater than any, ABSOLUTELY ANY, of our fears. 

Remember the following next time the headlines tempt you to fear:

Lord, so the headlines would like us all to lose our heads,
to be fear-driven instead of faith-still,
to panic instead of pray,
to be scared silly instead of courageously calm.
And no matter what’s swirling around us,
Your words come like the relief of a gentle, steadying refrain:
“Don’t fear… Don’t panic. God, *your God*, is right there with you” Deu.20:1MSG
And there’s this peace that is transferrable… from Your hand to our hearts…

And all the brave & trusting smiled & whispered their quiet Amen.

Ann Voskamp

Reclaiming Your Self-Worth–God’s Way!

Oct14

My Dramatic Transformation

As God exposed the weapons of fiery darts that for years Satan had skillfully used against me, my spiritual walk underwent a dramatic transformation. By teaching me what fiery darts were and how to counter their attack, my walk along the path God had set before me so many years before was illuminated to such an extent that my skill in recognizing Satan’s tactics dramatically improved along with my ability to successfully fight against the fiery darts. FD p. 6

A Pivotal Question!

For am I now trying to win the favor of people, or God? Or am I striving to please people?. . . Galatians 1:10 (HCSB)

     No Christian ever wants to admit that they are more concerned about pleasing people than they are pleasing God. But that is exactly what I, the people pleaser, was doing! God revealed this to me several years ago in the midst of a tumultuous episode when a particular decision I had made resulted in creating discord among many.

     For the first time in my adult life, people were severely displeased with me and I couldn’t handle that! At first! But after much counsel and doing some honest soul searching about the Galations verse, my course was redirected. My downward spiral was interrupted as God reached down and rescued me from the plans that Satan had concocted.

    Pleasing God now trumped pleasing people! It was quite liberating to live life that way! And on top of that I had the reassurance that,

When a man’s ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. Proverbs 16:7 (HCSB)

    Another powerful lesson learned during those days was how something that Satan meant for bad was turned into something good by God. Therefore, I saw all those involved as instruments of God’s will in helping me understand how important it was to please Him above all others. As a result there was no anger or bitterness on my part towards anyone.

     As I look back on events such as the one I just described through the lens of fighting fiery darts, I gain clarity about the work of Satan’s manipulation. Of how he can take my weaknesses and victimize me with my own thoughts. Now when those fiery darts try to infiltrate my thinking, by God’s design, I have a plan in place to reject them thus averting the devastation those weapons formerly imposed. 

No more downward spirals; depression has been defeated!

Who’s Messing With Your Self Worth?

Oct7
The Cognitive Triangle

The Cognitive Triangle

First we entertain a thought. That thought will cause certain related feelings. Thus, behavior is based on our thoughts and feelings.  p.16, FD

     Several years ago and over a two year period of time, I suffered from a serious bout of depression. I remember battling suicidal thoughts and deep sadness to the point that my prayers became a desperate cry for God to hold on to me because I had no strength left to hold on to Him.  I survived that dark time in my life but that’s about it. It wouldn’t be until several years later as God initiated my training in fiery dart recognition that I would be able to recognize the bondage that defined my existence during those two years. 

Here’s what happened to me and I see this same overused but deadly effective tactic of Satan’s still being used today!

     Refer to the diagram above. In my case I was a people pleaser. If I felt significant people in my life approved of me, then life was good and I felt good about myself. On the other hand, if there was strife or conflict in these relationships life was not good and I became convinced I had little reason to feel good about myself. Self approval you see was strongly connected to what others thought of me. (Or what I thought they thought!)

Do you see the pattern?

     First this negative thought (fiery dart remember) would plant itself into my head producing some very negative feelings or emotions. Never mind that these negative thoughts had no basis in Truth! The poison of these fiery darts seeped into my thinking producing destructive attitudes and behavior. 

     The purpose of these fiery darts, you see, was to diminish any sense of self worth that I might still possess. I was an easy target because it was way too important for me to have the good opinion of those significant people in my life. As relationships with these people deteriorated, so did my self worth.

I wonder if I have touched a nerve? 

     Are you sad seemingly all the time? Are you convinced you don’t measure up and that significant persons in your life don’t approve of you? Does the dangerous thought that your family would be better off without you ever sneak into your mind? Please hold on, for I have glorious news for you in my next post. In the meantime hold on to the following verse,

For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the LORD. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. To give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11