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Isaiah 61:3, My take…

May13

To give some context, Jesus was in the synagogue reading the above verse. He declared to the listeners that He was the one the prophet Isaiah was speaking of, The Messiah.

What I want us to do is direct our attention to is what the Messiah, Jesus Christ, has to offer those who believe in Him:

a crown of beauty instead of ashes

joyous blessing instead of mourning

praise instead of despair

The words ashes, mourning, despair reflect a state of misery. Now contrast that with beauty, joy, praise. I wonder why any sane person would choose ashes, mourning, and despair over beauty, joy, and praise. I’ve pondered this often. And I have noticed, even in the Christian community, there are those who take their belief in God too casually. They don’t feel the need to engage in Bible reading or invest time in prayer. They don’t feel the need to become involved with a community of fellow believers. For the enemy has blinded them to the necessity of these for good spiritual health.

But you see, they won’t feel these needs, if they avoid learning what the Bible has to say about living such a life. The enemy stands ready to convince individuals that going your own way promises the greatest and most desirable form of freedom.

But that’s nothing but a trap of lies. For Christianity holds the promise of genuine freedom. For you know, Jesus really did die to pay the price for our freedom, so we wouldn’t have to. It’s no lie. When we leave this earth we truly are bound for heaven as God’s own. So let’s open our eyes, and refuse to be deceived by the enemy, the liar. He desires to destroy as many of us as possible. Just to get back at God.

However, if we would rather become oaks of righteousness, possessing the transforming power of exchanging what the enemy has for us for what Christ has for us, then it’s a matter of who we permit to rule our thoughts. Thoughts which are ruled by God’s word will know true eternal freedom!

Philippians 4:6-7, My take…

May6

When the apostle Paul wrote the letter to the Philippian Christians, he was in prison in Rome. And while in chains he is writing this letter of encouragement and joy to them. Seriously! How is it possible that Paul could avoid being anxious or not worry in such a setting? Paul gave the formula for how such a thing is accomplished. Pray! And not only pray but pray with an attitude of thanksgiving.

This verse gives us a lot to take in. Our sin nature balks when we are told not to worry. It’s quite difficult to face a challenging situation that any normal human being wouldn’t worry about. Oh, and may I remind you about the fiery darts. Worry or being anxious is definitely one of the enemy’s most often used weapons against us.

So don’t let worry or anxiety catch us off guard. Don’t for one minute believe the lie that we can’t help worrying. Therefore, in order to prevent being overwhelmed with worrisome thoughts, we need to shift our focus. And that’s where prayer comes in. Prayer must be our default response when the temptation to worry or become anxious assaults us. Two components of prayer in this verse are: the kind of prayer where we share our feelings about the situation with God, and petition is where we make specific requests concerning the situation.

In this verse we are advised to flavor all those prayers with an attitude of thanksgiving. Maybe I can describe how this works with a personal antidote. A reoccurring temptation to worry about my future often makes attempts to intrude my thought processes. But I know if I allow those thoughts to enter my head, they will take over. (FD’s 3rd edition, p66) Therefore, I immediately put a ‘Not welcomed” sign over the doorway of my mind when those fiery darts attempt entry. And I block those temptations with prayer.

In my time of prayer I not only cry out to God about my worries, but I frame them within an attitude of thanksgiving. I thank God that He is in control of my situation. That He is my refuge and strength which I can call upon. That in the midst of my circumstance God’s comforting presence is with me. Eventually, an unexplainable sense of peace will fill in the space left by the rejected worry.

So, we can worry thus invite an assortment of fiery darts. All fashioned to take up residence in our thoughts. Or we can choose to reject the enemy’s lies. And take a deep dive into the Scriptures for the mighty weapons of God that will expose the lies. These will be the Truth thoughts which will now rule our thinking. Thus, an unexplainable peace will settle over us like a calming breeze guarding our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Add Distraction to the List

Mar25
Fix our eyes upon Jesus. Look neither to the right or left. Shut out the distractions. based on Hebrews 12:2

Think about it. What keeps us from spending time with God in prayer and His word? Most of the time, I daresay, it’s distractions. Often I have referred to the manipulation and deception of the fiery darts of the enemy. But in the last year, I have come to realize that loosing my focus can happen as a result of the fiery dart of distractions.

Lately, I am being made aware of how the enemy once again is using distractions to manipulate my focus. Our four children are scattered here and there, as well as their children (our grans). Two years ago, my best friend of twenty plus years passed away. Four years earlier my beloved mother transitioned to heaven, joining my father. Needless to say, the temptation to focus on my lack of contact with them is ever present.

Add to that at 77 years of age, I wonder just how much longer I have on this earth. That consumes a lot of my thoughts. Running out of time to make memories with those that I love. Running out of time to resolve conflicts. And quietness and an unbusy life is the fodder for self-pity. And I read the headlines and fear, coupled with the lack of interaction with my family, is a menu for despair. Oh I could go on and on!

The most effective weapon against such is the Bible. Yep, all that truth compressed within the pages of Scripture could and can tear down the walls of human reasoning and destroy false assumptions. By distracting us from spending time with God in His word and in prayer, we just aren’t informed. We aren’t aware of our weapons or how to use them.

These distractions divert our focus thus turning it inward. It takes a greater discipline to redirect our focus toward Christ and not ourselves. But we know that if we want to please God, then we had better learn how to reject the enemy’s device of distraction. Every time our focus turns inward, try quoting, “May this weapon formed against me not prevail.” That shifts our thought processes. We can now direct our focus to ponder Truth thoughts like, “All things work together for the good. For those who love God and are called according to His purpose.”

If my attention is manipulated by the enemy’s distractions then I will be blinded. What I will fail to see is that my husband and I have more time together. I have more time to spend quiet moments daily with God. His Word reminds me that He is in control and I need not fear. Yet, the enemy’s distractions will blind me to these Truths.

Overcoming fear through God’s Word…

Mar11

Since last Saturday, I find myself watching the news far more than I usually do. I search for headlines daily reporting on the Middle East crises. (Choosing my sources for this information requires that I depend upon God for guidance.) Considering the nature of the rhetoric, I could picture the enemy reaching for the poisoned dart of fear. Biding his time as to when to fire it off.

I confess, prior to February 28 I was already caught up in a fight of resistance against fiery darts. Resistance against some personal issues of worry, confusion, and anxiety. And right up until the day before, I was dealing with this onslaught. Then Saturday happened. So realizing I was already in a weakened state, Satan added his pièce de résistance – fear!

If I was to have any hope in countering the enemy’s plan, I knew I needed to secure an alliance with a force greater than my enemy. Past experiences has proven that spending time with God in His word and prayer is the key to deflecting the enemy’s attacks. This has been my modus operandi in extinguishing an invasion of fiery darts. Yet, I can tell you it wasn’t a sudden fix. It took days of prayerfully reading and meditating on God’s word for the transforming truths to penetrate. And along the way as I availed myself to God’s truths, I settled down. The fiery dart of fear, lost its momentum along with the worry, confusion, and anxiety.

Satan goes after the most vulnerable. That would be those who aren’t equipped with the weapons of our warfare. Stands to reason, if we aren’t aware of our weapons we won’t know how to use them. Therefore, we are easy prey. Understandably, getting informed of how in control God is, we will have the confidence to endure. And that my dear readers is how we can overcome fear and all its fiery dart companions. No matter how the headlines read!

Our Constant Companion…

Mar4

Some days life’s path is dark. What light exists is subdued. The darkened path ahead appears to offer little hope of better days. Companions that were once our guardians against the darkness are no longer with us. While those who filled our days with laughter and purpose and kept the darkness at bay have grown up and moved on to travel their own paths. We wander alone. The darkness stalks us just biding its time. Waiting for us to make choices that will lead us further into the dark.

Then very faintly we hear a still small voice saying, “This is the way. Walk in it.” Yet, the voice is indistinct. We aren’t even sure we heard it right. It’s not a voice we have paid much attention to in the past. But in the darkness there is a louder voice competing for our attention. Challenging us to pay no mind to that faint voice. This voice is more familiar. For it consistently intrudes our thoughts. Yet, each moment we tune our ears to that quiet voice, the more our reception of it increases. Likewise, the volume of the voice in the darkness decreases.

And as we continue along this darkened path and heed the soft voice, subtle changes slowly emerge. A flicker of light illuminates our next step. And step by step the light continues to guide us. And as we move forward, the darkness slowly looses its boldness. It’s then we notice that someone has been walking with us all along.

We gaze ahead and further down, just beyond the darkness, we notice our path is illuminated. The brightness gives us something to look forward to. Strange how we couldn’t see it before! Perhaps our downcast perspective hampered our view. Head lifted, we fix our vision on the lighted path ahead. A fresh cleansing breeze begins to blow.

The Shaping of a Christian…

Feb18

Isaiah 64:8

8 But now, O Lord, you are our Father;
    we are the clay, and you are our potter;
    we are all the work of your hand. ESV

Last post I referred to God’s attention to detail which I discovered in my study of the book of Revelation. Details so precise, so detailed only God could have designed them. I learned that it is the application of these truths we find in the details that shape us.

But I’m sad to say this is where the enemy promotes his greatest deception. The point Satan aims for is to diminish the level of impact by Christians for the sake of Christ? He knows the outcome of a life shaped by the Truths of God’s word. And he fears it. So his goal is to keep us distracted so we aren’t shaped by those truths. That opens up the opportunity for us to be shaped by anything but God’s Truth.

So how does God’s attention to details shape us? It was a slow dawning for me. Several years ago, I was going through a particular difficult time. Prior to this, my commitment to spending time with God in His word was severely lacking. Oh I prayed a lot! So I guess you could say I was talking (more like complaining) to God more than I was listening to Him. But there came a time when I couldn’t even put words to my struggles.

Desperate, I just opened my Bible and began reading. Starting actually in Psalms. When I came to words that spoke to my pain, I recorded it. Keeping at it, eventually my mind settled down. Eventually, the fiery darts of confusion and fear were displaced with a clearer mind and a growing faith. Not to mention a growing dependency on the Truths of Scripture.

Once I began experiencing the healing as it applied to my trials, more and more of the details were revealed. For example, when I found myself worrying, God directed me to Scriptures revealing His plans to counter the fiery dart of worry. Philippines 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” NIV The more I focused on this Truth thought the more I believed it. The more resistance I gained in warding off the enemy’s fiery darts. The greater my peace.

Now, just multiply this act with consistency. Growing stronger and gaining in resiliency in warding off the enemy’s attacks is the shaping process. God’s word is designed to help us overcome the enemy. But deliberate effort made in the study of God’s word is the key. The deeper we dig the more we discover. And as life happens we will discover even more details that shape us. God will show us the right way, He will point out the road for us to travel, He will lead us by His truth and teach us.

The Light of Christmas always overcomes…

Dec23

We are living in dark times. But at Christmas time we have the golden opportunity to share and reflect the Light of Christmas. Satan’s plan is to steal, kill, and destroy. But remember his evil is done in the dark. Thankfully, it is the Light of Christmas that overcomes such darkness.

That is why God gave us His word, the Bible. God’s word shines the Light on the darkness of our sins. The more we embrace the truths of Scripture, the brighter Christ light in us will shine.

As we go about our Christmas celebrations remember this. The enemy will do whatever it takes to gain a foothold in your Celebrations. So personal examination is in order. What does the spotlight of our Christmas celebration reveal? Let’s take an inventory and see what we come up with. Does our understanding of God’s word expose fiery darts lurking in the darkness?

May we never be afraid to shine the Light upon our own darkness. Because it is that Light that will expose the darkness in our lives. Our lives will become fuller when the darkness is exposed and the Light is allowed to shine.

Remember, the purveyor of darkness is still attempting to steal, kill, and destroy the Light in our day. Just like he did when Christ first came into this world. But there is Hope for the Light will always overcome the darkness

Jump on board….

Sep24

I believe there is a Spiritual Awakening taking place in America. That it is most revealed in our college age young people is not surprising. For a decade now, Charlie Kirk, has been visiting college campuses with a message of Truth as it applied to various aspects of their lives. Young people who are eagerly seeking purpose for their lives. Who are searching for something real and unchanging to believe in, recognized that in Charlie’s debates.

Over the years our young adults have been inundated with cleverly disguised lies within the liberal colleges they attended. Lies that the liberal segment have renamed and redefined to make them sound truthful. While at the same time, humiliated those who held to traditional faith beliefs. The faith our Founding Fathers had in mind when they wrote our Constitution.

But the tide is changing. And Charlie Kirk’s assassination has resulted in thousands, maybe even millions of college students to reexamine the lies they have embraced. Now throughout America young people are ditching those lies. Now they are rallying behind the Truth that has been revealed to them. Not only young people, but older people as well.

Did you listen to the speeches made at Charlie’s memorial service? Every speaker spoke boldly about Jesus Christ, God’s Son, our Savior. It had the flavor of a revival. Even our President said so.

I am 77 and I have never heard political leaders step up and confidently proclaim such faith in Jesus Christ! And the fact that I have seen this spark originate within our Generation Z community encourages me like never before. Their readiness to seek Truth and their genuine desire for what is real, is what God is using to spark this revival. It may be our last chance people, so jump onboard!

Grief; the process. God; the hope!

Jun11

Loss, no matter the particulars, can threaten to be overwhelming. After the loss of my best friend of 20 plus years, it was as if I suddenly found myself walking alone on a path we both had shared.. This path had been filled with a variety of shared experiences. When the path dimmed and we found it difficult to move forward, God would shine His light on the way we should go. If it weren’t for those learning times of sharing the light, no telling how long I would have wandered alone in that darkness.

Grief turns out to be not a state but a process. Grief is like a winding road where any bend may reveal a totally new landscape. — C.S. Lewis, from A Grief Observed

Grief takes us on a challenging but predictable path. First shock/denial, then anger, depression, bargaining, acceptance. It’s been a month since I said my final goodbye to my best friend. And as time progressed, so did my movement through these stages. And through it all, I have been aware of God’s comforting presence. I was once told it’s the Holy Spirit of God that helps us do the hard things. I’ve been a most grateful recipient of that power. His power prevents me from lingering too long in one stage. Instead moving steadily onward, however slowly.

It’s difficult to imagine a future without my confidant. How will I manage those dark patches without her God inspired voice to coach me through them. I have no idea, but I know God does, and it will be the hope of that restoration that I will need to ponder upon.

STORMS! They have a purpose.

Dec15

Storms are unavoidable. Why on earth do we try to avoid them. It’s a loosing battle.

Storms are no respecter of persons. No one can escape them. Since avoiding them is impossible, where do we find the source that will subdue the storm?

There is no better perspective to embrace concerning storms than what is prescribed in Scripture. Let’s take a look at Luke 8:22-25, only one of the many go to verses during life’s storms.

22 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. 23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.

24 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!”

He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples.

In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”

This verse tells us that Jesus said, “Let us go to the other side of the lake.” Now Jesus, being who He was knew there was a storm coming. (Just like he knows about our storms) Storms on the Sea of Galilee come up rather quickly. But Jesus had lessons his disciples needed to learn. The storm was to be their tutor.

The disciples, though seasoned fishermen, panicked at the severity of the storm. Maybe because they saw that Jesus was asleep they assumed he was not paying attention. Well, of course, this was an assumption fueled by fear. Jesus was right there with them. He hadn’t gone anywhere.

The disciples woke Jesus and in response to their pleas, he rebuked the storm. The lesson? Well, they lacked faith and the storm exposed this. I imagine that whenever they experienced fear like that again, they arrested such fear by recalling that day when Jesus calmed the storm.

Let’s not be too hard on those disciples though. Aren’t we much like them when we encounter storms? The fiery darts of fear and even doubt are first at the scene it seems in our storms. So like the disciples we cry out to God.

If we are willing to cooperate with God when we are being buffeted by storms, he will expose the fiery darts that feed our fears and doubts. We will be empowered to extinguish those weapons of the enemy. In their place, depending on our cooperation, He will supply a stronger faith, less self-centeredness, or resolve to focus on the needs of others. He may call us to change our course. Maybe there are others who need a visual example of how they need to turn to God in their storm.

Recently, it seems my storms have come in waves. I find that I am tempted to center my thoughts on myself. I overly focus on how hard things are. I mourn over the things I’ve lost out on. It’s not natural for me to place my focus on God. So I need to cry out to God just as those disciples did and ask for help. God in His faithfulness will supply me with what I need to overcome the fiery darts attacking me. My situation may not ease up any, but my perspective fashioned by God’s truths will calm my storm.

Storms aren’t random oversights of God. They have a purpose. God’s desire is to reveal that purpose so our lives will be characterized by His peace.