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The Voice to Listen to…

Jul23

My most difficult battles are fought within the arena of self! As a Christian, I understand that I am made up of my body, soul, and spirit. My body while alive on this earth is in a constant civil war between my soul (ruled by my flesh) and my spirit (ruled by God’s Holy Spirit at the point when I believed in and accepted Christ). But I must choose who rules. And therein lies the struggle.

For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.Galatians 5:17

*For too many years, I experienced more defeat than victory. (Fiery Darts 3rd Edition, p. 14) And it wasn’t until God made me aware of the weapons (fiery darts) of Ephesians 6:16 that I began to understand why.

As a young adult (that’s been a long time ago now!), I succumbed to the enemy’s main line of attack: keeping me distracted from daily spending time with God in prayer and in His Word. I naively thought that by attending church faithfully, reading my Bible now and then, praying often, taking to heart the Truths I heard in sermons, and just basically trying to be a good Christians that would suffice in overcoming the attacks from the enemy. I would have victories, yes, but some of my greatest failures occurred during those years. Why?

By not setting aside daily time with God in prayer and the reading of my Bible, God’s Spirit within me was simply not getting fed enough . I fell prey to human reasoning and false assumptions fed to me by my flesh. The weapons I needed to fight my battles successfully were within the pages of Scripture. By not availing myself to God’s instruction on what the weapons were and how to use them, my vulnerability to the manipulation and deception of the enemy increased.

Now that I’m older and thankfully wiser (due to the instruction from God’s word about the weapons available to me), I am more alert to the enemy’s attacks. Thus my victories have increased. For example, as a 76 year old, I have questions about my future. How much more time I might have left with my children and grandchildren? Will I still have decent health or not? Will I still be able to stay in my home? If I’m not careful those questions (note they are all self-centered) will pop up in my mind and my flesh will attempt to grab them. Fear, despair, doubt, worry, all stand by, on the ready to receive the baton and run.

But God has taught me a cleaver trick. He asks me a question of His own when those questions arise. “Whose voice is speaking to you?” Because I have learned from time spent with God in prayer and His word, I have been made aware of the following:

God gives us the ability to think. We are capable of our own independent thoughts and we will frequently have thoughts such as “I’m hungry” or “I’m tired.” But it’s also important to keep in mind that the enemy will also speak to us in the form of thoughts in the first-person singular, such as “I can’t do this.” We must take those thoughts and determine if they are consistent with God’s word.

Thus I knew that thoughts of my future that invoked fear, despair, doubt, or worry were not consistent with God’s word. For example, God tells me in 2 Timothy 1:7, that He has not given me the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a strong mind. In Philippians 4:6-7, I’m reminded, Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, 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. These are just two examples (they are in abundance in the Scriptures) of how to distinguish between God’s voice and the enemy’s voice.

So when these negative questions arise originating in my flesh and influenced by the enemy, I counter them with this prayer based on Isaiah 54:17, May this weapon formed against me not prevail… It stops there. The battle is won.

But allow me to add those fiery darts will return again and again. It’s not a one time battle. As long as we live we will wage war with the enemy. He won’t give up, until we are secure in heaven. It’s just the truth of the matter. But thankfully God sent Christ to secure our heavenly home and equip us with the weapons we need to fight successfully against our enemy, Satan, while we live here on earth.

*Remember, my book Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice can be purchased as an e-book. If you are interested, please check the sideboard.

Building an arsenal…

Feb2

An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition (weapons) are stored.

You might be wondering where I am going with this but as Christians the sooner we make the connection that we are at war the better. I fear that far too many of us have become so distracted by the enemy that we aren’t even aware of the battle that is waging all around us. We are hanging out on the periphery of the battlefield with blinders on. Our attention is drawn only to our immediate surroundings. We have little awareness of the area of combat just beyond our vision.

First and foremost, we must understand the weapons of our arsenal are of a spiritual nature. Allow me to illustrate. Last year, my best friend of over three decades, passed away after a bout with cancer. In spite of the fact that I KNEW she was in the presence of God, I was devastated. We were kindred spirits. Our friendship was of an iron sharpening iron type. Without her presence and counsel, I sort of lost my direction. A dark cloud settled over me and followed me wherever I wandered. Which as it turned out, was often no further than my front porch.

Now, imagine with me the fiery darts of the enemy during these dark days. The voice in my head persisted in focusing on my loss. My only relief came when I was able to communicate and/or spend time with my children or grandchildren. Since they live quite a distance from me, our communication was minimal. And while my husband was sympathetic, it was beyond him to truly understand my heartache. No one was able to counsel me with the depth of understanding that could enable me to move on, to pick up my life again, and to find my new normal. Except for God!

As I cried out to God, here are some of the weapons He taught me to use:

Take one day at a time, don’t borrow from the past or tomorrow.

I will not leave you. I will be with you 24/7, helping you handle your pain

Turn to Me in this trial. My plan is not to allow this to defeat you but only to make you stron,ger.

Keep your thoughts turned towards me. Nothing in this world can compare to what I have for you.

I know what you truly need and it is My plan to abundantly supply those needs.

The above is just a sampling of the weapons with which God supplied me to ward off the enemy’s assault. They were the weapons of my arsenal. These were the truths on which God desired for me to focus. I knew about them due to a consistent search of God’s word. So when the fiery darts were hurled towards me, it was these truths and many more from the Scriptures that extinguished them. My weapons were of a spiritual nature. The world’s advice offered no lasting solutions.

We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.  (2 Corinthians 10:4 NLT)

Never forget the world’s weaponry creates strongholds by manipulating our ability to reason. By not being familiar with God’s mighty weapons we won’t recognize destructive falsehoods. Lies morph into truth and Truth morphs into lies. It is only by being cognizant of God’s Truth will we be able to counter the enemy’s assaults.

What are the consequences of failing to recognize the weapons of our arsenal? Read the following:

Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 1 Corinthians 3:1-3

If we never grow past the stage of infant food, we simply won’t have the strength or wisdom to understand or follow the path God has set for us. That means we won’t know the joy that passes all understanding even in the midst of trials. We will be fooled into thinking thoughts that deny the power of God’s word. All because we failed to build up the arsenal God provided us, when we became His own.

Does it count for eternity?

Jan2

A new year has begun. We all have an opportunity for a fresh beginning. But will we take advantage of it, or do we even know how. Will we be able to detach ourselves from the trials, disappointments, and losses experienced from 2023? While last year did have its mountaintop moments, why is it that the valley moments seem to possess a greater force to pull us downward?

How do we overcome this downward force? The world offers their solutions and I might add that the source of those solutions have very little, if any, to do with God. True and lasting peace, even in the midst of life in our valleys, can only be found in God.

I met a man on a mission trip several years ago who would be considered poor by my country’s standards. Yet, the riches this man possessed was reflected in the words of his young adult daughter when she was asked about her life’s ambition. Her heart’s desire was to serve God as she had seen her father do. Her father passed on a legacy to his daughter far more valuable than any worldly possessions or riches.

This man and his family had discovered the secret of living a life that counted. Not to obtain material possessions, success, wealth, or fame. Their focus was on living a life that counted for God, a life that counted for eternity.

Living a life that counts for eternity is reflected in the choices we make on a daily basis. It is especially apparent when there are valleys to be endured and when the mountaintop experiences may be in short supply. The secret to making right choices is in asking ourselves this question: Will the choice I want to make count for eternity?

 

Who Is It About, Jesus or Me?

Sep11

I don’t think I like that question. After all, I am a Christian and Christ is the center of my life. Right? 

But way too often the reality is we crowd Jesus out. How?

Well, let’s just think on that for a moment. We get into an argument with someone but the driving force becomes more about being understood, rather than trying to understand. 

We are charged, as a Christian, to read our Bibles daily and spend time with God in prayer. However, it becomes too inconvenient to make time for such things. 

Perhaps the most telling that we are making it all about me is when trials come our way. How often when trials present themselves do we turn inward and ask God, “What is lacking in my life that this trial will supply? Do we even know what God’s thoughts might be in relation to our trials?

Yes, we know about the struggle between our flesh and our spirit. But without the lessons learned through trials and/or becoming familiar with the directives supplied in Scripture, we simply don’t possess the awareness needed to discern who’s thoughts we are entertaining.

Therefore, as thoughts are formed in our minds they must be filtered through God’s word. It’s revealing to ask ourselves this question, “Do the thoughts I’m considering reflect my thoughts or God’s thoughts?” If there is little knowledge of God’s thoughts on the situation, then we will default to the flesh. We will make it all about me!

She’s gone on ahead…

May16

My best friend has gone on before me.

And I’m left behind

What do I do now when

I need her to pray for me

Or I just need to talk!

She helped keep my emotional balance

When life shifted & became upended

It worked both ways for us

For I lifted her up in my turn

Iron sharpening iron

We had that in each other

And in her final moments, I was prevented from sharing them with her

An event she look most forward to never happened

So we both were denied at the end

We shared similar dreams

We constantly found ourselves experiencing similar problems

As we helped guide each other through them

Our 20 plus years of friendship has been abruptly halted

Focusing on what I’ve lost is the tempter’s plan

I’ll not give in to that darkness

The things I don’t understand will just have to be filed away

To wait for a future revelation

In the meantime, I will grasp hold of God’s promises

He will never leave me or forsake me

He will work all things together for my good

He will be my strength at my weakest of times

He will give me reasons to continue moving forward

One day or moment at a time

What does it mean to show Christlike love to others who have rejected God and/or His ways?

Sep21

Even as we lived a life of disobedience, even as we rebelled against God’s standards of living, even as we rejected the existence of God, even as we refused to take God and Christ’s death seriously, God allowed Christ to be sacrificed for us. He didn’t wait for His ways to make sense to us before He offered us a solution.

Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:7-8

Admittedly, it’s hard to have loving feelings toward those who boldly reject God and His ways. Our world is upside down these days. Right is wrong and wrong is right! And what is more alarming is this deception has seeped into some of our churches! We Christians struggle to figure out how to stand strong in our faith without alienating those who have rejected God’s ways.

This is a prime dilemma that Satan eagerly takes advantage of. Ever hear the silent voice that says, “If you are kind and accepting of this person who lives in a way that mocks God and His ways, then that’s the same as condoning their sin.” You see, Satan has us focus on this fiery dart in order to deter us from verses like Romans 5:7-8.

What we fail to understand is that we can be kind and forgiving towards those who have fallen prey to the enemy’s deception, without compromising our faith values. How can we be kind and forgiving? By understanding the complex truth of separating the person we have issues with from the sins they have embraced!

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,… Matthew 5:43-44

It’s a slippery path to find ways to separate the sinner from the sin, of course. And our upside down world has made it even harder. But acknowledging that God loved us while we were still living in our sin, should empower us to do the same for others living outside of God’s will. This will provide us with the motivation to care enough about that person to deliver God’s truth to them with kindness and compassion. (Perhaps, we have been guilty of delivering the truth without the compassion?)

While we may be rejected and even persecuted by those we have attempted, with loving kindness, to be honest with, we must be prepared for this. Courageous love demands that we be truthful, whether they reject us or not or whether they reject God’s truth or not.

Personally, I don’t think there’s ever been a time when God’s truth has been so distasteful to so many. And these days we must count the cost before delivering His truth, for we could be made to suffer for it. We must keep in mind this world is not permanent; eternity is. And where we spend eternity is determined by what we do about God’s truths while we live here on earth.

What does it mean to live like a Christian? Learn to tell the difference between what freedom is and what it is not…

Sep13

By leaning upon God’s will, we are granted new and remarkable freedoms. The outside world sees us as chained. We go where they choose not, we see what they prefer to ignore, we dress in a manner they call severe. They hold up to us the so-called freedoms of this world and declare themselves happier for it. They live in blindness, both to the pains of others and the remorse and strife within their own souls.”

Quote by William Wilberforce, 1759-1833, A British politician and leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade

A venus flytrap (picture left)is like a spring-loaded trap that transforms into a ‘cage’ after responding to stimuli, such as when an unsuspecting insect contacts the surface.

Now you may be wondering what a carnivorous plant has to do with this post? Read on to discover the answer!

That fly was enticed by a sticky sweet juice emitted by the venus plant. This juice smells like a bouquet of fruit and plant flowers to the fly. Something quite familiar to the fly. Not realizing the danger it was in, it decided to check into what looked familiar to it. Thus it got mired down into the sticky substance and the teeth of the venus snapped shut and became a cage. Eventually the venus consumes the fly.

Christians who are not familiar with how the Bible defines truth are much like this fly. Their confusion about what is freedom and what is bondage leads to their entrapment.

A Christian whose search for freedom lies outside the boundaries of biblical truth, are venturing into a wilderness of deception. A wilderness where lies are disguised as truth and truth is disguised as lies. The side effects of living in this wilderness is blindness. A blindness that prevents them from seeing that the freedom and happiness they think they are experiencing is nothing more than license. And that happiness is nothing more than the thrill of getting their own way and getting pats on the back for it from others who wander about in the same wilderness.

But for a Christian, this fake freedom will eventually deteriorate. The Bible puts it rather succinctly.

 There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 14:12 NIV

Christians who adopt the freedoms that run contrary to God’s word are entrapped just like the fly in a venus plant. Yet, unlike the fly there is a way to break free from such bondage before being consumed. By returning to God’s word, we will grow in wisdom and understanding as to the difference between true freedom and bondage. God’s light will illuminate the path of their escape. As the disciplining love of God turns them around and brings them to their senses, they will be restored to the fresh and cleansing winds of true freedom.

Replacing lies with Truth thoughts…

May24

We have Recognized. We have Rejected. Now it’s time to replace!

Replacing fiery dart thoughts with Truth thoughts

Something that often gets overlooked, is the necessity of replacing the lies of a fiery dart. For the empty space left when the lie was rejected, needs to be filled. Otherwise when the lie returns, and it will return, the lie gains reentry. This is when Truth thoughts come into play. For thoughts about what is true are required to fill the void left by the rejected lie. And to know what Truth thoughts to call upon, we must be familiar with the source of where they are contained. That, of course, is God’s word, the Bible. Therefore, we must be prepared and stand ready to wield this Sword of Truth, if these lies are to be extinguished.

Doubt and confusion, resided in the background of my thoughts. Every ready to spring into action when given the opportunity. Even though I had been a Christian for many years, I had allowed too much of the world’s concepts of truth to influence my attitudes, perspectives, and actions. It was easier to listen to the world rather than take time to delve into the Bible for answers. Needless to say, doubt and confusion were given many opportunities to inject their poison. Plain and simple – I didn’t know enough of what the Bible had to say, in regard to my doubts and confusion. As a result, my skill in the use of my Sword of Truth was sorely lacking.

My only hope to gain strength and successfully fight off the lies of the enemy, was to daily expose my thoughts to the Truths of Scripture. It is the main food for any soldier in God’s army. In my weakened state, God nourished me with a simple but powerful Truth to rebuff the enemy. By applying the Truth of Isaiah 54:17a, “No weapon that is formed against you will succeed;” to refer to the weapon of fiery darts, the lies were thwarted.

This verse has become the first swipe of my Sword of Truth in my attack. This affords me the opportunity to search for a specific word from God to extinguish a specific lie. Thereafter, I could wield my sword with tailor made precision to attack and extinguish the lie.

The benefit of searching for specific scriptures to add to our weapon cache, is obvious. The more our weapon supply is increased, the greater our victories over the enemy. That translates into our becoming more knowledgeable of the Truths of God’s Word. Knowledge that empowers us to be equipped with the weapons needed to counter Satan’s attacks.

This taste of victory over the manipulation and deception of the lies is sweet. It is the one thing that guarantees our release from the bondage we have been tricked into believing is freedom. This Truth sets us free from the lies that have created our bondage.

It’s Up to Us!

Jan6

Many, especially for those of us who are Christians, are familiar with the following verse from 2 Chronicles 7:14

14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

There are some particular points contained in this verse that should require our focus.

-It’s written to God’s people, the Church (all of us Christians). We, not the unsaved, are required to humble ourselves, pray, seek God’s face, and turn from our wicked way!

I think the key requirement here is to ‘seek God’s face.’

But what does that mean actually? It means we want to get to know God, understand Him better, and become accustomed to His voice. How do we get to know Him better? By spending time with Him in prayer and His word. In getting to know God, we will have a more honest view of ourselves. That’s humbling. Knowing God better through His word, allows the Holy Spirit the freedom to point out areas where we need to repent and seek His forgiveness.

Repenting is more than just feeling sorry for our sins. It must go further to be genuine repentance. This kind of repentance focuses on God and how our sins affect Him. Remember our sins drove Jesus to the cross. A genuinely repentant heart desires to please God. And when the Holy Spirit convicts us of our sins, we will do whatever we must to achieve God’s pleasure. Obviously turning from our sin.

On a personal level, our lives will be characterized by love, joy, peace as we get to know God better and understand His ways. Even as we experience trials and storms. This applies to the Church as a whole also.

But while we are familiar with verse 14, what about verse 13?

“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people,

Does a plague among my people sound familiar? It’s one of those things God wants to heal our land of. And not only are we physically sick from the plague of COVID, we are spiritually sick as well. America, our land, needs to return to her Christian roots?

As individual Christians, we must grasp the truth that God isn’t waiting on the unsaved to humble themselves, pray, seek His face, and repent. No! It’s up to us to come to our senses and seek God’s forgiveness. Then the healing will come! On an individual basis and as the corporate Church.

Do we want our land to be healed?

What to do?

Aug9

Version 2

What do we do when in spite of all that we know and believe, the darkness continues to stalk us? We wait and wait but the hoped for relief remains a no show.

Instead of giving in and sinking lower and lower, try putting one foot in front of the other. Whatever we do we do not give into the hopelessness.

Instead we hold up our shield of faith and extinguish all the fiery darts of the enemy. (based on Ephesians 6:16.) One fiery dart at a time.

We replace every fiery dart thought with a Truth thought from God.

We keep moving forward, depending on God’s strength.

 

And if in spite of all of this, the darkness remains?

Remember, God’s way is the only way. There is no other way that will bring the help we need. Focus on trusting God to come through for us.

This will require faith. Maybe more than we have at the moment. Trust God to supply what we lack.

Ask for help to shut out the negative debilitating thoughts; to replace them with God’s thoughts. .

Maybe it’s been lingering far longer than we could imagine.

That doesn’t make God’s Word any less true.

Yet the stalking negativity sometimes keeps hanging around.

Then just keep putting one foot of faith in front of the other. Looking neither to the right or the left. 

Keep in mind, everyday won’t be like this. There will be better days here and there. We won’t drown in just one day. 

Hebrews 10:36, You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.