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The Light of Christmas!

Dec24

Christmas is a wonderful time of the year but the further away we get from celebrating the birth of Christ then the more challenging it becomes to experience all the wonders this blessed holiday has to offer.  The fiery darts that so cleverly counterfeit the joys of Christmas have overshadowed this blessed holiday to the point that we have all but forgotten the child whose birth we are supposed to be celebrating.

And what’s been the results?  Christmas has become the most stressful time of the entire year for many people.  The worship of self has overshadowed worship of the Christ Child.  People are more concerned with what they are getting than in what they are giving.  And with the economy on a downturn like it is, the lack of money to spend on Christmas presents creates depression of an alarming nature.

As I see this darkness growing and spreading its evil tendrils across our land threatening to extinguish the Light of Christmas, I am tempted to despair.  That is until I open my Bible and I read John 1:5

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

You see the light referred to in this verse is Christ.  What reassurance, what hope we have in these dark days that the light of Christ will overcome the darkness!

Recently our nation has witnessed darkness in its most evil form attempting to eradicate everything of life and light of Christmas.   Those directly affected by this dark evil were left with no heart to celebrate Christmas and who could blame them?  Yet, today I read that though many of those affected by this evil had extinguished their Christmas lights, slowly but surely these hurting people were turning their Christmas lights back on! The Light of Christmas in turn shines bright upon them, eradicating the dark evil while sending forth its blessed healing rays.  Their simple but bold and courageous act affirms unquestionably the rock solid truth expressed in John 1:5.  

Darkness, no matter how evil will never overcome the light!

Why the big deal about negative teasing?

Sep18

No matter how hard you may laugh, at some level negative teasing inflicts pain!

You may think, “Oh, that’s not enough pain to pay any attention to!”  Oh really!  So you are saying that it’s okay to inflict pain if it’s minuscule?  But is that the focus you should have?  May I remind you of the verse about coarse jesting?

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

Our homes should be the safest place on earth when it comes to the development of our personhood.  We should never have to fear being attacked by those who are suppose to love us the most.  So, with all the emphasis on feeling good about yourself, and maintaining a positive self-image why do we put up with negative teasing, I ask you?  I go back to the influence of media such as tv and/or movies.  If you allow yourself or your children to be overly exposed to the negative humor that saturates most of the shows, then you and your children will be spouting out negative phrases before you realize it!  To avoid this:

WE MUST FILL OUR MINDS AND THE MINDS OF OUR CHILDREN WITH WORDS THAT WILL BE HELPFUL WHEN THEY EXIT OUR MOUTHS! ! !

How is that done?  Consider the following:

1.  All you have to do is make wiser choices about what you watch and what you allow your children to watch.  Thankfully, there are options even on tv and the movies that have a more positive influence on the way we and our children can be influenced to interact with others.  

2.  Fill your minds with words from Scripture.  Like Ephesians 4:29 (to begin with)!  Make it a habit to memorize Scripture and model this habit for your children.  

3.  Post verses that you have written on cards and display them around the house.

4.  Make Scripture an integral part of your family’s daily experience.  Insert Scripture whenever you can to apply to a situation.  For instance, every child’s name means something and particular verses can be ascribed to enhance that meaning.  This might give a child an extra motivation to exhibit actions that live up to their name’s meaning.  

Consider calling upon Scripture to meet the need of the moment such as when your child is afraid, like the following: Psalm 56:3, “When I am afraid, I will trust in you.”

5.  Instill in your children the importance of personal devotions.  And remember, the most effective method of teaching our children to have a time of personal devotion is to model this behavior for them!

6.  Be wise in choosing the music you listen to and what you allow your children to listen to. Never underestimate the influence of music. And listen to the lyrics.  (Google the lyrics to the songs, if you can’t understand them!)  If you find something troubling, then Parent’s do something about it.  BTW, if your child is making good choices about the music they are listening to, then by all means, praise them for it!

7.  Encourage your children to hide God’s Word in their hearts.  Get them involved in Bible study and Bible drills.  Do you want your child to be wise and strong of mind?  The absolute best source for that is The Bible, parent!

I think this is a good enough start.  So take it from here and run with it.  I’m confident I have not exhausted all the possibilities of ways to fill your minds and your children’s minds with positive thinking so that the overflow will  also be positive.

And a final word here.  

Always remember, as life happens in your family, memories are being made. Verbal interaction should always be laced with grace.  So be deliberate about making positive memories and minimizing the negative.  The reward for your diligence will provide your family with sweet reminiscing during those family get togethers in the days to come.

The Fiery Darts of Parenting Series – Negative Teasing!

Sep8

Because my book only contains two areas of application (marriage and adolescence) where fiery darts are concerned, I am being impressed to include a series of posts having to do with the application of how to fight the fiery darts encountered in parenting!  Up until now, the theme of my blogs have been a bit random.  Well, maybe not a bit but a whole lot random.  It was suggested to me way back when I began blogging to do something like I am now attempting, but it just never happened.  So, here goes people.  As always, I welcome and appreciate your feedback.

NEGATIVE TEASING!

Oh, mom, I was only teasing!  You know I don’t really mean that!  Lighten up, we were only having fun.  

Are you kidding me? !  Since when has it been okay to put someone down or say all manner of false things about them as long as you say it in a kidding way?  Since our day, that’s when.  And may I be more specific here–since our kids (and us adults) have been exposed to a steady diet of negative teasing disguised as humor on almost any sitcom you care to watch.  TV and movies are masters (and I emphasize the word, ‘masters’) at this type of negative humor and the power of their influence can be seen and felt whenever a group of people are hanging out together. (It makes me sad to write that!) 

Given the fallen nature of man, we shouldn’t be surprised that we have succumbed to thinking that humor is a lot more funny if the words we use are negative!  And while I’m not surprised that people who reject Christ and His teachings have embraced this type of humor, it bothers me DEEPLY that Christians have bought into this LIE! (I’m just calling it like I see it folks)  Actually, it’s one of the most popular and successful fiery darts in use today! Um!

I was disturbed about this when my own children were small.  So much so that I became very selective about what they watched on tv and videos (no dvd’s back then) and I limited their amount of exposure to both.  That’s when the family rule, NO NEGATIVE TEASING, came to be established.

Here’s an example of it’s early beginnings.  When anger is being expressed, it’s only natural to verbally express that anger.  Right?  And you can’t use just any words!  It has to be words that pack a punch!  So, whenever my children expressed anger in the midst of some conflict they were having with each other, out would come those words that had been sitting there in their minds just waiting for the opportunity to be released!  It would be at times such as these that they would hear me say something like the following:

  “Your sister (or brother) has a perfectly good name.  You will use that name when addressing each other.”

My children figured out that they could get away with using hurtful or negative words as long as they cloaked it in humor.  (Do you suppose the idea originated with Mary Poppins?  You know, “A spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down! There goes that fallen nature again, taking a good idea and perverting it!)

Well, just like Barney Fife, I nipped that negative teasing in the bud!  Whenever, I heard negative teasing disrupting the peace of our home, I countered with what became a very familiar phrase around our house,

“That’s negative teasing!”

It worked pretty good, I’m pleased to say.  And you can be sure that as my children grew older and wiser, they wouldn’t hesitate to call their father or I down when they heard either one of us violate the family rule!  (Parent’s struggle with that ole fallen nature too, you know! Not an excuse; just stating a fact:(  My children held my feet to the fire on that WHENEVER they had the opportunity.  (Don’t you just love the accountability factor that can prevail in a family!)

Actually, it’s all about making memories (which I’ll cover in another post).  I was keenly aware that my children would be making all sorts of memories as they grew up in our home.  I was determined and deliberate that most of those memories would be positive.  Therefore, negative teasing had no place in our home.  And apparently, God agreed!  Note the following verse:

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

Taking this verse to heart then we will examine the words that are coming out of our mouths either in anger or in jest and if those words don’t build up those who are listening to us according to their needs, then we need to zip it! And keep it zipped until we have determined what our hearers need to hear and thereafter, fashion our words accordingly.  Good idea?

 

The Darkness of Fiery Darts vs the Light of God’s Truth!

Aug7

Some days are worse than others when it comes to fiery darts.  It’s amazing to me how powerful some fiery darts are.  I think those that come through people who are closest to us has the greatest potential for destructiveness.  The person through whom the fiery dart comes is often totally clueless that they have become the vehicle of such a force.  Nevertheless, their encounter with you leaves you wounded and likely they are oblivious to the onslaught of fiery darts with which you now must deal.

Okay, you’ve been attacked, wounded, and are now struggling with the fiery darts of the minions of destructiveness.  How do you respond?  It’s important, I think, to not react but to respond.  Reacting predisposes that you are acting without thinking.  Reacting to fiery darts, which is our natural bent, is not the best way to deal with fiery darts.  Nope! We must respond, which implies thoughtful actions.  And for those of us who are Christian, prayer is a vital component of those thoughtful actions.

Fiery darts bring darkness and it seems to me that the more fiery darts you encounter the darker it gets.  I suppose that’s why it’s important to follow the advice of Thomas a’ Kempis, author of The Imitation of Christ whom I quoted in my book, if you don’t want to be overcome by the accumulated darkness of fiery darts.

Above all, we must be especially alert against the beginnings of temptation, for the enemy is more easily conquered if he is refused admittance to the mind and is met beyond the threshold when he knocks.


You need light, the light of Truth, and lots of it at these moments.  Pull out your Bible (or whatever means you have to the Scriptures) and focus on gleaning as much light as is possible on your present situation.  Remember, to fight the darkness of the fiery darts you need to absorb as much light as you can.  So immerse yourself in the Light of God’s Word from the git go. (You are just trying to dispel the darkness at this point.)  Eventually, you will begin to receive direction concerning the specifics of your situation.  Then it will be the light of God’s Truth that will define your attitudes and actions as you deal with the attack of fiery darts that you have encountered.

I would like to share with you the following about a man named Steve Saint who has become a beacon of light for God as is evidenced by the manner in which he has responded  to a recent tragic accident in his life.   At one point early on in this video, Steve shares how he dealt with a menacing fiery dart thought of how much easier it would have been if the accident had cost him his life.  Listen carefully for the light of Truth he has come to know that exposes the darkness of such thinking.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vP3q_b4zKxQ

To find out who Steve Saint is go to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Saint

Martha vs Mary–Not Really!

Jul22

Martha and Mary

38 While they were traveling, He entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. 39 She had a sister named Mary, who also sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to what He said. 40 But Martha was distracted by her many tasks, and she came up and asked, “Lord, don’t You care that my sister has left me to serve alone? So tell her to give me a hand.”

41 The Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has made the right choice, and it will not be taken away from her.”  Luke 10:38-42 (HCSB)

So, what does this excerpt from Luke have to do with fiery darts?

First of all let’s take a look at Martha and Mary.  Martha busied herself with the many tasks of opening her home to a beloved friend (oh, and who just happened to be the Son of God–no pressure!) Mary, on the other hand, risked the criticism of a very frustrated sister, to sit at Jesus’ feet to listen to what He had to say. (Betcha, she was hanging on His every word!)

Women through the ages have read this biblical account and have related to it in a variety of ways.  Opinions have been expressed as to which sister Jesus approved of more, and often Mary comes out on top.  But everybody knows that we can’t have a world made up of just Mary’s.  Martha’s are a necessary ingredient to maintaining balance BUT we can’t have a world made up of just Martha’s either!  Each has their place; and each must be given the freedom to find it! (in their own Martha and Mary way, I might add!)

So, what’s my point here?

I believe that Jesus was pointing out the fact that both types of devotion to Him are necessary.  But in that moment (and so often in our lives) the Martha’s of this world needed to give the Mary’s in this world the space to go about their tasks in their own way without becoming critical.

Martha’s are good at what they do.  So good in fact, that they genuinely have a hard time believing that Mary’s can do a job better than they can.  So when they see a Mary falling short of perfection (doing it the way a Martha would) then it’s up to them to step in and get the job done right!

ENTER! The Fiery Darts!

Martha and Mary both are prime targets at this point for bookoodles of fiery darts.  Martha’s are convinced their way is best and become a bit insensitive to how they are coming across to their Mary’s.  After all, what is wrong with this Mary she is dealing with?  The job needs to be done, therefore, it needs to be done right.  Why can’t this Mary person be more appreciative of her help.  Can you see Martha’s frustration!  Oh yeah!

Then we have Mary.  Having a hard time trying to figure out where she went wrong!  

Listen, if Mary’s not careful she will begin to focus more on Martha’s criticisms than she should.  When that happens, the fiery darts of low self worth, find a prime target and she will become a fading flower if she focuses more on what Martha thinks of her than of what Jesus thinks of her.  But Mary’s of the world, take heart!   Martha’s are a powerful force but keep this in mind.  You are not in competition with them over Jesus’s favor.  Jesus loves you and accepts you just the way you are (even if the Martha you are dealing with appears not to). You will see that you are a beautiful flower in His garden (that’s a Mary thought if there ever was one), if you will but keep your focus on Him.

Martha’s are an uptight bunch of gals.  They excel at most everything they do.  As a result, they get lots of strokes from all of those who admire their excellence.  The expectations they have from their admirers plus the expectations they have for themselves must be met.  Oh really?  Pride is a deadly fiery dart and Martha’s are so susceptible to it.  Be on your guard, dear Martha’s.  You are not competing with Mary’s for Jesus’s favor, either.  Just take a deep breath and relax.  Give others the opportunity to get the job done in a way different from the way you would and don’t criticize them for being true to themselves!  Remember, you want to encourage them to please Jesus not You!

(Hey, and surprise, surprise, you’ll find there really is more than one way to skin a cat!)

Man opens his mouth and God speaks! Part 2

Jul8

What my son and his team were experiencing was peculiar to say the least.  But the detail that my mind couldn’t get away from was how God displayed His power by taking command of Jay’s voice and speaking through him to Moses.  In my world such evidence of the Holy Spirit’s power is rare.  I remember thinking, “LORD, what’s it like to experience such a display of Your power?”  I couldn’t imagine what it must have been like for Jay to be used of God in such a manner.

Here in America we are not accustomed to such behavior so the likelihood of experiencing what my son had encountered was hardly possible.  I mean we are too sophisticated, too civilized for such things to take place–right?

 (Sound like fiery dart reasoning to you?)

Then I opened my devotional readings and  I came across a verse that caused me to pause and reflect.  The particular verse is not important to this post but suffice it to say it was important to something I was going through at the time.  A questioning thought came to my mind:

“What if God was speaking to me though this verse?”

The next image that appeared in my mind was rather peculiar.  (Oh, I’ve heard that word before.)  It was an image of Jesus putting His arm around me and gently saying,

“My daughter, if you will accept this verse as a word from Me, then you will know what it feels like to hear Me speak!”

 My next thoughts can only be described as fiery darts.  

“Oh, that’s just a coincidence that you read that verse when you did.  Besides, how could you possibly know those words were from God?  Those are just words.  Anyway, they do not really apply to your situation!”

Sound like fiery darts to you?  Sure did to me!  So I put up my shield of faith, embraced those words and drew encouragement from them.  I accepted those words of comfort from God and acknowledged the power of the Holy Spirit in giving them to me.

You see, when you think about it, the same God that performed such a glorious rescue of the woman who attempted suicide is the same God who spoke to me in those verses.  He is not more powerful in Africa than He is here in America.  The same evil who convinced the woman that she had no choice other than suicide is the same evil who tried to plant those fiery darts in my mind to discount God speaking to me through those verses.  The same powerful God that spoke through my friend, Jay, is the same God who spoke to me through those verses I read during my devotion time. It is the same God and the same devil at work in both areas.

The distinction between good and evil may be more clearly defined in the situation which I described there in that small African village. But when you consider how long the darkness has prevailed there, it’s no wonder the Light comes in such power.  The people there aren’t use to the Light and when it comes it’s pretty hard not to recognize it.

Are we too use to the Light here in America?  Do we take it for granted?  Have we diminished its brilliance in our lives by the casual attitude we have towards the Light?  If this continues, expect our ability in distinguishing the difference between the darkness and the Light to be equally diminished.

(Oh, you’ve noticed that already!)

So, I’ve made a choice to value the Light that I’ve been given and stop taking it for granted.  I’ve decided to be more diligent in studying God’s Word so that I will less likely be deceived by the darkness.  When God speaks to me through His Word, I’m going to sit up and take notice.

(And surely avoid the temptation to think it’s nothing but a coincidence!)  

Who knows, someday I may open my mouth and hear God speak!

Some pretty amazing things have happened in that small African village since the Light has exposed the darkness there.  I’ll share that in my 3rd and last post on this subject!

A Way Out of the Darkness!

Jun24

In the past, long before I had learned about waging a successful war regarding fiery darts, I was in bondage to some pretty devastating thoughts.  One in particular was the idea that if I failed in a particular area of my life that would automatically spill over into all other areas of my life and inflict damage on them as well.  The unfortunate thing regarding these lessons on fiery darts that have now secured my freedom, is that way back then I was clueless about how the fiery darts were messing with my mind and ensuring my extended bondage.  That’s the bad news, but the good news is

In looking back on my journey, I have wondered at times why it took me so long to recognize the path out of the darkness of negative thinking that God had illuminated for me. . . . My hope then is that by my sharing what I have learned on my journey out of the darkness of negative thinking, you will be able to recognize much sooner than I did your own path out of the darkness that God has illuminated for you. (pg. 3, Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice)

 Therefore, if you will permit me, I would like to encourage your heart with a Truth God has often sustained me with.

Isaiah 43:18  “Do not remember the past events, pay no attention to things of old. 19  Look, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming.  Do you not see it?  Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.

Just because you have experienced failure in the past, that doesn’t mean that because of that  particular failure, you are doomed to fail or at least not measure up in all areas of your life.  I carried that burden of a lie for more years than I care to remember.  Only by God’s grace and what He taught me concerning fiery darts have I been set free.

You have only to research some of the Greats of Scripture to see what God thinks of failure.  Look at David, in spite of  his  serious failures, the Bible calls him, “a man after God’s own heart”.  How is that possible after what he did–murder and adultery to name only two?  I think I’ve discovered something here.  The righteousness of David had it’s source in God.  Read what Paul said about that kind of righteousness:

And be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith. Philippians 3:9

Ok, we confess our failure to God and ask His forgiveness, then we move on with our lives and by His grace break free of the bondage that the knowledge of our failure has the capability to place us in.  As a Christian we have a very unique course set for us as we deal with the failures in our lives.  First of all, we don’t allow one failure in our lives to convince us that we are a failure at life!  That’s a big huge ole fiery dart.  It’s nothing but a lie.  Aren’t you glad that the Bible greats didn’t fall for that?

Trials have the potential to highlight areas in our lives that when responded to appropriately can increase our faith and produce endurance.  Take a look at James 1:

2 Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, 3 knowing that the testing o your faith produces endurance. 4 But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing. 

How you deal with your crisis, what you learn from your crisis will all work together to reestablish your credibility. (Rom. 8:28)  Others may come against you (these are instruments of fiery darts remember) but if in your own mind you have come to the successful and healing conclusion that God can still use you, then you’ll know how to put up your shield of faith and ward off those fiery dart minions!

So go ahead and rejoice with God in those areas where you don’t feel like a total failure.  Be thankful for them and praise God for them.  Don’t allow the fiery dart that says you’d be a hypocrite to think you could still be used of God when you have failed Him so miserably. There are some areas in your life that you have gotten right so know that you have a valid testimony in that area.

Look again at the phrase, ‘a way in the wilderness’.  You have two choices to make.  You can choose to focus on the wilderness or you can focus on ‘the way’. You could choose to focus on the negatives if you like, but be prepared a cloud of negativism will become your constant companion.  On the other hand, you could choose to focus on God’s faithfulness to lead you out of the wilderness. You can choose to focus on the good He brought out of that wilderness experiences, how He strengthened you.  And I’ve got a sweet thought for you, if you focus on how God brought you out of the wilderness.

The more you focus on the good, the more good you’ll notice AND the better you are going to feel.  The more hopeful you’ll become.  Goodbye, despair; for hope and despair don’t share the same space.

Gotta a verse for you:

Romans 15:4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.


It’s Complicated…….NOT! or Three Simple Steps to Successfully Fight Fiery Darts!

May15

Recently, a young friend shared with me her experience in defeating an attack of fiery darts. I was so intrigued with the simple yet powerful process that led to her victory, that I thought I would share it with you here.

First, she had been praying (Major component of any encounter) about a job change.  It seemed to her that God had been leading in a particular direction which she pursued.  Then everything fell through and she didn’t get the job.  Of course, she was confused and upset, for this was the job she’d been hoping for.

Initially, her emotions were defined by her severe disappointment.  However, soon the Holy Spirit sent her the following verse b/c remember she had been praying:

“Trust in the LORD, with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your path.” Prov. 3:5-6

Therefore, she cried out to the LORD, “LORD, I don’t understand and I don’t know what to do, but I’m trusting in You.”  She just kept praying that prayer over and over.  Then she had the thought that she would email every organization she had been following and ask for their advice on how to get into the field without the benefit of experience in the area.  (I believe, that b/c her mind wasn’t awash with despair & confusion, her thoughts were free to be guided by the hope of God’s Word.)

The response was immediate from several organizations, offering advice.  But when a local organization contacted her and said they would be hiring soon and she should send them her resume, all my friend’s confusion vaporized.  For she had been following this particular organization for awhile and quietly yearned to be a part of it.

At this writing, the results are not in about whether my friend got this job, but I wanted to share this now b/c the main victory’s already been won.  In this life experience my friend has given us a clear example of how to fight successfully those fiery dart attacks. ( I’ll get back to you and the job thing)  In the meantime, allow me to review:

1.  Acknowledge the fiery dart

2.  Find a verse to focus on

3. Allow prayer and God’s Word to define your attitude and/or actions

I think it’s important to understand that the fiery dart my friend encountered was designed to create frustration, disappointment, and to dishearten her to the point that her attitudes and actions would have be set in a downward spiral.  Yet, she broke this destructive and predictable cycle by simply turning to God and saturating her mind with a word from Him then allowed that fresh hope to define her actions from that point on.

But watch out!  Satan will attempt to convince you that this process is not nearly as simple as all this.  You know, the all too familiar catch phrase used these days when people have succumbed to overwhelming attack of fiery darts and have no clear understanding of what God would have them do (largely b/c they are not familiar with this whole fiery dart thing):

“It’s complicated!”

(Don’t be bamboozled! Remember! that’s a fiery dart!)

Misunderstanding Freedom!

Mar10

As I listen to people who proclaim they have thrown off the shackles that have kept them in bondage, and are delirious with the joy their new found freedom has afforded them, because of what I’m learning about fiery darts, I see people who have succumbed to a dangerous deception.  The sad thing is they don’t even realize it.  Why is this?  Because their resources for defining Truth are anything BUT the Scriptures, the Holy Word of God, the Bible!

How can anyone misunderstand freedom, you might ask?  Well, in order to misunderstand freedom, freedom has to be redefined. But before freedom can be redefined you must first redefine wrong. For example, if you are doing something wrong and you desire the freedom to keep doing that wrong but you don’t want to have to feel guilty about doing it then you must redefine wrong!  Obviously, the first thing that must be done is to be selective about the sources  that are chosen in selecting the definition desired.  So, throw out the Bible!  You won’t have to go far to find people who are willing to choose any philosophy available that will condone behavior that the Bible condemns.  Once that is accomplished then you can easily redefine freedom.  And guess what?  This definition has always been around!   I’ll leave out the word and you see if you can fill in the blank!

_________ –  sometimes denotes deliberate deviation from normally applicable rules or practices to achieve a desired effect.

Did you guess it?  I bet you did.  Yep it’s license!  You see people who want to “achieve the desired effect” of doing wrong without having to feel guilty about it are in reality desiring license.  But no one would be foolish enough to demand license because they wouldn’t be taken seriously.  Therefore, call it freedom and when you start demanding your freedom then you’ll be taken seriously!

But unless you have a formidable number of people in agreement with you, you still might not succeed.  So then what do you do?  Simple! You begin a campaign where people are influenced to reject the source of truth that opposes you.  That’s right, the Bible.  Bombard the airwaves, via television, movies, radio with cleverly written scenarios of people who live their lives in direct opposition to God’s Truth without suffering any adverse effects long enough and soon people will be as easily deceived as you have been.  Then you’ll have the freedom to live anyway you want and no one will mind.  Well, maybe not everyone but enough to where you will achieve the desired effect.

And don’t be naive and lay all the blame for this at the feet of those who have rejected God’s Truth so they can have the “freedom to live without guilt“.  Yes, some of the blame should be laid at their feet but not all.  The culprit is threefold:

Satan (James 4:7)

the World (John 16:33)

and the Flesh (Ephesians 2:3)

These individuals, in not seeking genuine Truth, have sucuumbed to the flesh and are unwittingly cooperating and being influenced, by Satan and the World.  As a result they are being deceived and manipulated into thinking they have finally achieved freedom.  That sentence in a nutshell defines the work of fiery darts.

1 Tim 4:2 (GW)2 These people will speak lies disguised as truth. Their consciences have been scarred as if branded by a red-hot iron.

“What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.  Isaiah 5:20, New Living Translation

How do you spell love?

Feb4

Because Valentine’s Day is coming up, I think it is the appropriate time to address a relevant issue covered in my book, Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice, concerning the definition of love.

      When a marriage lacks “love” as defined by society, that is romantic feelings, it becomes inconceivable to those subscribing to society’s definition to remain in the relationship.  When it is romance that fuels our relationship then our focus is on the performance or lack thereof of our spouse.  (p.72)

         In defining love, could it be that we have succumbed to another fiery dart?  When we define love according to 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, we find that, “Love is patient and kind; it is not jealous or conceited or proud; love is not ill-mannered or selfish or irritable; love does not keep a record of wrongs;love is not happy with evil, but is happy with the truth. Love never gives up; and its faith, hope, and patience never fail.” (NIV)  This is the kind of love Jesus has for us.  It is a God-centered view of love.  This kind of love will preserve marriage because it brings glory to God and points a sinful world to the reconciling love of its Creator.9  Do we think that we could love like this if we never encountered the situations that had the potential to teach us how to love in this manner?  This love is not performance based; it does not require that our earthly comforts, desires, and expectations must be met; it is not self-seeking, which unfortunately defines, for too many us, the basis of our love for others.  This type of love can only be found by sitting at the feet of Jesus and allowing Him to teach us how to love as He loves. (pp.72-73)

         A clear understanding of the love we should have, as described in the Love Chapter (1 Corinthians 13), expands our definition of love.  As Christians we were taught to define love by Christ’s example.  I suspect the only way we can love like this is to become more like Christ as we handle the problems we face in our marriages. (p. 73)

         So why do I insert this section from my book?  Because I believe that Society is out of balance in defining love.  We have put way too much emphasis on the romantic aspect of love.  It might even be said of Society’s definition of love that if you’re not experiencing romance, then you’re not experiencing love!  And to that, I say, “Society! You are way off on your definition!”  If we go by Society’s definition then all those married couples who for one reason or another have stayed together in spite of the fact that the romance has gone out of their relationship are fools.   Well, maybe that’s a bit strong!  How about ‘crazy’?

I would like to encourage all those ‘crazy’ married couples out there who are hanging in there without the benefit of the glue of romantic feelings!  First of all, God bless you!  Thank you for showing by your example that ‘love’ is spelled ‘c-o-m-m-i-t-m-e-n-t’.  By your example, you are redefining ‘love’ and getting closer to its truer meaning. So keep on keeping on! God has some pretty awesome plans for you. Remember Jeremiah 29:11?

“‘For I know the plans I have for you’, declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future,’

To be sure, romance is desirable in a marriage.  For those of you who are blessed to still have that, how wonderful!  But do not despair if your marriage doesn’t.  Learn how to fight the fiery darts that have disheartened and discouraged your marriage.  Hold on to the hope that once you have acknowledged and learned how to wage war on the fiery darts attacking your marriage, then the healing of your marriage can begin.

Remember:  Romance is a by-product of love but it does not define love!  Yep, if you’ve got commitment, then you’ve got a lot of love in your marriage–you are just learning to spell it differently!