Wednesday, March 31, 2010

What Does Serving Jesus Cost You?

     There is nothing that humbles me, or challenges me, or takes me to my knees like hearing about the Christians in China. Their commitment, dedication, and joy through tribulation shine as an amazing light on our, sometimes, superficial Christianity. Where is our depth? Why do we think our walk with God should be all about me? Many churches in America, no matter the size, are struggling with spiritually lazy members. Life and busyness has worn us out and we think we don't have anything else to give. We want to walk into church, sit down, and get blessed. Giving up time to study the Bible with fellow believers is something most aren’t willing to do. We don’t want to volunteer to work in the church because we can’t get everything else we want to do done, so why add something else? We want to be a part of a family, but not have any chores or responsibilities. Ministries of churches are declining because people aren’t serving. Who is going to teach the children?  As you think about your life as an American Christian, read the following words from a friend of Brittne’s who serves in China. 
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 “I am not sure that I can speak for all of China, but I will tell you how the local believers here will celebrate Sunday. As Easter draws near, there is a growing awareness of the ‘lostness’ around us by both local believers and workers on the field. Many believers are busy this week sharing the Good News and anticipating the celebration of Easter. This year, Easter falls on the same weekend as Qing Ming Festival.
Qing Ming Festival is known as "Tomb Sweeping" festival and is a 3 day holiday in which families gather to go to their ancestors graves, clean them, and offer sacrifices for their ancestor's needs to be met in the afterlife, and, in turn, for those sacrificing to be blessed. It is an extremely sad ritual that shows the bondage these people are in. As Believers celebrate the empty tomb, we are constantly reminded that people around us have dedicated their lives to tombs filled with bones that will never atone for their sins.
This Easter, many believers will choose not to go to their ancestors' graves, but rather join together in celebration of the Risen Lord. Faith families look different here than in many parts of the Western world. Believers normally meet in small house groups of roughly 10-15 people. In this particular area, many house groups will come together to celebrate Easter altogether in a park, here in the capital city of the province. This is both for local believers to be encouraged by each other and it opens the door to invite non believing friends.
In the park, believers will fellowship, sing, worship, and study the Book together. They will invite their friends and relatives who do not believe to come and hear about God. The celebration will last several hours and many will travel from miles around to come be with other believers.
This year I will be joining in the celebration at the park. It is always encouraging to be with the locals here as their faith is so real. The Lord always teaches me so much about trusting Him when I am with the locals. These people know what persecution is. They know what it's like to follow Him and not have your family's support, be ridiculed, mocked, and even threatened. The locals have great joy in the Lord and He constantly reminds me to come before Him with the same joy and trust Him completely."
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Again, this humbles me! We complain that God doesn’t love us if He doesn’t give us what we ask for, and these Christians serve Him even if they are persecuted by family, arrested, tortured, or killed. Many Christian churches in China are underground. Don’t feel too sorry for them though. They are strong in their faith and in their trust in God. Would it surprise you to know that they actually pray for the American Christians and our shallow, untested faith? We often say that we would be willing to die for Christ. However, are we willing to truly live for him?

Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. God is just; He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.
2 Thessalonians 1: 4-7

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

From The Andes Mountains

     Easter can sometimes make my ‘mama heart’ a little sad. It seems lonely to not have my children home at Easter, or to have little children around! Yes, that is a hint that I am ready for grandchildren! However, the joy my heart feels when my children are serving the Lord with their lives, far outweigh any loneliness. Today’s devotion is from Brittne, my 23 year old daughter, serving the Lord on the mission field out of Lima, Peru. She travels from Lima to different villages and ministers for weeks and months at a time. While in the villages, she has had to learn to live without the conveniences she has been accustomed to; for example: traffic laws, heat, running water, showers, food she is familiar with, ice, healthy food choices, comfortable beds, and silence to sleep by. She has endured stomach and intestine problems from a parasite, infections, and as of late, stomach sickness from unknowingly drinking the water. She has taken all of this with a servants heart. I must admit, I do not always do as well when I get a 7:00 a.m. phone call from her, in a far away village, crying, and telling me she is sick. Those have definitely been times of trusting the Lord for her care because there is not one thing I can do to help; other than let her hear her mama’s voice telling her it will be okay. She is proud of her new record for the number of days she has gone without a hot, real shower: 23 days! She has learned to fit well into her culture! The love she has for the Lord and for the people there has empowered her to walk this journey of missions. I love her, respect her, and admire her for the spirit in which she serves!
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 (From Brittne)
I will be spending my Easter week in a village in Peru. Easter here is not just celebrated on Sunday but is celebrated throughout the whole week. This past Sunday kicked off “Holy Week”. The people here marched around the village carrying palm branches and singing songs. Then they went to mass in the Catholic Church. Thursday and Friday is “Holy Day” where they all bow down before the cross in the church and worship God. There will also be processions throughout the streets in the village. In the front of the crowd they will carry some kind of idol of Mary, a figure of Jesus or the Virgin Dolorosa; following these will be the villagers. A band will be playing music. Saturday is “The day of the glory of the Lord”. In the Catholic Church, they each will have a lit candle representing the light of the Lord. Then the priest will “bless” the water and sprinkle it on the members of the church, to cleanse them of their sins. Sunday is the “Day of the Resurrection” and everyone attends mass.
We will be in the village this week sharing the true meaning of Easter. We have formed a study about the crucifixion and resurrection and how it applies to our lives. Most of the celebrations this week are conducted because of tradition and nothing more! They go through all the celebration but do not truly know the story or understand its significance. This week, God will use my three person team to share with them how Jesus came and died in order for us to gain salvation. They will hear the truth…the Gospel. God has helped me to focus on the true meaning of life. It's easy to get busy or to get caught up in traditions during holidays and even in our everyday life. Remembering my purpose in life is to glorify the Lord above all else and allowing that to be my focus is something the Lord has been teaching me. I won’t be home with my family this year to go to church, have a big Sunday meal with friends and family, or hide and hunt Easter eggs. However, I will be able to worship my Lord for what He has done for me, to share His message with others, and concentrate on the true meaning…all traditions aside.
Jesus sacrificing His life on the cross to offer us the gift of eternal life with Him, is the one and only reason for Easter. Yet, the villagers in Peru make the whole week about Mary, Saints, Virgins and traditions. I think it is very interesting and I wonder how much we do the same. Do we make Easter about our traditions and things that have nothing to do with Jesus? Even in our day-to-day lives, are we glorifying God; which is our one and only purpose, or do we make our lives all about what glorifies self? How often are we distracted with what we want to do, what we want to own, where we want to live etc. and we lose focus on what we are suppose to be as followers of Jesus? How often do we get caught up in tradition instead of getting caught up in pleasing our Savior?

Jesus prays before they arrested him:
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one. Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I gave given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one. I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.
John 17:15-26

Friday, March 26, 2010

When You Least Expect It!

     I have never anticipated an event more than I did when I was 8½ months pregnant. Every day I anticipated the arrival of a new life. I prepared for it! It was a constant trial of endurance. I was miserable in my swollen, aching, big bellied body. The time seemed to drag by. My first child was due on February 8th. When February 7th came to an end, I figured it would be a few more days because I knew that only 5% of babies were born on their due date. I could just relax the next day because the odds were way against me going into labor. I really needed to wash my hair that night, but I told myself to go on to bed because I could wash it the next day. After all, I wasn’t going to have anything to do since I wouldn’t be having a baby! Well, I was wrong! When I least expected it, at 4:00 a.m., I began my first labor experience. That evening, I gave birth to my son; on his due date. The time of anticipation had come to an end.
     Though we might anticipate it, we will be raptured out of this miserable world when we least expect it! I got a glimpse of how quickly the unexpected can occur last week when all of a sudden the shelves in the garage fell. (See Monday’s and Wednesday’s devotion) It was a Friday night like any other Friday night. The shelves had hung with the containers on them for four years. Countless times the garage door went up and down, and the entrance door opened and closed, and the car doors slammed; and yet they had never given way. The shelves did not fall because of an accident or any kind of action taken against them. I walked to my car and closed my car door like I have daily. Nothing was out of the ordinary. There was no expectancy of anything major happening! Then out of nowhere, I heard a loud sound and in a split second the unexpected occurred!
     As Christians, we anticipate the day the trumpet will sound and we will be leaving this world. It will happen in an instant: an instant when we least expect it. It will be amazing! We will be here one second and flying home the next!
     Here is the problem though; we say we anticipate it but we really are not living in a true state of anticipation. When was the last time you were excited about the thought, “Today could be the day I see Jesus?” When we do not live in that kind of anticipation, we do not stay ready to face the Lord and we grow complacent. We procrastinate doing the things we know we need to do. I do understand that when you are a young adult, it is hard to think about leaving this world without doing the things you have always dreamed of; like having children and getting married. However, that is when we have to trust that our eternal life, in the presence of God, will be far more than our minds can fathom and with this in mind, all of our worldly simply fade away.
     Sincerely take a few minutes today and imagine what it would be like to stand before the Lord in the next few hours? Are you ready? Do you have regrets? What have you been procrastinating? Do you anticipate the second coming of Jesus like a child anticipates being a mama when she plays with her doll? Or do you anticipate the second coming of Jesus like a nine month pregnant woman? Jesus will come and it will happen in a split second, with a blow of a trumpet! Listen! What do you hear?

You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it’s over. On signal from that trumpet from heaven, the dead will be up and out of their graves, beyond the reach of death, never to die again. At the same moment and in the same way, we’ll all be changed. In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal.
1 Corinthians 15:52-53

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Its The Same Love

     Yesterday, I wrote to you about the blessing of God protecting my sibling’s heirlooms. Also, Monday I shared with you how he saved me from being underneath those falling shelves. I give him the total praise for these blessings and I thank Him! Scripture teaches us to remember the miracles God does in our lives and to give Him praise. It is my heart’s desire to do just that. I do not want to take anything away from the praise that He is due. However, for today, I want to look at it from another perspective.
     What if one or both of those blessings did not occur? What if I would have been hurt standing under those shelves, or even killed? What if we would have lost everything in those containers? Would God be less worthy of praise? My first reaction is, ‘Of course, not!” But in reality, many times we give Him less! To take the spoken words of ‘praise God for all circumstances’ and then live it out in action is not always easy! When we are mourning, or hurting, or enduring trials, we often ask ‘Why’ instead of saying ‘Praise Jesus’. My children have thanked me for many things I have done for them, but I never remember them thanking me for not giving them what they wanted, or for giving them a time of testing, or for disciplining their wrong behavior. They usually whined, complained, tried manipulation, or threw a down right fit! We are no better! Somewhere, in our Christian walk we have grabbed a hold of a false doctrine. This false thinking tells us that the better we are and the more God loves us, the more good things will happen to us. Now, I do believe that when we choose to live out God’s principles we will reap the blessings from those principles. However, those blessings are not a bubble that surrounds us, keeping out trials, testing, and all heartache. We still live in a sinful world where bad things happen. God does not promise us a life free of the effects of sin. He promises to be with us no matter what! Make sure you grasp the ‘no matter what’! That is, in my opinion, the best promise I could possibly have. He will not leave me. He will not forsake me. He will not abandon me. He will always be there! The false teaching that plays favorites, says that if you have two women who have lumps in their breast. One finds out it is nothing and the other one finds out that it is cancer; God loves the one without the cancer more? Really? I have known some amazing Christian women, who have had breast cancer, and some recovered and some died. What if you have two people who both owned homes they loved? A fire approaches: one house burns to the ground and the other house survives. The false teaching says that God loves the ones whose home survived more than the ones whose home burned to the ground. Really? I have known some Godly people who love the Lord, who have lost it all. I bet you are saying to yourself, I would never believe that! Really? Has the deepest part of your heart and soul ever said to God, “You must love her more than me, she is so beautiful?” “You must love them more than me, I am struggling financially, and they seem to have all the money they could possibly need”. “You must love her more than me, you bless her with a husband that adores her and mine, no matter how hard I pray, he doesn’t acknowledge I exist”. Oh, the false teaching can creep into our thinking in so many ways!
     Let me answer my original questions. If God would have allowed the shelves to fall on me, or even have taken my life; he would have done it with the same love He had when he protected me. He would have a reason and a purpose for it! And if I would have died, I would have been in His presence! The only ones that would see that as anything other than a blessing are those left here to deal with their loss. I would instantly realize what an amazing blessing that would be and would want it no other way! Additionally, if every item would have been destroyed, He would have allowed it with the same love as He had when He saved it! We would have received His comfort, and peace, and strength! We would have experienced His presence in our lives in a mighty way. He would have been with us through it all! He would have healed whatever hurt our hearts felt. Though we might not have been able to praise Him for the circumstance, we could praise Him for His love, His faithfulness, and His compassion. That is why we can praise Him no matter what! That is why I can praise Him for his love, whether I see it in the valley or on the mountain top. Even though the view may be different, His love remains the same and "endures forever"!

O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy an loving-kindness endure forever!

1 Chronicles 16:34

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Give Me Eyes To See

PART 2 OF MONDAY’S DEVOTION
     Though the joy of escaping the shelf catastrophe was fighting to overcome my every thought; the heart-ripping mourning over the damaged containers was giving a great fight for dominance in my mind. Usually, I can deal with the loss of material things, though I have never had to endure losing everything like those who have survived fires, floods, or earthquakes. But these containers held the life memories of two people who I love and who are very dear to me! After my father and mother divorced, he remarried and had two children. We had our children around the same time. My sister is the oldest at 26 years old, and then my son is next at 25. My brother is 24 years old and my daughter is the baby at 23. Six years ago this month. our father died in his sleep from a heart attack. However, they didn't just lose their father; they had lost their mother five years before. So, when my siblings were just 18 and 20 years old, we sold their memory filled home. The shelves, which collapsed, held the items kept from my sibling’s life with their loved, cherished, and missed parents. It was overwhelming for two young adults to decide what they wanted or needed to keep. Most of the time, we are much older when we make our final selections to the heirlooms we inherit from our parents.   
     So, much of what is in the containers are items that I (the older and wiser sister) chose, as I ignored their statements proclaiming they only wanted a few things! I knew their young, hurting hearts were speaking. I knew they would regret not having reminders of their childhood and memories of their loving parents. These items are more than material things; they are things that will give them a sense of comfort and heritage throughout their lives! And now, those containers were lying busted and spilled out over an eight foot area.The one consuming thought I had was ‘how am I going to find the strength and words to tell them their cherished possessions were gone.’ First, they lost their mother, then they lost father, then they endured high school graduations, college graduations, career achievements, and now they have chosen the ones they want to spend their lives with; all without their parents standing beside them giving them praise, wisdom, and guidance. This was another loss I didn’t want them to endure. I knew that all the china from their mother and their grandmother was going to be in pieces. I assumed all the crystal glasses, serving dishes, figurines, and collected dolls would be joining the heap of broken glass. It was more than I could handle without taking time to let God strengthen me. So, I did not touch anything until Saturday afternoon. When the time came when I could no longer procrastinate, I started the process of going through the pile of rubble, one item at a time. Containers were busted everywhere, which only added to the expectations of recovering nothing that wasn't broken. The first levels gave some excitement and hopefulness! Not one of those piles had anything broken in them. However, I knew the china was flung and buried on the bottom. As I made my way to the final reveal of the china, I witnessed the continual miracle of God's protection. Somehow, though the china had encountered an eight foot drop onto cement, had been flung out of its protective container, and had endured the impact of other heavy containers falling on top of them; they were for the most part, undamaged. One coffee cup, two dessert plates, and two stemmed glasses were all that were broken! Out of twenty tubs; 5 minor things were broken. Amazing is all I can say!!!
     God cared for my sister and brother by protecting the only things from their past lives with their parents. They didn't know what was going to happen, so there was no reason to ask God for help before the crash. His hands which protected their memories were not spurred into action by their specific prayers. I doubt if they have ever prayed, "Lord, please protect my stuff in Tonya's garage!" But he did anyway! He works in our life even when we do not know how to ask, or what to ask, or even when we need to ask. Sadly, many of the things that God does for us, we do not even recognize as His hand of love. Other times we take God's blessings and chalk them up to luck! Some may say we were 'lucky' that nothing was destroyed; you will never hear me say that! We were blessed, not by coincidence, but by the love of God!
     When was the last time you recognized a miracle in your life? Did you praise the Lord or give the credit to 'luck'? God is at work around us at all times. His work is not ordinary. It shouldn’t be that hard for us to see, if we look through our spiritual eyes and praise Him for the great and powerful things He does every day. All we need to do is ask for eyes to see!

Open my eyes so I can see what you show me of your miracle-wonders.
Psalm 119:18

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Can You Hear The Voice?

     How long has it been since you heard that still, small voice speaking to your heart? People always want to know, how to hear God! The answer is LISTEN! But how do you know if it is His voice or yours? That can be a little more confusing. When you feel God is telling you something, look around you for confirmation. If He is speaking to you, it will be confirmed from scripture or a teaching using scripture, the council of other Christians who are walking with the Lord, and/or your circumstances. Do we always get it right every time? No! However, the more practice you get the faster you will recognize it! Friday night, when I was deciding if I wanted to go to the car then for my Excedrin or on my way home, I heard an internal voice tell me to go to the car now, not on my way home. I did not recognize this voice as the Holy Spirit at the time! I heard it more as my own deliberating thoughts. After all, this wasn't a big decision! It was one of those little things we decide about every day, sometimes every minute! In addition to the thought, I had a strong pull to go to the car ‘now’ and that is what I really followed. Looking back, though I didn't recognize it at the time, I know it was His voice because of two things. One, the circumstances proved a miraculous intervention had taken place: two, I had a drawing of my heart to not go to the car on my way home, but to go then.
     During those times I do hear God's voice; I have learned to rely on the indescribable peace which overcomes me. I have learned to trust that peace the most when it is something I do not want to do! When I want to do what I am hearing, I take extra time to confirm that I am hearing God's voice. But if you seek Him and His will for you, you will hear it, know it, and find it.
       Another thing we need to do is to stay alert and attentive to the still small voice that whispers to our heart. To hear a quiet voice you have to get rid of the noise; the noise of the world, and the noise of the heart. I do okay with the still part but the quiet part has always been a struggle for me. As an only child, I made noise my friend and used it as comfort when I was home alone. Now, I have to force myself to be in the midst of quietness.
     Besides hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit, we need to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. To only hear and not obey does not bring blessing. I am very thankful that this time I followed the voice I was hearing. Because I listened, I was spared the potential of a major accident.
     We need to be alert for the voice of the Holy Spirit. Are you listening? Is your world noisy? Is your heart full of noise? Do you seek confirmation and peace about what you are hearing? Are you obedient?

Elijah was trying to find and hear from God when he was told....
Go stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by. A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn't to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn't in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn't in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper. When Elijah heard the quiet voice, he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, "So Elijah, now tell me, what are you doing here?"
1 Kings 19: 11-13

Monday, March 22, 2010

My Life In God's Hand

I am going to split today’s devotion, due to the length, over the week. Aren’t you glad that I didn’t give you devotion that long!
     This weekend God blessed me in a way that I will never forget! Friday nights are a time we try to sit aside to play cards with my mother and step father. Due to my step father’s age and health, these are nights we do not take for granted. I usually pull into the garage, close the garage door, go out the entrance door, and down the sidewalk to my house. I change clothes, see the dogs, and then go over to my mother’s home. They live in an apartment on the backside of the garage, so it is not far! lol. However, Friday night I was bringing home some pizza for dinner (light pizza of course), so, I was going straight to my mom’s. I pulled into the garage, closed the garage door and went to her house through the garage. We had dinner and began our night of cards. Around eleven o'clock, I was getting a headache. I debated whether I should go to my car and get some Migraine Excedrin or just wait and get it later on my way home. I talked myself into going to the car between games because I didn't want my headache to keep growing. I got the pills out of my car, closed the car door, and started walking to the other side of the garage to door into my mother’s home. About half way there, I thought my world was ending. I heard a huge indescribable sound consisting of breaking glass, echoing thuds, and clanking metal. I turned around so quickly, I think I actually got whip lash in my neck. I remember processing the moment as if the clock was ticking in slow motion. I let a huge scream escape out of my mouth. Then silence . . . as the shock my eyes was translating the scene to my mind. The shelves that ran over the entrance door I walk through several times a day decided, after four years of service, to detach themselves from the walls. By this time my caring husband was standing next to me; reporting to duty from my screaming reverie call. After telling him about the shelves and pointing in the direction of the disaster, he gave me the courage to walk around my car and take in the sight before my eyes. To me it was so heart wrenching, I was numb when I was shown the new dent on my car from the flying 2x4. It was more than I could deal with at that moment, so I went back into my mother's and tried to clear my thoughts by finishing our card game.
     The experienced consumed me: not just my mind but my entire body. The adrenalin rush made my body quiver and my hands shake for hours. My mind was filled with thoughts, I will be sharing the rest of the week.  However, the first thought was how God had just spared my life. We often talk about guardian angels. I always laugh and say how my angel has to work double shifts and has to work double hard. I definitely know I am a challenge to my angel! Seriously, I do not know if I truly believe in angels assigned to individuals to guard them, but if there are, I am positive they would not want any praise for themselves. Their purpose is to praise God, and we should follow in their heavenly shoes. They are only tools of God's hands. All I know for sure is that if I had gotten my Excedrin on my way home, I would have been standing under those shelves when they broke. I have no idea what the outcome would be for me enduring the impact of extremely heavy tubs but I do know it is something I would not want to experience. For four years, we have walked under those shelves daily. Yet, at the exact moment they were going to break, God orchestrated my absence from their impact. It humbles me and reassures me that God still has a purpose for me.
    I struggle to find the words to describe my heart towards God and His provision. But you know I will try! As I process this experience, I am reminded of several principles of God's sovereignty. To begin with, I was reminded that my life is in God's hands. He can take it or protect it as His plan for my life is played out. It can happen in a moment, without any warning. I need to live a life of no regrets, prepared and ready to meet my Savior face to face.
     How long has it been since you recognized God's miraculous hand in your life? Do you trust God for His will for your life? Do you trust Him with your death as well as your life? Do you live a life without regrets, ready and prepared to stand before God? As followers of Jesus Christ, we cannot lose. If God spares our life, we get more time with those we love and more time to serve Him. If our life comes to an end, we get to start our eternity in the presence of our God and our Savior! It is a win / win situation!

In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.
Job 12:10

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Got Baggage?

The first part of today's devotion you get to watch. I believe that Nicole Johnson is one of the most powerful teachers I know. She teaches through drama. All of her skits touch my life and deeply moves me. This one is no exception! However, though she does not perform this skit, I am sure she wrote it. Watch it and let the Holy Spirit talk to your heart.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrvJIznZKtU
I carried my bags around for years until I surrendered mine too at the feet of Jesus. It is my prayer that you have laid yours down or that today will be the day you will drop them from your clutches. They can get so heavy and impact your ability to enjoy the blessings of life.  I can envision all the burdens that were in my old bag: the one that I laid at the feet of Jesus.  My bag's contents were:
† a pedestal (of course)
† a baby doll that represented a quilt
† a picture of a father that abandoned me
† a measuring stick that determined if I measured up
† a key that represented an unhealthy dependence on Dwayne
† a chip that represented my loss of identity when my grandfather died
† a stethoscope to represent how I became responsible for my parents happiness after their divorce
I am sure I had more items that I have forgotten, but these are what I gave to Jesus when I surrendered my baggage to Him. It has been my experience both personally and from listening to others, that after we give our bags over to Jesus, we can pick up others.   Occasionally, I will find an item like one in my old bag and I will pick it up and start carrying it without even thinking about it. Sometimes, I pick it up thinking it is safe now and that the result will be different this time. It never is! I always end up having to lay it back in the arms of Jesus!
What baggage do you have? Have you laid it down, or are you still carrying it? What new baggage have you picked up?  What is in your bags?  Enjoy the freedom of maneuvering through this life without the burden of carrying heavy baggage!


Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me – watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you will learn to live freely and lightly.
Matthews 11: 28-30 (The Message)

Friday, March 19, 2010

No More Pedestal!

     Somewhere in my childhood, I decided I had to be perfect in order to be loved, especially by my parents. So, I crawled up on a pedestal and began my balancing act. Fear soon developed in me a panic driven desire to never fall off! It had me convinced that I would not be loved if I did. I have to admit, I had living life on a pedestal down pretty good. At least what people saw! At times living on that pedestal wasn’t so bad, it definitely had its rewards. Some referred to me as the ‘poor little rich girl’. I never felt rich but as an only child of parents who experienced success in their careers, I did get things: new clothes, new car, a trip to Europe, etc. However, each time I received anything, my parents, trying to encourage me would say, “You are only getting this because you are so good!” Though they did not mean for that to come across as negative, it did feed the voice of fear which would scream at me, “What would your life be like if you messed up and people didn’t think you were ‘good’?" I could not trust the fact that I would still be loved. This fear caused me to make some stupid decisions, that to this day, I regret. It made me insecure with people: whether they really loved me or they loved what they saw. It made me internally mad at my parents for not loving me unconditionally. (I now feel like I misjudged them. I believe they would have loved me no matter what, but my fear kept me from ever testing that love.) That fear made its way into my marriage as well. For many years I did not trust Dwayne's love for me when he would point out an area in my life that needed improvement. Also, this fear was present in my relationship with God. It made me doubt His unconditional love for me and I wondered, "Could I trust Him to still love me even if I sinned against Him?"
Every day, I see people struggle with thinking that God is going to turn His head from them because they have sinned. They feel He will no longer love them, or should love them, because they have screwed up! It would be great if sin would leave our lives as soon as we become a follower of Jesus Christ, but it doesn’t work that way. God does not remove our flesh and Satan still roams this earth seeking ways to devour God’s children. Sin is going to be a part of our life! We can strive to conquer it and we can make great strides but we will never be 100% sinless; that is why we need Jesus, He is the only one who is perfect and who is sinless. We must remember that all of our sins were covered on the cross. We sometimes want to make a distinction between past sin, present sin, and future sin. When Jesus died for us He paid the price for all our sin, and when he was on the cross, all of our sins were in the future!  So, don't make a distinction where God does not!  His love and forgiveness is not based on who you are, it is based on who He is!
     Just because we have sinned, does not mean we cannot be used by God! God uses broke people, as long as they have sought His forgiveness and have surrendered their will to His will. If we look across the scriptures we see many people who had sin in their life, and each of them God loved, God forgave, and God used: Moses, David, Noah, Adam, Eve, Rahab, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Peter, Paul, Mary Magdalene, the woman at the well, etc.
     I had to come to the point of understanding that I CAN live life off the pedestal. The pedestal is a hard place to live and a place of fear. I had to accept the fact that I am not perfect and I really don’t want to try to be anymore! Now, that does not mean I do not strive to be obedient to Christ, I just accept the fact that my righteousness comes from who He is, not who I am! I have learn to trust that others will love me even with my flaws and if they don’t, that is their issue. I have to constantly be aware of my natural tendency to crawl back up onto my pedestal. Why my flesh keeps trying to get me back on it when it only causes hurt is beyond my understanding! I think the way I fight my flesh from getting me back on my perch is by being an ‘open book’ and learning to laugh at my many blunders!
     Do you have a fear of failure? Do you think you have to be perfect to be loved? Do you think that God turns His back on you when you sin? Do you trust His forgiveness? Can you truly trust His unconditional love for you? What is your heart telling you? What are your actions showing you?

Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.
Philippians 3:8-9

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Love Keeps Growing

     On August 15, 1981, I married a man that I was totally in love with. I had dated him for five years and I thought I knew all I needed to know about him. He made me feel secure; he had ambition; he made me feel special; I could trust him; I respected him; he made me laugh; he loved me; and I could see growing old with him. I didn't believe that I could love him more! That was 28 years ago. I have now grown older with him and ’old’ is right around the corner. He still makes me feel secure and special. I can still trust him and he has always taken care of me. However, the love and respect that I felt for him 28 years ago feels like puppy love compared to what I feel today. Time, trials, and tests have grown that love and respect deeper and richer than I could have ever imagined! We have birthed two children and raised them to beautiful adults, we have moved 12 times, we have grown careers and have surrendered to the ministry. We have endured the stress of seminary, the challenges of pastoring, and the heartbreak of losing two little girls we planned on adopting. We have worked through the ups and down of marriage. We have experienced loss of four parents and eight grandparents. We have been blessed with many friends and have seen many wonderful places in this world. It has been a great journey together and I couldn't imagine living a day of it without the man that chose me as his wife.
     I also remember falling in love with my Jesus. There have been times, I have believed I couldn't love Him more and there have been times I yearned for a greater relationship with Him. However, my relationship with Him also grows deeper and richer with time, trials, and tests! The more valleys and mountain tops I walk through with Him, the more my trust and admiration of Him increases. He has comforted me, taught me, forgiven me, lead me, molded me, strengthened me, and blessed me. I could not have survived this life without Him and I plan on holding His hand tightly as I walk through the remaining days of my life.
     How much do you love Jesus? Hopefully, it is more than yesterday and not as much as you will tomorrow! Know that your love will grow as you walk through this life with Him. Every trial, every blessing, every desert will only help you grow in your love for Him. Are you willing to hold His hand through each day of your life? Look at everyday as a step to loving Him more!

Everyone who confesses that Jesus is God's Son participates continuously in an intimate relationship with God.  We know it so well, we've embraced it heart and soul, this love that comes from God. God is love.  When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us.
1 John 4:14-16

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

We All Need A Little Help!

    For months I have been going crazy with this rattle in my car. It comes and goes which only adds to my frustration. It is one of those sounds that seem impossible to figure out where it is coming from. First, I thought it was coming from the back. So, I crawled in the back seat while Dwayne was driving and put my ear up to everything trying to figure out the sound. (I know you are smirking at me, don’t you wish you had a video of that, so sorry you don’t! haha) I felt sure I had figured out that the sound was coming from the dash. I remembered around six months ago they did some work on the CD player and had to replace it. My investigating skills had convinced me that when they replaced the player, they must not have tightened up some of the screws. I have gotten to the point of wanting to trade the car in to get rid of the rattle! It also adds to my frustration that when someone gets in my car, it is silent. My car saves its misbehavior for me! I chalked it up to a big patience builder! Well, the other day, a friend of mine from work rode in my car and the rattle was going strong. She heard it! She soon started the search for the rattle and she started trying to convince me that it was coming from the side of the car. I explained that it was a very tricky rattle that can throw its sound around and drive you crazy! She was persistent and within minutes she determined that the sound was coming from my sunroof. Not the glass part but the hood part that I close to keep the sun out! I told her she was crazy and laughed at her. She slide shut the hood and sure enough the rattle quit. I got in my car yesterday and the rattle was back. I piously chuckled that my friend wasn’t right after all. However, my pious attitude did not last long because within seconds I noticed the sunroof hood was open. I shut it: the sound went away!!! Dang it she was right! How did she find it so fast when it has taken me six months to find what I thought it was, only to be wrong!
     God knew that sometimes we would need others to help us figure out our problems. We think we got it in control but in reality we are off base. Another Christian can look at things from a different perspective and know right where the root of the issue is. Henry Blackeby teaches in his study, 'Experience God' that God speaks to us in four ways: prayer, scripture, circumstances, and the body of Christ. God speaks to us through our Christian friends. When we refuse to share with our Christian friends and ask advice, we do not give our self the opportunity to hear God through our fellow believers. It also removes one-fourth of the ways that God speaks to us.
     Do you keep things to yourself? Or do you talk to your Christian friends about your problems, questions, and need for advice? Don't walk alone; God wants you to have company along your journey of life to help guide and encourage you. You are not meant to be alone!

And let us consider and give attentive, continuous care to watching over one another, studying how we may stir up (stimulate and incite) to love and helpful deed and noble activities. Not forsaking to neglecting to assemble together (as believers), but admonishing (warning, urging, and encouraging) one another, and all the more faithfully as you see the day approaching.
Hebrews 10: 24-25

Be Still!

     Empty nest! Those words can create different meanings depending on your stage of life and your viewpoint on family. Empty nest had been something Dwayne and I looked forward to since we were first married. We planned on having children early so we would still be young enough to enjoy our empty nest years. And now, we are living out those years. Our children are grown and on their own and all I can say are the words I once thought only old people said, "Where did the time go?" I know that if you are young, you can't imagine it because life seems so slow. If you are a young mother you think the stressful days of child rearing will never creep away! It is one of the ironic parts of life. Time seems to tick so slowly when you are looking forward and it seems to spin when you look backward! It is also true that the older you get, the faster days pass by! I am loving my empty nest days with my husband! We have total freedom to do what we want, when we want, wherever we want! However, I do wish I could go back in time. I wouldn't change anything but me. I would live life a little slower, so I could feel a little deeper, and love a little greater! So much of life was numbed by being too busy. Those of you who know me well, know that between the ministry, my work, and raising children, life was an endurance race at times. I remember one summer in Montana we had overnight guests in our home every night but four, from April to October. They were great days, but many days are blurry in my memory. I think back at some life changing days that I used busyness to help me get through without having to get blogged down with emotions. Busyness distracted me and allowed me to emotionally run away! However, one thing always happens with busyness, occasionally life comes to a screeching halt and when that happens, the emotions start to explode like Old Faithful. It is easier to deal with life emotionally when busyness is not making us numb. When the busyness is gone, so is the numbness!
     Busyness keeps us numb from other things too. It keeps us numb to the presence of God in our life. If we can avoid being in His presence, we can run from conviction. Without conviction we don't have to change, or grow, or follow His leading. We can be busy for God and avoid the heart thing! However, there will be times that God will cause our world to come to a screeching halt so He can slow us down enough to make us listen. It takes these quiet times with God to help us feel deeper and experience love greater!
Life is a gift from God. We need to mentally and spiritually embrace each day. We need to stop and listen to the life we share with others and we need to stop and listen to the words God is whispering to us!

     Do you let life get too busy? Are you living in a state of numbness? When was the last time you slowed down and embraced life? When was the last time you were still before God and let Him speak to you? I believe that Satan's greatest weapon against us is busyness! Stop letting busyness steal from you! Can you hear Him whispering your name?

Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, your High God, above politics, above everything.
Psalm 46: 10 (The Message)
Be still and know that I am God!
Psalm 46: 10 (NIV)

Monday, March 15, 2010

It is a Process!

This weekend was consumed with getting me a new laptop for home use. First, we had to decide what I was going to get. I actually ended up getting a netbook. I love it! I was a little scared at first because it was so much smaller than I am use too, but I should be able to take it anywhere I go with great ease. I think it could even travel in my large purse. Well, I really wish getting a computer could be done in my fantasy world! I would walk into a store, tell them what I need in a computer, they would hear me, and give me exactly what I need: no more and no less. I would be able to spend what I had budgeted and there would be no additional fees. Most importantly, I would take it out of the box, plug it in, and it would be ready to go! All I would need to do is open it, drop my old files into it, and start working. Well, like always I am forced to live in reality, and reality can be a pain. First, we had to compare the details of one computer to another. I had to compare facts using a language I don't understand. I had to have Dwayne explain things to me and he answers in man language and I don't always understand that either. Why can't anyone talk in simple terms when it comes to computers? I had to then convince Dwayne to not get more than I need. He is great at looking long term and tries to get as much stuff as we can get and stay in the top of our budget. I try to get the least I can get by with, for the least amount of money (which always proves to be the wrong move! Dwayne added!). Usually, the middle ground between us ends up being the best choice. We ended up having to drive to Tulsa and after minimal deliberation, I decided that a netbook was what I wanted, and paying a little more for a well known brand was what he wanted. At that point, you would think we could buy it and go. NOT! You have to decide on software, anti-virus, protection service, and if you want them to 'clean up' your new computer! A computer is the only thing I purchase that I have to pay someone to clean it up, out of the box! When you take your computer out of the box, you have tons of advertisements and trial software, and junk programs on your computer that can slow it up before you ever use it! It would be like buying a TV and having to watch hours of commercials before you could watch a show! Amazing!!! We decided to have them clean it up so we could bring it home and start using it. We waiting two hours for them to do their magic. I was so excited to use the computer, I pulled it out of the box to play with it while Dwayne drove me home. Well, I couldn't get it to turn on! I had to get home and charge it. Then I had to download my programs I use like Skype and Itunes! Then I had to get my email page set up to be the home page for my internet. Lastly, I had to download my Microsoft Office which is still in process as I write. Maybe, by the time I come home Monday night, I can drop my files in and be set!
As frustrating as getting my computer up and running is, I can see a lot of similarities with getting started on our journey as a Christian. When we start feeling the draw towards God, we start a decision making process. Then we make the decision to become a follower of Jesus. We are excited and ready to start living our spirit filled life! Very quickly we realize, it isn't that easy. There has to be a 'clean up' process. We have to eliminate the junk that causes our new life to be bogged down and not operate as smoothly as it could. After we get the junk discarded, we have to start downloading the information we need to operate our new life in all the ways we dreamed of.
     Have you ever known someone that became discouraged because their new life as a Christian did not change as quickly as they had hoped? How can you come along side them and encourage them? Could you mentor them? If that discouraged Christian is you, know that it is a process. Don't get too hard on yourself and become discouraged. Talk to other Christians and asked them how they got through similar situations. Ask a Christian you admire, if they would mentor you! We have to help each other! It is the way God established it! It is part of the process.

Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.
Hebrews 3:13

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Trust and Persistence

     Yesterday, I had a convers with Brittne that hurt my heart as a mother and worse as a fellow Christian. When Brittne went to Peru one of her assignments was to get several churches to support her through prayer. I am sure that many people, some who know and love her, and some that are strangers, pray for her faithfully. My conviction came when she shared how she never knows that because she has never received any message from them telling her so. The conversation wasn't geared towards complaining about what had not been done but she was saying how special a church in Florida had been to her. They did not know her before she went but they adopted one of the villages she works with. They take time to communicate with her and ask her if she has any needs and how they can pray for her group and for her personally. This has ministered to her so much. There are times she is lonely and feels far removed from those who love her because their ministry to her is an encouragement to her through these times. I was convicted that when God calls me to pray for someone, I also need to communicate with them, to encourage them, and to let them know they are not forgotten. I need to invest in them by asking how God is working in their life and if they have any specific needs. I should not have to be reminded of this because I have been the recipient of this kind of prayer by others. When we were home missionaries in Montana, we had a special man in Missouri pray for us everyday. I know it was more than just words with him. We could see the sincerity in him when he took the time to ask us how things he had prayed about turned out, or when he ask about our needs and our children's needs. When I was with him I always had tears in my eyes because of his love and sacrifice he gave us by praying for us everyday.
     When it comes to praying daily for me, my family, and loved ones I struggle; to be completely open with you. What I do well, is to take my prayers out of my hands and place them in God's hands. Once I put the situation or loved one in His hands, I do not continually remind Him to please take care of them. I feel if I am trusting him, I do not need to continually ask Him to help. However, I can not deny the fact that scripture speaks of daily prayer and for our persistence in it. So, where is the balance between trust and persistence? Of course, I asked God for a life picture to explain this to me. and of course, He was faithful to give me one.
     When Brittne was only a few months old, I put her on a blanket in the living room while I went to the restroom. Bryce was around 18 months old and was playing. Bryce was a normal child who believed mothers should never be alone in the bathroom, so he made sure to keep the door open and check on me every few seconds. Then he was gone for at least a minute. I would have worried but I could hear him doing something down the hallway. Soon, he was backing into the bathroom and was dragging something. He had dragged his sister, on the blanket, down the hall and presented her at my feet. He was reminding me to remember his sister. Now, I know he was just 18 months old but in his simple thinking, I do not believe he didn't think I would take care of her. He had no reason to think that. I believe he just felt better knowing that she was in my presence, where he wanted to be.
     Isn't that how we should see praying for others. It is not that we do not trust God to take care of them. We just want to make sure they are presented to the Lord and it is our way to bring them into the presence of God. Bryce didn't throw a fit or try to convince me to take care of his sister, he trusted me for that, he just wanted her in my view. Likewise, we don't need to beg or plead with God to take care of his children, we can totally trust Him for that. We are just bringing loved ones into His view. This picture speaks tenderly to my heart. It shows me the balance between trust and persistence. I need to trust God for His care and yet bring those I love into His presence.
How faithful are you to pray for others? Do you encourage them by telling them they are prayed for? Do you ask them how you can pray? Are you persistent?
Can you join me in just bringing others into the presence of God?

So, friends, we can now--without hesitation---walk right up to God in 'the Holy Place." Jesus has cleared the way by the blood of his sacrifice, acting as our priest before God. The "curtain" into God's presence is his body. So, let's do it -- full of belief, confident that we're presentable inside and out. Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps his word. Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out.
Hebrews 10:19-23

Friday, March 12, 2010

I'll Take the Scar

     My leg is getting better from my treadmill accident, except my knee. It is still infected and hurts. I think since all of my weight was on my knee it got more skin grated off. I think all of it will scar though. I have many scars already so I guess it really doesn't matter anymore. Each scar is a lesson learned. The things my scars have taught me are:
  1. The scar on big toe taught me to watch for needles in the carpet.
  2. The scar on leg taught me to stay away from fighting dogs.
  3. The scar for my cesarean taught me children do not always cooperate with my plans.
  4. The scar on upper belly taught me there are consequences for eating too much fat!
  5. The scar on my chin taught me to know how to use something before I decide to ride it.
  6. The scar on my finger taught me to be careful when you use a sharp knife especially when cutting a turnip.
  7. The scar on my wrist taught me to be careful when trying to loosen a wooden window with your hand and to make sure you hit the wood and not the glass.
  8. The scar on my arm taught me to not flip a frozen hash brown in hot grease.
  9. My recent scars taught me to stay away from Virgina creeper.
  10. Now my new scars have taught me to run with the light on and wear the emergency cord when I am on my treadmill!
     These scars represent valuable lessons to me. They do not cause me any pain but are something I notice occasionally. However, it would be terrible if they had never healed. If I had to live with them as open wounds that never healed, I would live in misery. Probably most of us have physical scars and probably most of us have emotional scars. However, there are many people who never let their emotional scars heal, they continue to pick at their hurts and let them fester. Jesus is our Balm of Gilead. The balm of Gilead was an ointment which in old testament times, people would travel far to get. It had healing qualities. The balm would clean and heal wounds. Scripture calls Jesus our Balm of Gilead. He is the ointment for our wounds. Following His character, He will not force it on you. You must turn to Him for your healing. A people who never heal their emotional wounds are miserable and never enjoy life.
     Do you have emotional wounds that have not been healed? What is keeping you from letting Jesus heal you? Do you really want to live with open wounds for the rest of your life? Aren't you miserable? Let Jesus heal you! You will have scars but they will be simple reminders to you of lessons learned. I would take a scar over an open wound any day! Wouldn't you?
Then, just as they were sitting down to eat, they looked up and saw a caravan of camels in the distance coming toward them. It was a group of Ishmaelite traders taking a load of gum, balm, and aromatic resin from Gilead down to Egypt.
Genesis 37:25

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
Psalm 147:3

Thursday, March 11, 2010

The Real Identity Theft!

     Can you imagine dedicating your entire life to serving God and leading people to Jesus? Then after you spread Christianity across a complete country, you die and the country decides to remember you with a national holiday. What an honor? However, after many years of celebration and the holiday spreading into other countries, you experience a different type of identity theft. Your name starts to be associated with all kinds of activities and very few remember why you were being honored to begin with. I think this is so very sad! I am referring to the holiday that we will be celebrating next week: St. Patrick’s Day. St. Patrick’s Day is a day of parades and wild parties and a holiday to get drunk. How did it go from honoring a man who spread Christianity across Ireland to what we have made it today?
     Here is the real story of the man behind St. Patrick’s Day. It is known that St. Patrick was born in Britain to wealthy parents near the end of the fourth century. At the age of sixteen, Patrick was taken prisoner by a group of Irish raiders who were attacking his family's estate. They transported him to Ireland where he spent six years in captivity. During this time, he worked as a shepherd, outdoors and away from people. Lonely and afraid, he turned to his religion for solace, becoming a devout Christian. (It is also believed that Patrick first began to dream of converting the Irish people to Christianity during his captivity.) After more than six years as a prisoner, Patrick escaped. According to his writing, a voice-which he believed to be God's, spoke to him in a dream telling him it was time to leave Ireland. To do so, Patrick walked nearly 200 miles from County Mayo, where it is believed he was held, to the Irish coast. After escaping to Britain, Patrick reported that he experienced a second revelation-an angel in a dream tells him to return to Ireland as a missionary. Soon after, Patrick began religious training, a course of study that lasted more than fifteen years. After his ordination as a priest in 432 AD, he went back to Ireland as a priest. He tried to convert the Irish people from a pagan, polytheistic religion that worshiped the sun and the moon to Christianity. He also created and taught at many schools along Ireland's west coast. One of his teaching methods included using the shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity (the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit) to the Irish people. After nearly thirty years of teaching and spreading God's word, he died on March 17, 461 AD. Soon after his death, the country of Ireland decided to remember his death with a day of his own and thus St. Patrick's Day was born. (From Wikipedia)
     Earlier this week we covered how we knowing each of our own stories. In honor of St. Patrick let’s try to share our story with a person who isn’t a follower of Jesus yet. Let’s help spread Christianity where we live. Let’s also wear a shamrock to represent the Trinity and tell as many people as we can what it stands for. Lastly, let’s try and share the real meaning behind St. Patrick’s Day. I have never thought to much about St. Patrick’s Day before, but it will be fun celebrating it in this new way!

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.
2 Corinthians 2:14-15

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Are you at Risk for Identity Theif?

     In today’s culture you can hardly go a day that you do not hear warnings about protecting yourself against identity thief. I admit, I am not as careful as I should be. It’s not that I do nothing but I do not worry about it at every turn. I do not worry about an invisible big brother out to get me. I am not naive that it can happen but I refuse to live in fear. I do know though, that identity theft causes huge troubles for people. Their life can be turned upside down with no warning. Before they know it, their lives are in turmoil and the cleaning up process can be difficult.
     I have been reading a book preparing for next year’s marriage’s retreat. It is not like me to get ready this early but I think the book is very interesting. I am on my second time through. The book is titled, “Why Good Men Get Angry?” It is really a book that is beneficial to both genders but I have always believed that the majority of men need help to learn to handle their anger moments and according to the book the statistics proves that. The book speaks of an identity crisis. The book says, “At the moment you became a believer you become a new person in Christ. The ‘new you’ is your true identity. Even as a believer, however, you still possess the flesh; that part of you that craves gratification apart from Christ. When you allow your flesh to control your thinking and drive your behavior, you suffer the worse kind of identity theft. You are no longer acting in accordance to your new and true identity you have through Christ, but you are allowing your flesh to define how you think and act.”
     This is definitely a new way of looking at things. I am no longer the person who is a slave to my flesh. When I am giving control to my flesh, I am not acting like the person I have become. I think our greatest problem is ‘who’ we believe we are. So many of us accept Jesus and know that He now takes up residence in our hearts but we never move pass that knowledge. We still see ourselves the way we were before Jesus. It is as if we play dress up with Jesus when we want to look good, but when we get alone, we put our old clothes on and sit in the corner, and are sad because of who we are. What we need to do is throw away our old clothes. One of the greatest experience in losing weight is giving away all of my ‘fat’ clothes. I never wanted to see them again, let alone be back wearing them. We need to have the same attitude with the old person we were. Just because we take a step back occasionally, does not mean we have returned to the old us. We have a new and true identity and that identity doesn’t go away just because we mess up.
   What identity are you wearing? Are you letting your flesh steal your identity? When are you going to accept who you are now in Jesus and stand in your new and true identity?

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
2 Corinthians 5:17

And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.
Ezekiel 35:26-27

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

How Do You Respond to Life's Trials?

     I was sitting here pondering with the Lord what I was to write. I have several things on my list but could not get a peace that any of them was what I was to write on. I had a strong headache again today and I fell into my bed the second I walked in the door from work and got up around 7:00 p.m. My head is feeling much better but I am still in a fog, so I am not thinking very clear. Okay, I am saying more than usual! LOL! As I was asking God to reveal to me what I am to write, I get a beep on my computer and I read what Mrs. T wrote on the comment section of today’s devotion. After reading it, I set here in awe of her testimony. I know she could have shared so much more about the hurts of those situations but that is not her style. What she didn’t tell you is that she struggles with health issues herself and yet, I never hear her complain. She always encourages me with her smile and she has a way of making me feel very special. I have been touched by her spirit and feel blessed that our lives have crossed. I have also been moved by her daughter’s spirit. She is an adult woman who has what some would call handicaps. She has missing limbs; both arms and a leg, but she can out work me any day. Her spirit of service, love, determination, joy, and kindness is very humbling to me. I pray I can be as giving and grateful in this life as she is! However, it was not until reading Mrs. T’s comments that I realized that she got her attitude from her mother. I pray that both of their spirits rub off on me! (Stop and read Mrs. T’s comments from Monday’s devotion)
       Why is it that some become bitter and angry when life seems unfair and others embrace it and let it make them more Godly? I should feel ashamed for the times I complain about what happens along the path God has chosen for me to travel. How can I not trust Him for my trials and tribulations of this life if I trust Him for my eternal life? Can I trust His love for one and not the other? Thank you Mrs. T for your example…God bless you!

Moreover, let us also be full of joy now! Let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance. And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character approved faith and tried integrity (approved faith and tried integrity). And character of the sort produces the habit of joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us.

Romans 6: 3-5 (Amplified Bible)

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Follow Me!

     Yesterday, I shared my testimony with you. I made a statement about my testimony not having much 'punch' to it. Today, I would like to elaborate on that statement. Many people who were saved at an early age, at one point in their life, struggle with their salvation due to a lack of life change in their young lives. When we become adults, we start to hear amazing testimonies from people. Stories where God changed lives that were addicted to all sort of things: drugs, bitterness, alcohol, sex, partying, etc. I have heard testimonies of lives changed to the point of healing relationships, marriages, and families. I have heard of people who experienced spiritual healing and also experienced healing from abuse, disease, lack of forgiveness, heartbreaks, emotional damage, etc. When you accept Jesus as your Savior as a child, hopefully you haven't experienced these turmoils. It is easy to start wondering if your salvation was real. I experienced a time of questioning. It is good to analyze your heart to the point of knowing for sure your salvation is solid. I did this and I remember speaking to a minister friend who asked me a simple question. He asked me, "what did Jesus tell people to do?" I was studying the book of John at the time and knew the answer. I answered, "Follow Me!" The next question he asked me was, "are you following Him?" I had already searched my heart with that question and I knew the answer was YES! I live my life with the goal of following Jesus but that does not mean that I am sin free. I wish I could completely purge my life of my sin but it pops up; out of nowhere! However, I continue to strive to follow Him!
     After I made sure my salvation was solid, I had to deal with the fact that my testimony was a little 'boring' in my eyes compared to others. Now, I will say that I no longer believe that any testimony is boring. When a person accepts Jesus, scripture says that the angels rejoice. I do not believe that one person is rejoiced over more than another. God loves all of His children the same. As I was struggling with the importance of my testimony, God revealed to me what I believe would have been my future without having Jesus as my Savior. I believe I would have lived a life to get attention from men and I would have paid the consequences. I believe my form of entertainment would have been the bar. I believe my language would not be rated G. I believe I would be a very bitter person from the way I was loved. I believe I would be divorced and so my whole family would have to live with the effect. I have come to realize that God saved me from many things, even if it was before I had to experience it.
     Let's imagine a pit along a certain path. One person walked along the path and fell into the pit. A man came and pulled the person out of the pit. Another person walked down the path and before they fell in the pit, the man came and redirected the second person. Which one was more saved? Which one should be more grateful? Which experience was more important? He saved them equally from the same doom.
The important thing is to first, make sure you have a salvation testimony. Then understand which ever kind of story you have, it is going to be used for God's glory.   
     Know that your story is important to Him and to others. Embrace your unique story! I encourage you to tell one person today your story!!

Say the welcoming words to God--"Jesus is my Master"-- embracing, body and soul, God's work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That's it. You're not "doing" anything; you're simply calling out to God trusting Him to do it for you. That's salvation. With your whole being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say it, right out loud: "God has set everything right between Him and me!" Scripture reassures us, "No one who trusts God like this -- heart and soul -- will ever regret it. "It's exactly the same no matter what a person's religious background may be: the same God for all of us, acting the same incredibly generous way to everyone who calls out for help.
Everyone who calls, 'Help, God!' gets help.
Romans 10: 9-13 (The Message)

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Stay on Course

     Okay, I do not want to bore my Facebook friends by hearing again about my recent incident but as I am sitting here in pain, I do not seem to be able to think of anything else! So, you get to hear it again with a little spiritual impact to it! I have an incline walker/ tread mill that Dwayne got me and I love it! I have clips where Jillian Michaels control my board giving her complete control. Last night, I was determined to get back my habit of using the treadmill every day. I have really struggled for months and I am very frustrated because I worked too hard getting the habit of exercise into my life, to let it go away. I first got off when I got sick in November. I could not exercise when I was sick with the rash because sweating would spread the rash. It was six weeks before I could exercise. For the next six weeks, I struggled with nightly, excruciating headaches and on-going, continual hormonal cycles (that is female code in case a guy is reads this! haha). Then trip to Peru was in the middle of these struggles. Things have finally started getting better the last few weeks, so now that I am not traveling, I was determined to get back on that treadmill last night. I have a special friend who was my accountability partner in Montana and she had been sharing how she returned to her treadmill this week. That made me more determined to follow her example. Well, Monday she shared on Facebook that she was in the gym and was on the treadmill when she reached down to grab something off and slid off the back of the machine and into the wall. Her friends have been teasing her kindly and I have to admit, I was one of them. Last night I posted my favorite YouTube (a man falling off his treadmill) on her status. I have never fallen on a treadmill until after I posted that link. I was on my treadmill at midnight last night and was cooling down. I had three minutes of walking left when I buried my face into my towel to wipe my dripping sweat. The room was pitch black except for the light of the TV because Dwayne was sleeping on the daybed and I didn't want to wake him. As I was walking, my left foot stepped off the moving treadbelt; it was still on the treadmill deck; just not on the moving treadbelt. I wasn't holding on the anything so when one foot was planted and the other one was not, I went down fast. My first thought was that I would soon be thrown off the back. However, within seconds, I realized that wasn't going to happen because my left leg was planted. I then saw my right leg dragging the moving treadbelt and I could hear my skin being removed from my leg. I had to get my left leg to somehow get my right leg up off the moving grater quickly while I still had skin. I do not know exactly what happened but my left side of my body pulled it together and got my right leg to safety. As my left side performed the act of heroism, it pulled every muscle I use to sit, stand, or bend. I have walked like a very old person all day long. Every part of my body hurts. The other thing that hurts is that Dwayne always tells me to wear the safety cord. I have listened to him when I am running fast but for a normal run and walk, I have never felt I needed it. If I would have listened, I would not be hurting today! All I had to do was use my safety cord and the treadmill would have stopped when I went down.
      Life can feel like a treadmill! First, we have to learn how to walk consistently on the path the Lord lays out. We learn this by letting Him control our journey, by giving Him complete control of the course. At times it goes really slow and at times it goes really fast. Sometimes we get use to a certain pace and we can become very comfortable with it. The more comfortable we become the more we let our guard down. Before we know it, out of nowhere we can step off course, stumble, or fall. Nobody likes the humiliation of falling but it is the hurt it can produce that is difficult to deal with. Sometimes it is our emotions that get wounded and sometimes it is the other things in life. Either way when we fall, it can be damaging. The thing that is amazing is we do not have fall. Jesus tells us the way to walk, but when we do not listen we fall. When we do fall we can eliminate the hurt but using our safety cord: the grace of Jesus Christ!
     Do not let yourself feel too comfortable with your spiritual walk. When you do, Satan can come and he will do his best to trip us up. When we trip, we fall. When we fall, it causes hurt. Be on the alert for Satan. He can attack anytime, anyway, anywhere! Keep your eyes open and let the light of Christ enlighten your path.

So watch your step, friends. Make sure there's no evil unbelief lying around that will trip you up and throw you off course, diverting you from the living God.
Hebrews 3:12

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

God Wants to Connect with Us!

     I have been blessed to connect with so many of you through my daily devotions. I began these devotions strictly out of obedience to what I believed God was telling me to do. However, obedience always brings rewards and I believed I knew what some of those rewards would be. I knew that writing daily would teach me discipline. When I am tired and my body cries out to be in bed, I stay up and spend time putting written words to the lessons God teaches me because I know you will be expecting it the next morning. This is teaching me a discipline I have been longing for. The other blessing comes from once again doing the thing I love to do; teach women. God put women’s ministry on my heart many years ago. However, life has changed and I am not currently teaching classes or planning and implementing women’s retreats. Many times I have had women who I once taught, tell me they miss my teaching. I always appreciate and am touched by such compliments. I miss teaching and I thought writing daily devotions would be a great way to connect back with all those women I use to teach. I thought I knew who would be reading my devotions each day, but I was wrong. Many of my close friends, family members, and those that said they miss my teaching, do not read these devotions. The more of my life I share, the more I feel a desire for them to connect with me and read how God speaks through my everyday experiences. On the other hand, I would not have thought that my sweet childhood friend would faithfully read these devotions. Nor could I have known that some of the most faithful readers would be one of my best high school friends, a good friend I had lost contact with from 20 years ago, a few of my close co-workers, the Christian woman who impacted my life as I began my spiritual growth, friends of friends who I do not even know, woman from Fusion , etc. It blesses my heart to be used to touch others for God. However, I still long for the others that are part of my life, to share this path of my journey with God.
    I only share this to show God's desire. Sunday when Dwayne was talking about listening to God and how much God longs to have us read His Word, I thought of how I long to have those that I love share this part of my life and read this little devotion. If I desire that, how much more does God want His children to read His powerful words of teaching? God desires us to listen to Him by reading His teachings in the Bible. This is where He shares His heart, His ways, His plans, His desires, and His love for us. He longs for us to connect with Him through these written words. Yet, so many of his children, who claim to love Him and want to know Him more, do not read His scriptures. This hurts His heart and is a form of rejection.
Have you ever received a love letter and not opened it? Do you open the love letters from the One who loves you the most . . . God? Do you read His Word? You will never really know Him until you do! Do you listen to Him as you read His words as if He is speaking directly to your heart? Isn’t it amazing that the God of the universe wants to connect with you and wants you to know Him? Isn’t it more amazing that we would tell the God of the universe, “No thanks!”, or “I don’t have time”?

As you read over what I have written to you, you'll be able to see for yourselves into the mystery of Christ.
Ephesians 3:4 (The Message)

Monday, March 1, 2010

God Works It All Together!

     Nothing is more amazing to me than watching God’s timing played out! God takes many pieces of a puzzle, works them to all fit together, and orchestrates an event or a moment in time that can change the course of our life. This weekend presented me with the opportunity to once again watch God’s plan unfold and I stand in amazement of His workings. About 20 months ago, a friend and boss gave me a book for Dwayne and me. He thought it would be a good book to use when we taught our next marriage retreat. The book was “Love and Respect”. He was right, it was a marvelous book and we decided to teach it in our 2009 Valentine’s marriage retreat. About six months ago we agreed to go to Montana and teach a marriage retreat and decided to teach ‘Love and Respect’ again. The retreat was booked for this past weekend, which was two weeks after our 2010 marriage retreat in Oklahoma. The two weeks before leaving for Montana was horribly busy. Right after our yearly retreat, I worked in Nebraska for a week. When I came back, I was sick and two days later my uncle died. My cousin came and stayed a few nights with us and I helped with a part of the funeral and Dwayne conducted the service. On Wednesday, I had to work and we had Bible Study; plus I had to pack and prepare for the Montana trip. We got to bed at 1:30 a.m. Thursday, I worked and we caught our flight to Montana. We got there late that evening and stayed up even later with friends. Needless to say, we were extremely tired. We found out that the author of ‘Love and Respect’ had spoke in Helena and the majority of the people attending the retreat had gone to his seminar. Now I have to tell you that between being extremely tired and feeling a little inadequate to teach a subject that was already taught by the author himself, I questioned how effective the weekend was going to be. I don’t think I have ever felt so insecure going into a retreat. We had some friends from the church we had planted fourteen years ago in Helena and we had some who were attending the newly planted church in the valley of Helena which sponsored the retreat. One couple from that church started to get my attention. The husband was absorbing everything and was very attentive. The wife though was very quiet and hard to read. We had planned to end Friday night with an activity. I was going to take the men for a session and answer questions by explaining a woman’s viewpoint and Dwayne was going to do the same with the women. However, our time Friday night caught us behind schedule and we skipped this activity. By the end of the Saturday morning session, we had caught up. The afternoon session was on application and commitment. When we reached the last hour of the retreat we realized we were now ahead of schedule and decided to do the activity we had skipped the night before. When I began by asking the men for questions, the husband of the couple I mentioned earlier, started sharing. He asked for insight on how to love his wife the way she wanted because what he was doing wasn’t working. I encouraged him to read the “Five Love Languages” book. He asked for prayers for his marriage and for his wife, who was not a Christian. Then we all circled around him and prayed passionately and powerfully for this special couple and for her salvation. After this activity we gave out an award to the couple that had earned the most points in our weekend long contest and the couple we had just prayed for won! Would you like to guess what one of the things they won was? The book “Five Love Languages”! After the closing testimonies of the retreat, I realized how powerfully God had worked in the marriages that weekend. I humbly ate every word of doubt of the effectiveness of the retreat and God once again confirmed to me that it is not about me, or Dwayne, or the topic, it is about how He empowers everything to work together.
     The next morning Dwayne preached at the church that sponsored the retreat. I got busy talking to people and was still talking when the service began. I hurried to the seat Dwayne had saved for me at the typical quest pastor spot; right up front. Immediately I noticed that sitting right beside me was my special couple, and the wife was next to me! During testimony time, her husband shared that between the retreat and the talking they had done the night before; they felt like they had a new beginning to their marriage. Part one of the prayer from the men’s time at the retreat had now been answered. As soon as Dwayne began his sermon, “Are You Listening to God?”, I felt the Holy Spirit leading me to pray with this couple when the sermon was over. I heard her crying throughout the sermon and I had a hard time waiting to the end. As soon as I knew Dwayne was starting a time of commitment and prayer, I knelt down in front of them and we prayed together. I went back to my seat as prayer time continued. I felt heaviness in my soul and I knew I had not finished my assignment. I was to ask her if she wanted to accept the Lord into her life. I have to say, this is not how I like to deal with a person’s salvation. She had not had time to develop a friendship and a trust with me and I never want to put someone on the spot and give the appearance of pushing them into salvation. However, there was no denying what the spirit was telling me. As I was having this internal conflict with being obedient, her husband went up to pray and I was standing alone with her. I turned and told her that if she wanted to accept the Lord, I was there for her and then I asked her directly what she wanted to do and after talking a few minutes, she determined that she wanted God to direct her life. Her husband and I knelt and prayed with her as she made Jesus her Lord and Savior. God had now answered part two of her husband’s prayer.
     In addition to orchestrating the events from my side, God was working on their side as well. Last Easter, her and her husband attended an Easter Egg Hunt at the church. Then a few months ago, they started visiting this church. Though their marriage was having major troubles, they both agreed to attend the retreat. Her husband was willing to be open to share his need for help and completely vulnerable by asking for help and prayer. They won the book that they needed to go through and they began to talk. Then they attended church on Sunday and decided to sit on the front row next to Dwayne. God had orchestrated each event to show her the need she had for Him. If any one of the steps in this process had been different, the end could have been different at this time in her life.
     Now many people would say this is coincidence. I don’t believe in coincidence but I might give some credit to that opinion if there was only one thing that had fallen into place. However we are talking about many, many things that had to fall into order. There is no way to have this many things falls into place by coincidence. It was totally the hand of God.
     There is two things to learn from this great story. One: Satan will always try to put negative thoughts in our head when God is at work. Negative thoughts about doing something we know we should do, should be a red flag that Satan is trying to stall the plans of God. When this happens to you, don’t let him win... press on to your blessing. Two: God orchestrates His plan in each of our lives. Do you recognize the hand of God in your life? Or do you chalk it up to coincidence. When it comes to God we need to give credit where credit is due. Have you thanked God for caring enough about you that He puts everything in place for you to choose Him and His direction? Ponder the last event God orchestrated in your life and make sure to give Him the praise and thanks He is due!

Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.
Philippians 4:9 (The Message)

P.S. I know today’s devotion was long but I felt cutting out the details would minimize the glory that was due God and cut back on the celebration of this salvation. If the angels could take time to have a party her, I thought we wouldn’t mind taking a few extra minutes of reading. I know that she will be reading this today so if you would like to leave her a few words of encouragement on the comments, please do so.