Fighting the inanimate

“The Lord says, ‘Don’t be afraid! Don’t be paralyzed by this mighty army! For the battle is not yours, but God’s!" (2 Chronicles 20:15 TLB)

There are times when we know we are fighting a battle because the bombs are bursting, bullets are flying, and there is so much chaos we just know we are in the midst of the fray. At other times, it feels as though we are fighting some type of "inanimate" object - not seen, not heard, but somehow wreaking havoc in our lives. Let me ask - which battle is the hardest to fight - the one where you see the enemy and hear his attack, or the one where he is cleverly hidden and you have no idea where? Both could be equally similar, but one reveals himself while the other remains hidden. We can fear them both - right? The thing with the attack from the enemy who remains cleverly hidden is that we have no idea what our "counter-attack" should be until he reveals a little about himself! We might do best when we know the enemy we are fighting, but there is just as much resource at our disposal for the enemy we see as there is for the one we don't! 

Our response to the enemy can be that of fear - paralyzing us in our progress and keeping us bound by that which we see or sense. It could be that we want to turn tail and run, but find ourselves "stuck" as though some huge weight was keeping us from actually moving. Honestly, that is why the Philistines sent out Goliath everyday to taunt the Israelite army - his shear size, booming voice, and formidable armor made it look like there was no way past him. He invoked fear in those who took in his appearance, but never forget that even the most formidable opponent has at least one weak spot! David knew the weak spot was known by God and that God knew exactly how to deal with this "threat"!

Why does the enemy use threatening attacks at one point in time, then remain hidden at others? In battle, there are times it takes a good while for those under fire to locate their "threat". Why? That threat has "dug in" and is really well disguised. What advantage does the enemy have? His cover! His position is just perfect to hurl attack after attack without us knowing exactly where he is attacking from because he has a "perfect cover". Remember that scripture warns us Satan can come in many ways, even as an angel! So, we don't always recognize him or see him moving "into position" for the attack because we aren't aware of his tactics.

This might be why scripture also reminds us that God doesn't want us to be "unaware" of his wiles - we are to be wise and use that wisdom to our benefit. There is no greater wisdom than to realize we cannot take up weapons we are not familiar with. David was offered the sword, shield, and armor of a mighty warrior, but the only weapons he was familiar with were the stone and sling. He didn't attempt to use what he had never used before - he relied upon the weaponry he had come to appreciate as "reliable" when God was behind each stone launched. Just sayin!

Re-homed

Every now and again I manage to catch a good show on the tube. I like to watch those wilderness shows, and even the ones with the vets working with animals. I watched one recently in which a family went to one of the most devastated areas of the recent floods and brought back to the Denver area a massive truckload of dogs and cats who needed to be "re-homed" due to the flooding. You would think they would have brought back the healthiest of the dogs and cats, but let me tell you, they were a mess! One needed a leg amputation, a whole litter of puppies needed sulfur baths for weeks to deal with the nasty ringworm that had ravaged their skin, and one of the dogs was completely deaf. The end of the story is that each of these were placed into homes where they could flourish and grow old together - a great end to a pretty awful period in their lives. What society would have otherwise rejected and given up on, the rescuers extended mercy toward, and in the end the ones given mercy became a huge blessing!

O God, you have declared me perfect in your eyes; you have always cared for me in my distress; now hear me as I call again. Have mercy on me. Hear my prayer. (Psalm 4:1 TLB)

It is indeed good for the soul to recognize the Savior isn't looking for the perfect to "re-home", but the wounded, scarred, "un-whole" of this world. Jesus even reminded some of the more "religious" Jewish leaders who criticized those who came to him for help that the "well" don't seek out a doctor - it is the sick who do! The "well" don't recognize their need - the sick do and they desire deliverance! Mercy isn't something sought by those who are self-righteous and "upright" in their own eyes. It is sought by those who recognize how retched their condition really is.

The most awesome part of the show was seeing how each animal served a "purpose" in their "re-homing". The one who lost his hind leg became a vibrant family pet to two children who had a huge backyard, lots and lots of energy to help him stand strong and run hard on the three legs he was left with. The ones with the hugely ugly skin condition, emaciated by the disease of the parasites living on them, they all ended up with no sign of the disease, wholly well and fully nourished - each placed in loving homes able to provide good environments for them to continue to grow into adulthood. 

The deaf dog, although loving as all get out, had no other way to connect with her world than to lay down and offer her belly to the someone to stroke. She craved attention, finding companionship in a home of a deaf owner! The one who understood her the most became the one to guide her into being a very smart dog who actually understood and responded to sign language! There are times we mock someone and say they are like the blind leading the blind. I wonder if God looks at who he "pairs us up with" in life and recognizes the one thing we need most is the help of one who knows what we are living with and has gone through it themselves?

The mercy of God doesn't just reach out, it also "re-homes" us into a place where we can heal, grow, and become strong in our walk. Just sayin!

Dad, hear my prayer....

14 I have given them your commands. And the world hates them because they don’t fit in with it, just as I don’t. 15 I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from Satan’s power. 16 They are not part of this world any more than I am. 17 Make them pure and holy through teaching them your words of truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world, 19 and I consecrate myself to meet their need for growth in truth and holiness. (John 17:14-19 TLB)

Jesus is just about to leave this earth and he is in prayerful communication with his heavenly Father. As he speaks with him, he recounts several things that I think bear our attention. First, Jesus reminds God the Father that each of us has received his commands - we are not ignorant of his plans or purposes when we have been given the most concise and thorough accounting possible. We have the Word and we have the examples of those who have gone before us - our ancestors in the faith. We are without excuse - we cannot plead we don't know God's plans! 

Second, Jesus reminds us that we might often feel like we "don't fit" in this world. The distress we can sometimes feel by not "fitting in" can almost be our undoing as human beings. If you don't believe me, just go to the mall one day, sit in a place where you can observe the traffic of humans passing by and just watch them. You will notice groups trying to "fit in" by "standing out" in their attire, wearing of body jewelry, and even the body art they display. There are others trying to "fit in" by spending an awful lot of money for something with this brand name on it or that one, simply because it is the "brand" of popular people. It can actually be quite easy for us to get caught up in trying to "fit in" when what is within us make us "stand out"!

Third, Jesus has our best in mind and he is always interceding on our behalf that we would be "kept safe". There is much more to this than words can describe, but suffice it to say we don't know a fraction of what stands against us and how much his intervening power is what keeps us safe! The powers against us are sometimes recognized, but most of the time, we don't even appreciate what is behind the event we might be enduring. We see the display of the power, but we don't always recognize the power behind it - therein lies Jesus' prayer for our safety.

Lastly, we are made pure and holy, not by our efforts to be pure or holy, but because he has consecrated himself to meet every need we have for growth in truth and holiness. Yes, we take steps toward obedience and this is honorable, but it is lifeless if those steps aren't energized by the Spirit of God within. The power within becomes the power to withstand the power without. Just sayin!

Just below the surface

Your word is like a lamp that guides my steps, a light that shows the path I should take. (Psalm 119:105 ERV)

But...will it be the path we DO take? That is the question most of us have to answer, for we oftentimes know full well what we "should" do, but choose something slightly different. Why? We have free-will and we want our own way! People tell me God's will is so hard to decipher. Actually, it isn't because we have guidance we don't usually use! We have the Word of God, yes, but we have conscience, knowledge, common sense, the Spirit's niggling, and even the example of others, just to name a few! The issue isn't us moving forward - it is us taking steps in the direction that will bring us to the right destination!

If you have ever made a decision you now regret, you likely know what it was like to ignore some set of evidence that "warned" you the decision was about to get you into trouble. Looking back, you realize clearly where your conscience kind of steered you in another direction, but you ignored it. Something you knew to be true was coming time and time again into your thoughts, but you just blew it off. Now, you stand where you are and realize you should have listened or paid closer attention. Perhaps this is why they tell us hindsight is 20/20! Hindsight has the perspective of knowing the end result of that choice!

William Blake reminds us that the fool sees exactly the same tree the wise man sees. It isn't that we don't see what is coming - but that we choose to see it differently! We choose to see it as it "fits" what we want to see and that is where the path begins to get a little harried! There isn't much difference in the path to obedience for either one of us, but the choices we will be faced with in life can be as different as a grape and a banana. Grapes grow in bunches, but so do bananas. If we just compared one to the other based on this one fact, we'd think there was no difference in the fruit. We'd be wrong, though. The vine produces something quite different from the large leaved tree in the midst of the humid climate where the banana tree flourishes. One choice, though similar to another, can produce quite different "fruit" in our lives when we only compare part of the "equation".

Choosing wisely requires us to consider the outcome - the fruit of our choices. This consideration must be done quickly at times, but the more familiar we are with the "right" set of actions we should consistently take, the easier it is to recognize when the choice we are about to make isn't the correct one. While the fruit doesn't seem to be different at times, when we examine just beneath the surface even just a little bit, we see the fruit is quite different. It isn't too late to make the right choice - even if we have gone beyond the surface of a wrong one! In time, we will recognize the fruit is quite different between the two choices, but right now, we just need to let go of the wrong one and embrace the right one. Just sayin!

Entertained, but not acted upon

Aristotle reminds us, "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." I might add it is equally important to be connected to the one mind that knows what is right to accept and what needs to be rejected! That mind? The mind of Christ. The connection? Found when we say "yes" to Jesus and his Spirit enters that space in our lives reserved just for him. Truthfully, that is when the "real" education begins!

Bless me with life so that I can continue to obey you. Open my eyes to see wonderful things in your Word. I am but a pilgrim here on earth: how I need a map—and your commands are my chart and guide. I long for your instructions more than I can tell. (Psalm 119:17-20 TLB)

The wonderful things contained in God's Word aren't there by accident - they are purposed to be there because we need to hear and incorporate them into our lives. There are lots and lots of thoughts that come our way each day, but knowing which ones not to move beyond the point of "entertaining" them is important. Why? Not everything that comes our way will take us down right paths in our thinking - and we all know thinking is the starting point for our actions.

Life given today is meant to be lived in obedience. Obedience begins at the point of doing more than "entertaining" a thought - it begins at the point of acting upon it. We need a "mind map" to recognize when our thoughts are going down the wrong path! Boy, if you were inside my head on any given day, you'd know just how complicated this whole "thought" thing gets to be! It is like a conglomeration of super-highways, all intersecting, traffic streaming from all directions, and sometimes "collisions" are just narrowly avoided!

I credit those "avoided collisions" or "avoided wrong turns" totally to the work of the Holy Spirit bringing to light scripture that helps me avoid those moments where thoughts entertained could bring harm into my life. God doesn't just give us a road map of obedience, but he gives us the constant "godly re-positioning system" of the Word made alive by the power of his Spirit within us to help us avoid those collision moments! Just sayin!

So, why all the rules, God?

142 Your justice is eternal for your laws are perfectly fair. 143 In my distress and anguish your commandments comfort me. 144 Your laws are always fair; help me to understand them, and I shall live. (Psalm 119:142-144 TLB)

One thing we can learn from history is that God's laws (rules for living) are always "fair". The same cannot always be said about the laws of the land, or those some insist upon in their "own little world". Human beings have a very hard time "being fair" - we just have a bent toward showing someone a little more "favor" than another (sometimes because that "someone" is us). It is important to remember a law is nothing more than a "rule" that helps to define the way we are to conduct ourselves - it defines how it is we are to be living - oftentimes guiding the culture of a group, not just our own self. All laws set parameters - boundaries. Living within those boundaries is what is referred to as being "law-abiding", but we all know some live much further from the boundaries than others!

It is important to ask God for help understanding his boundaries. If we don't, then we will make up all kinds of ways of interpreting why that boundary exists. In healthcare, there are certain "boundaries" set for us, one of which is the protection of health information from getting into the hands of anyone who should not have access to it. There are laws or boundaries set in the stock market, ensuring no one gets an unfair advantage over another in being able to buy or sell on the market. On the roads, the boundaries of which lanes I can use while traveling alone in my car are well-marked and there are different boundaries I can explore if I am with another passenger. While we don't always understand the boundaries, there are usually very good reasons for the ones that are set.

Too many times, we get hung up on the fact there are boundaries and miss the intent behind them - to keep us safe and provide an advantage to those who live within those boundaries. If I use a couple of the examples above, I could say the advantage behind the "insider trading" laws are to give us all a chance to equally share in the gains of a particular stock should we choose to trade in that stock arena. If I think about the use of the carpool lane, it is designed to reduce emissions by reducing the number of vehicles on the road each day, thus making it easier for us to breathe, while decreasing the commute times when less vehicles are caught up in that traffic each day. God's laws aren't much different - they keep us safe, provide for our well-being, and help us realize the best potential in our lives.

We don't want to just "guess" as to their meaning or intent. We want to know the intent, making it easier for us to stay within the boundaries, and maybe even live a little less content to "push those boundaries". Just sayin!

Rotate and Align

There is a lovely Christian song by the group 'We Are Messengers' that absolutely catches my heart each time I hear it played on the radio. The words are from the song "Magnify", and they begin with the words: "I've been trying to make sense of the sorrow that I feel, holding onto for life to the only thing that's real. I've only scratched the surface; I've barely had a taste, but just a glimpse draws my heart to change; and one side of you lays my sin to waste. I don't need to see everything, just more of you." How many of us go through our days just trying to figure out some emotional "sense" we have been experiencing - a sorrow of some kind? I daresay it is far more than might want to admit it. The fact is evident - we all suffer some type of sorrow that kind of hangs us up a while - if only because of our own sinfulness. At those moments, we need to remember one thing - we don't need to understand it all, but we do need to realize we need more of him in our lives - for this is the antidote to any and all sorrow we might experience!

Sin once used death to rule us. But God gave us more of his grace so that grace could rule by making us right with him. And this brings us eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 5:21 TLB)

The words of the song go on and bear hearing this morning: "My sight is incomplete; and I made you look small. I've been staring at my problems for way too long. Realign where my hope is set, until you're all that's left."  All that's left is often all that is needed - when what is left is nothing but God himself. We don't need more "fixing" - we need more of him! You know the old adage about the forest and the trees, meaning we get so caught up in the details of our problems we find it impossible to see any way out. What we need most in life is this "realignment work" that brings us to the place that Christ is all that is left when everything else has finally been put behind our focal point. What we see the most is what we align with the best. Let that sink in for just a moment and then ask yourself where your focus has been lately. If it isn't on Christ, it is time for realignment!

Toward the end of the song, these words resonate the loudest to me each time I hear it: "God be greater than the worries in my life; be stronger than the weakness in my mind." Boy, isn't that the truth?!?! We have worries in our lives that seem to overpower us at times, almost making us feel like impotent and powerless people with no other hope than to go along with whatever has been happening in our lives. Most of the struggle isn't that which is right before us, but what we allow to convince us that we are incapable, or have access to less than what the trouble demands! Our focus begins to turn toward what we don't have whenever we allow our perspective to be clouded by the issue at hand. When we turn again toward Christ, we find the issue gets the right perspective - it isn't going to over-power us because we now see clearly what awesome power is within us. The mind wants to "give into" the troubles at hand, but the spirit is reminding us there is much more within us than the troubles will ever demand!

There is no other "ruler" in our lives - but we can get a little confused at times when we don't maintain the right focus. Most mechanics will remind us we need regular "realignment" of our tires because it allows for "even wear" and "steady drive-ability". The mind is no different - it needs an occasional realignment to become aware again of just how "unsteady" our walk has been without that right alignment! Just sayin!

What story does your life reveal?

It is God’s will that your good lives should silence those who foolishly condemn the Gospel without knowing what it can do for them, having never experienced its power. You are free from the law, but that doesn’t mean you are free to do wrong. Live as those who are free to do only God’s will at all times. (1 Peter 2:15-16 TLB)

Lives that can actually shut down the foolish accusations of the unwise - the truth we portray in our everyday choices is more powerful than we might just imagine!  We are to live in such a manner so as to silence the condemnation of the fool by the way we live, not so much with the words we are able to speak in rebuttal to his accusation. It may seem hard to imagine, but the example we set is oftentimes more important than studying to have "all the right words".

It may not come as a surprise to anyone, but there were years when I was studying to "have the right words" - always ready to give an answer. I studied books on apologetic responses - having the EXACT truth to counteract the untruth someone else was trying to put on me or make me believe. While all of that study was not bad, it didn't accomplish anything as powerful as just allowing the Holy Spirit to change the way I acted!

The fool has no clue what the power of God's Spirit is capable of in the life of a believer. In fact, the fool cannot fathom the greatness of grace, nor the absence of any other performance-based "good works" in order to gain "privilege" or "position". The fool often uses words to attempt to disarm those he sees as "different" or "out there" in a spiritual sense. Why? He has no other weapon in his arsenal!

The availability of grace doesn't mean we have the privilege to sin. We still must bring our will into submission to the will of God. We assume the part of the fool whenever we think it is okay to live the way we want all week and then "make up for it" one hour each weekend while we go to church. We ARE the church. The example we set all the rest of the week is what others see and how it is they will judge just how much grace has impacted our lives!

We aren't "free to sin" just because we have access to grace. We are "free from sin" because we have grace. That means our lives are lived as close to the heart of Jesus as possible, and as far away from the fringes of sin as can be imagined. Just sayin!

In the light or enlightened?

9 So ever since we first heard about you we have kept on praying and asking God to help you understand what he wants you to do; asking him to make you wise about spiritual things; 10 and asking that the way you live will always please the Lord and honor him, so that you will always be doing good, kind things for others, while all the time you are learning to know God better and better. (Colossians 1:9-10 TLB)

Wise about spiritual things - would that describe you? There are lots and lots of "spiritual things" in our world today, ranging from "untapped healing centers" in one's own body to "noble truths" one may attain to on some level or plane of existence. Let me just say this - truth comes in one form - it is either fully truth or not! There is but one spiritual connection that matters - that of our spirit with the Spirit of God himself. Enlightenment, self-realization, and all these "untapped energies" aren't really going to do as much as that one connection known as the "grace connection"!

It is important to become wise when it comes to spiritual things - and the most important way to become wise is through connection with the one who created all things. We begin to recognize anything that falls short of absolute truth when we come to know the one who is absolute truth. The more we know truth, the less we fall for anything counter to truth (a counterfeit). Understanding comes not so much from opening our minds as it does in opening our hearts and submitting our wills to his teachings!

When truth is at the center of all we do, we find ourselves doing things that please and honor God the Father. We aren't as prone to want our own self-will to override his because we find it a joy to submit to him. Obedience is hard at times, because we do struggle with elements of self-will that challenge us on so many fronts. Yet, obedience becomes easier and easier the more of God's truth we get into our lives. It is a reciprocal relationship - truth enters, self-will settles down and becomes satisfied with the choices one makes in order to align with that truth.

The goal of all "spiritual" journeys is to know something better. I would challenge us to know "someone" better - not just "something". The closeness we have with Jesus is never going to measure up to any substitute spiritual pursuit. If we draw near to him, truth is near and within. We begin to find evidence of truth wherever we look. It isn't that we become "enlightened" as much as his light is within us. Just sayin!

I hear the thunder!

5 His voice is glorious in the thunder. We cannot comprehend the greatness of his power. 6 For he directs the snow, the showers, and storm to fall upon the earth. 7 Man’s work stops at such a time so that all men everywhere may recognize his power. (Job 37:5-7 TLB)

Ever notice how thunder gets your attention? I have been so absorbed in fishing at a stream on occasion, not even noticing the storm clouds gathering in the skies behind me, and then all of a sudden there is this huge rumble of thunder that manages to call me back to awareness. It wasn't that the storm wasn't there already. It was that I wasn't aware of it coming my way! The thunder alerts me to the approach of the storm oftentimes in enough time to "shelter" prior to the downpour. Yet, there have been the occasions when the thunder came so close to the downpour that I just didn't escape it! In both cases, if I had been paying attention, I would have observed the signs of the impending storm!

While it is not always possible to escape the storm, it is usually possible to "shelter" from it. Life's storms come at us in many different ways - making it sometimes a little harder than others to actually know one is on the way. We live in the dry deserts of Arizona and just about any afternoon in the hot summer days can result in a billowing dust storm. The rolling walls of dust darken the sky, turning the light able to pass through its thickness a reddened hue, giving a pretty eerie feeling. I have also lived in the Alaskan winters and endured many a grey, cloudy and snowy day. The blizzards can white-out the sky and create quite a challenge, as well. Yet, nothing quite brings one to attention like the peel of lightning and the crack of thunder.

Did you know thunder can be heard at a distance of about 3-4 miles away? That means if we are able to hear it, pay attention to the storm's approach, and then move into action, we should be able to "shelter" from the approaching storm. The average thunderstorm is 5-6 miles wide, meaning it can cover ground we may not have imagined it would hit. If we hear the thunder, it is always wisest to get to a place of safety! In real life, we'd like "early warning systems" to alert us to approaching "life storms", wouldn't we? Well, if we keep in mind that God speaks to his kids well in advance of whatever is coming our way, we might just be able to "shelter" quicker. It isn't that he doesn't warn - it is that we don't always pay attention to the warning signs! Just sayin!

The naked turtle

“I, the Lord, am the one speaking to you. Come, let’s discuss this. Even if your sins are as dark as red dye, that stain can be removed and you will be as pure as wool that is as white as snow." (Isaiah 1:18 ERV)

If God were to speak to you today, with an invitation to "discuss things" just between the two of you, what would that invitation outline as the topic of "discussion"? I daresay it would involve a little different outline for each of us, but it all begins with the discussion of where we are at in relationship with him. The nearness, or distance we maintain is at the center of his attention and he is going to bring us to the place we recognize this has to be our "numero uno" focus in life.

"Come, let's discuss this" may seem a little frightening for some simply because there has been very little "exposed" about one's life up to this point. The "cover" has been working well - or at least you think it has. Could it be possible the "cover up" you thought you were maintaining hasn't been working all that well? Sometimes I don't even know I have my "cover up" on! It is like a turtle in his shell - I pull it on instinctively and just walk around with it on me, thinking nothing of it!

Then comes the day God asks me to shed the shell....and it is harder than it looks. Have you ever seen a naked turtle? I have, but only in cartoons! In the first place, what is under all that shell is not much to look at! It is the shell that protects - with the shell gone the turtle would need to find a new form of protection. A while ago, I saw a show on turtle rescue. One of the vets actually made tiny "plates" to fix the holes in a turtle's shell because he knew just how critical it was to the turtle.

What we fail to recognize is that we AREN'T turtles - we don't need the shell for our safety! It is nothing more than an awkward hiding place for us! It is an encumbrance that we tote around, but which is little more than an additional burden for us to carry around all day! We don't need plates to strengthen the shell - we need to get free of it and stop carrying it around. While dropping our defenses isn't all that comfortable, when we do, God is able to "discuss" things with us that he'd never be able to let us see otherwise. Just sayin!

Probing

In any really good subject, one has only to probe deep enough to come to tears. (Edith Wharton) It takes probing to discover - for all "looking" is only as good as the ability to "see". You've heard the old adage that seeing is believing. Believing begins with catching sight of something - if even just a tiny fleck of truth is caught, it has the potential to influence all our actions. I don't think we realize the potential in one tiny thought, or the simplest budding of truth in our lives. Yet, if we really stop to consider that tiny thought, it can be the very thing that consumes or launches us into new heights.

The Scriptures say, “Our lives are like the grass of spring, and any glory we enjoy is like the beauty of a wildflower. The grass dries up and dies, and the flower falls to the ground. But the word of the Lord lasts forever.” And that word is the Good News that was told to you. (1 Peter 1:24-25 ERV)

Everyday is a chance to learn new truth, to embrace new beauty, to let go of the old and embrace the new. Yet, we often gloss over truth as though it were going to be there for us to "refer back to". If truth is not used, it can be lost in the muddle of all the other stuff we eventually are exposed to in this lifetime. God wants us to constantly return time and time again to his Word - not because he wants this to be a ritual, but because he knows truth needs to be renewed within us from time to time before we have a chance to cover it up with all this other input.

All other "truth" withers away - it doesn't give us lasting hope or credible faith. It is the truth which God gives through scripture and times alone with him that endures. It is renewed day after day - not because he is giving "new words" to add to the scripture, but because he is opening our eyes afresh to the truth contained within. This is even the case where we have embraced a truth already - for all truth can grow as our understanding is nurtured. 

How often and with what tenacity we "probe deeper" into the scriptures often determines the depth of the understanding we will obtain. We don't achieve understanding - it is obtained by the grace of God exposing little pieces of truth, one upon another, until we have grasped that truth fully. We cannot discount time alone with God, for it is the beginning of wisdom. Just sayin!

I got your back - you got mine?

Here are my directions: Pray much for others; plead for God’s mercy upon them; give thanks for all he is going to do for them. Pray in this way for kings and all others who are in authority over us, or are in places of high responsibility, so that we can live in peace and quietness, spending our time in godly living and thinking much about the Lord. (1 Timothy 2:1-2 TLB)

How much are we praying for others? How often are we pleading to God on their behalf - for his mercies, blessings, and provisions? Pleading is more than just "asking" God to bless them or keep them safe on their journey. Pleading suggests we are earnest in our appeal - we make every effort that we can to ensure their "case" is heard by God. In other words, we pray and don't let up until God intervenes on their behalf.

There are times I see appeals on my social feed that tell me someone has a need - whether spiritual, financial, relational, or emotional - they are asking for those of us who see their post to "take on" their need. While God doesn't expect us to always be in the position to "meet" their need, he does expect us to make an appeal to him on their behalf until that need is met. If it might be within our means to meet it, then maybe he has shown us that post because he has placed us in their life at that moment to meet that need.

To be truthful, there are also times I hear things, see them, or just know something is not going well for someone. Then I do a half-hearted appeal before God's throne on their behalf - not going to lie here, because my honesty may help us here. I find myself lifting up a brief prayer and almost without noticing it, I forget their need exists. Life goes on and I forget because other things come in and "cloud" that need from my focus. I don't think I am alone here on this one, so how do we do as our scripture says - praying much for each other and pleading each other's case before God?

I think this is why God gives us community - so we have each other's back on this one. When our focus gets clouded by some other things that come our way, another steps up to take the helm of prayer for a while, until our focus gets clarified again. While I might want to be this "super-prayer-warrior" who never takes her eye off the ball, I am not! I will pray for you, but we need each other's back on this one because none of us does this entirely well ALL of the time. Just sayin!

The heart of the matter

God’s word is alive and working. It is sharper than the sharpest sword and cuts all the way into us. It cuts deep to the place where the soul and the spirit are joined. God’s word cuts to the center of our joints and our bones. It judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts. (Hebrews 4:12 ERV)

If you have ever tried to change the way you feel about something without dealing with the constant barrage of thoughts that invade your mind (and heart), you know how hard it can be to manage those feelings when there is no change in thought pattern. A lot of people will adhere to the theory of changing one's thoughts - giving us the catalyst by which we move from feeling one way about something to feeling a different way. I will tell you there is an element of truth to this, but it is much more than positive thinking that changes the way we behave! 

It takes more than just being "positive" about a matter to change the feelings we have toward it. For example, if we think we cannot possibly save up that emergency fund we are supposed to have that ensures us a little "buffer" should it become difficult for us to work of a period of time, you likely will "feel" the "hardness" of saving. If you begin to think even a little can get you to the goal, such as giving up one foo-foo coffee a week and placing that in the savings jar, you might just begin to see some practical change in the way you feel about saving.

Too many times we "feel" bad about the way we are acting or what has been developing in our lives - especially that inward stuff we don't always want others to know is happening. We deal with a barrage of "bad feelings" that really "nag" at us all day long. If not all day, then at least when we encounter that one individual who rubs us the wrong way, or the tough circumstances that are just putting the "screws" on us right then and there. These feelings don't stem from the outward stuff, but how it is we begin to "think about" that stuff.

This is why God uses his Word to change both thought and feeling. Thought first - then feelings follow. Too many times we get this backward - thinking thought will follow some feeling we try to muster up in order to move beyond that issue. The truth is - feelings follow thought, not the other way around. God uses his Word to "reorder" our thoughts, convicting us sometimes where we most need it, then providing us with the necessary tools to change the way we are thinking. In turn, feelings follow. 

We won't accomplish this change of thought all on our own, though. Positive thoughts aren't always heartfelt! They need to be heart-taught, then heart-got! Just sayin!

Muck and Mire - Hard to Disguise

It was D.L. Moody who said,"I have had more trouble with myself than with any other man." I would have to agree whole-heartedly with Mr. Moody - my own "self" gets the best of me without much effort at all more than any other person does and THEY are the ones who have set out to get the best of me! Time can get the best of me without much effort. People can be my worst obstacles, and they don't even know they are sometimes. Then there is this whole struggle with wanting my own way when I know perfectly well it may not be what is right or best for me. It is not so much that the "thing" was wrong as much as the "desire" behind the thing was not exactly "right on". Indeed, I can "get in my own way" more than anything else at times!

But remember this—the wrong desires that come into your life aren’t anything new and different. Many others have faced exactly the same problems before you. And no temptation is irresistible. You can trust God to keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it, for he has promised this and will do what he says. He will show you how to escape temptation’s power so that you can bear up patiently against it. (I Corinthian 10:13 TLB)

Notice it doesn't say we won't have temptation, or that our own self wants or self-directed focus won't get in the way of making right choices. It says with each of these things God will "show us" how to escape that power AND to bear up patiently AGAINST it. So it is really a battle we are being instructed about here, my friends. A battle of the "self" mind or will against the desire of our heart to fulfill the will of God. Both are tremendous forces and some of us find ourselves spending way too much time struggling through instead of "doing what he says".

The thing I want us to see this morning is not so much that we struggle, but what the "nature" of the struggle really is. Look again at our passage - the struggle we face isn't "anything new or different". They are the same problems we have faced before and the same ones others face. You might say your present problem is much different than the ones you have had in the past, but deep down, at the root of the matter, all problems are really very similar - they are a battleground for the will. Whose "will" will win out? That is the real crux of the issue.

If we are to understand the problem before us, we need to stop seeing it as unique to just us. Others experience the same issues - they may not admit it readily, but they do. We all have moments of greed. We all struggle with lust on occasion - in one of its many forms. We all give into desires that only have the basis of bringing joy or satisfaction to us and no one else. Nothing we face is uniquely different. The set of circumstances that "set us up" for the opportunity or struggle may be slightly different, but the root of the issue is really the same. We ALL struggle with "self".

The sooner we recognize this, the sooner we may bring down some of our facades and begin to be more genuine with each other. I think this is the single most important need in our churches today - to be genuine. Christians are GREAT at wearing the "holiness mask" and denying their life is a mess of muck and mire. Instead of covering it up, imagine how much more we might learn from the insights of others if we'd just realize others have had similar muck and mire moments in their lives and they might have actually figured out how to move beyond them! Just saying!

To get or to serve?

God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing. (C.S. Lewis) 

He is the one who has helped us tell others about his new agreement to save them. We do not tell them that they must obey every law of God or die; but we tell them there is life for them from the Holy Spirit. The old way, trying to be saved by keeping the Ten Commandments, ends in death; in the new way, the Holy Spirit gives them life. (2 Corinthians 3:6 TLB)

As a child, mom or dad would instruct me to do something, perhaps a chore to be completed prior to going out to play. Whenever I was given this task, although the task was "reasonable", the effort it took to get it done so I could pursue what "I wanted" always seemed so huge. I wanted to ride bikes with the other neighborhood kids. I wanted to get out the Monopoly game and launch into an all day marathon to see who would amass millions. The things I "wanted" mattered to mom and dad, but helping me to see I had contributions to make to the family and that these contributions mattered just as much as doing what I "wanted" was a very important lesson for me to learn as a child. They were instilling a hard work ethic, helping me to see other needs outside of my own, and realizing there were things I would do all my life that would help to make a home for those I call family. In essence, by asking for my obedience ahead of my enjoyment, they were showing me that enjoyment begins as a result of obedience!

In religious circles, many a church-goer finds him or herself smack dab in the middle of this endless cycle of keeping rules for the sake of earning some "privilege" or "status". My chores were never to "earn me a place in the family", but rather to help me realize as a family we all contribute something of value that makes the family more robust as a result. Church-goers who merely "do" in order to earn are less likely to enjoy the privileges of "family life" because where is the enjoyment in doing? The keeping of rules doesn't make us a Christian - the enjoyment of being a member of God's family through grace does! The moment we realize "service" is an outflow of what has been done for us and not to help us do for ourselves, the more we will find enjoyment in serving. 

So many times we find ourselves coming back to the "keeping of rules" - forgetting that service stems from being loved, accepted, embraced into the family of God. We serve because of who we belong to, not in order to belong. Just sayin!

Chosen to Tell

But you are his chosen people, the King’s priests. You are a holy nation, people who belong to God. He chose you to tell about the wonderful things he has done. He brought you out of the darkness of sin into his wonderful light. (1 Peter 2:9 ERV)

Commercials on TV are written to tell a quick story related to a product the manufacturers hope to sell us. It could be they have created the most comfortable pillow known to man and they want to convince us to spend far more on one pillow than we ever did on all the pillows we have owned combined! It could be they have developed a sure fire cure for some ailment if we just use their salve, or will delight our families with the latest flavor found in some product they package for us to snack upon as we watch our favorite sports on TV. Regardless of the "product", the "story" told is supposed to create a "desire" in us to "want" the product. Could it just be that God knows the importance of "advertisement"? Could it possibly be in his design to have created us to be "walking advertisements" of his grace?

God chose us to tell of his grace - to be examples of how his grace can not only "convert" or "change" an individual, but how it also can "keep" and "protect" that individual. God's plan is to have us "shine" as his "billboards" of grace's ability and capability. By being "brought out", we are also "brought into". As a result, we have a story to tell. Grace in undeniably the most profound gift an individual can receive - for it has the power to convert what was otherwise "malformed" or "mal-positioned" into something that is perfect and aligned correctly. This is a story so many desire to hear, but it is also one they wish to experience - but it must be told!

If we are "chosen to tell", then what is it that keeps us from doing so? A lot of times it is that we think we don't have a story to tell. We believe we are "ordinary" or "unimportant", so we don't think the story we could share matters as much as someone else's. Let me assure you - your story is important - in the eyes of God, none of us is unimportant or ordinary. As a matter of fact, his grace declares us as extraordinary! "Ordinary" people have no way of really dealing with the sin in their lives. "Grace-filled" individuals know their sin has been dealt with, not by their own efforts, but by the personal sacrifice of Christ on their behalf. This makes their lives extraordinary - for someone who owed NO debt assumed the total debt we owed and paid that debt to the full.

There are bits and pieces of each of our lives that actually get "sewn into" the lives of each other whether we realize it or not. Each time we are together, we are experiencing a little of the other person's life and that experience changes us in some way. It may hardly be noticeable at first, but let me assure you that it is impossible for God's presence to NOT leave an impression. If God lives in you because you have reached out to be embraced by his grace, then his presence indwells you. It is now totally impossible for you to go anywhere, be with anyone, or just be in a crowd and NOT somehow leave a little of his presence there in the lives of those around you. Grace is meant to be shared - it is the message we have been chosen to tell. Just sayin!

Really, the lesser of two evils?

Obey the government, for God is the one who has put it there. There is no government anywhere that God has not placed in power. (Romans 13:1 TLB)

There are times when I look at the state of things in our country and honestly wonder if God really had much to do with who filled some of these official seats.Then I remember the story of Israel demanding a king, just like all the other nation's around them had. He tried to remind them they needed but ONE authority in their lives and that was HIM. He attempted to dissuade them from "following suit" with all the other nations, but they continued to desire that "government official" sitting on the throne. So, he gave them exactly what they wanted - not exactly what they needed, but what they wanted. There are indeed times our stubbornness to pursue a certain course might just yield us what we want, but veer from what we really genuinely need!

While not all government officials are upright and godly in their attitudes or actions, God is still in control, and he has a few very important directions for us as it comes to our officials who hold office:

- We are to obey the law - not taking it into our own hands, or standing against it in any violent manner. We may not always agree with the laws that are passed, but as long as it doesn't violate scripture or our conscience, we are to adhere to it. We may not see the importance of the taxes we pay, or understand how each penny of those taxes are spent, but we have an obligation to adhere to the practice of paying our taxes. Even Jesus reminded his disciples to "give unto Caesar what is Caesar's and give unto God what is his."

- We are to pray for those who hold these positions - even more so when we see the decisions they are making as being in direct contradiction to what scripture declares. The heads of the leaders can be turned by the hand of God, but our part is to pray for them to listen, hear wisdom with ears that have been turned by God, and then to act upon that wisdom as God would desire. It starts with us praying, though!

- We are to be active in shaping our communities. Christians don't always "step up" to be part of the leading roles in our communities, but if we did might not our communities benefit from this step of obedience and faith? I think Christians avoid office so many times because of the tremendous "hit" they take from those who like to "stir the pot". They are an open book while in office, and the scrutiny of those accusing eyes is often enough to make them shy away from pursuing these posts. This might be all the more reason to pray for them!

It certainly says a great deal about our nation when we hear individuals say, "I voted for the lesser of two evils", doesn't it? If we are to ever see this change, it begins with us - in prayer, example, willingness to serve, and faithful commitment to the standards we know to be true and honest. Just sayin!

Time to clean house

I pray that God will open your minds to see his truth. Then you will know the hope that he has chosen us to have. You will know that the blessings God has promised his holy people are rich and glorious.  (Ephesians 1:18 ERV)

Most of us don't realize an open mind is a gift from God. It is by his doing that we actually have "space" for truth in our minds. It is by his grace that we desire more than our own intellect by which to navigate through life. To truly "know" truth requires more than we just expose ourselves to it - we must be open to the person who is all truth - Jesus Christ. Hope stems not so much from knowing all things from start to finish, but in believing the finish will be something that creates a deeper desire for the one who loves us beyond measure. 

While we are busy "going about life", God is all around us and working hard to reveal truth in all things to us as we are in constant movement. I have two grandsons, both have ADHD - something that keeps them in movement in one way or another. For one, it is the "fidget factor" we manage - for this was always what distracted him more than anything else. For the other, it is the wandering of mind into that creative and social place he so much likes to go to. Both are highly intelligent, creative, and well-mannered kids, but both struggle due to the "constant movement" they experience.

While movement is not a bad thing, it can be distracting to us. It can take us off task so easily, and sometimes without us even knowing it. This is often why God has to be the one to actually open our minds to receive truth - we are too "busy" or otherwise "occupied" to realize he is trying to reveal something to us. It is quite possible we miss out on a great deal by our "mindless fidgeting" as we go through life. God's desire is to focus our minds on truth - so we aren't missing these moments.

What are the advantages to knowing truth? Probably the first that comes to our minds is that we won't be duped by untruth. We will so quickly spot the counterfeit that we know when we are about to fall into a trap. This might just be the primary reason God reveals truth - to keep us safe. Another advantage is that of making right choices when the time comes to make the "best one" or a "good one". They both aren't far apart, but one is much better than the other and will result in much better outcomes for us. Truth helps us see both courses and then to choose wisely.

Regardless of how it is we learn, God is at the ready to reveal truth. He knows the only way we will have the "capacity" for truth is to actually "make space" for it. That means he has to help us let go of things we might have embraced that weren't exactly true. They were good ideas, perhaps, but not the best ones for us to base our present and future choices upon. So, don't be surprised when God comes to do a little "house-cleaning" in your mind. It is just to make room for more truth! Just sayin!

Giving in

Raymond Moody once said the most powerful prayer was that of surrender. It is so very true - for surrender is the beginning of all change. Surrender isn't about what we can accomplish any longer, it is about what the one we surrender to will accomplish on our behalf. Surrender opens the floodgates of opportunity - to all those things we could never do on our own. True surrender is probably one of the most difficult places to arrive at in our hearts - for it means we let go and we give over what little control we were still holding onto. There is the type of surrender done under duress, but God isn't looking for this type. There is the type where we resign ourselves to the fact something will be a certain way, but God isn't even looking for that. What he is looking for is the abandonment of control - the willingness to relinquish it in order to allow other potential to be released - the potential that originates in God himself.

Since we respect our fathers here on earth, though they punish us, should we not all the more cheerfully submit to God’s training so that we can begin really to live? (Hebrews 12:9 TLB)

There is something powerful in submitting - despite the negative connotation that word musters in some hearts. The process of submission is not so much a stance of "giving up" but one of "becoming". It is the freedom to embrace new ideas, see things from a new perspective, and it opens us to new potential. Until we abandon the old, we cannot embrace the new - there is not room for both. Recently my BFF "downsized" her living situation, moving from a three bedroom condo into a much smaller two bedroom apartment. While the move was good, it required some "abandoning" of the old - some things no longer "fit". It made me realize there are times we take a whole lot of stuff from our past into what God has prepared for us in the present, not being very willing to part with them at first. As time goes on, we realize they just don't "fit" any longer. There isn't space for the old within the new. At that point, we can stubbornly hold onto everything, or we can let go of what God's been tugging at for a while anyway.

To begin to really live, one must surrender. It may seem like we are "giving up", but in truth, we are not giving up, we are giving in. When we go all in with God, he is free to go all out for us! Just sayin!

No longer a victim

Be careful—watch out for attacks from Satan, your great enemy. He prowls around like a hungry, roaring lion, looking for some victim to tear apart. Stand firm when he attacks. Trust the Lord; and remember that other Christians all around the world are going through these sufferings too. (1 Peter 5:8-9 TLB)

If you have ever played the "victim", you know how easily you can fall into the pity party mode. Before long, you have yourself made out to be so this or that, the other guy totally wrong or hurtful, and the spin begins. The truth is that we have one really big enemy who is out to put as much of this "spin" into our lives as possible. He knows that as long as we are "spinning" the pity wheel, we are not focusing on how much God cares for us, is madly in love with us, and has more than enough grace to help us through that difficult place.

Victims aren't always blameless. Sometimes the "victim" puts themselves right where they shouldn't be and then wonder why "all this is happening" to them. In this case, they opened the door to the reality of the muddle they find at their doorstep. There are just times when we are in the wrong place at the right time and we get caught up in what would have been best to not "step in". We don't need to be caught "unaware" of the trap being set for us. We can develop a keen eye to the traps, but we have to be willing to pay attention in order to see them.

Any good trapper will tell you they work hard to disguise their trap. Why? Nothing comes into what looks plainly like a trap! They avoid it because they know there is something suspicious about it. To spot counterfeit, the study of the genuine is most important. Why? We don't need to study what is "wrong with the picture" - we just need to know very well what the true picture looks like. As scripture reminds us - truth sets us free. We aren't going to spot the attack, or realize the trap, if all we do is study up on how many ways something could go wrong! We need to study how much grace has made a way THROUGH all attacks.

In the military, we learned to set up something referred to as a "M-18 Claymore mine". It is a semi-circular mine with a trip wire. When the wire is "tripped", the mine explodes outward in a pretty broad pattern. It isn't all that accurate - not like the sniper's bullet - but the massive outward explosion is sure to hit somewhere on that victim's body. The enemy of our souls uses a lot of these types of "mines" to trip us up - knowing that something in the "big scheme of things" will eventually hit target. He doesn't care that it doesn't totally "kill us" - he knows maimed "soldiers" are pretty lame.

The enemy's mines may be relationship directed, with all the explosive power directed toward damaging "something" in that relationship. His financial mines are designed to keep us indebted, taking our focus off God and placing it more on the worries of how we will ever "bail out". Whatever the "mine" is, we need to become aware of where those "trip wires" are. When we begin to recognize the environment we are in through the eyes of God, we will be able to spot what is "out of the ordinary" or is "counterfeit" in real time. Then we will be able to successfully navigate the mine fields that have previously claimed us as "victim"! Just sayin!