Author Archives: Rhonda Barnes

If the Shoe Fits

10 Tuesday Oct 2017

Posted by in Encouragement

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img_0086It is that time of the year where in many parts of the country we begin to change the style of shoes we are wearing. For me, I have accumulated too many shoes, so in order to make room, I pack away my sandals, and I get out my boots.  It is important to have a variety of types of shoes in order to be prepared for every season, but today’s inspiration is less about the style and more about the fit.

I have a great video of my daughter when she was about 18 months old trying to wear my heels. I heard the clicking sound on the floor and I peeked around the corner to see her trying to walk in shoes that did not fit.  It was video worthy and something I enjoy watching, but trying to walk in shoes that don’t fit for any length of time is simply exhausting.

She no longer needed those cute little white walking shoes I had purchased for her, but she was not ready for mommy’s heels yet either. In fact, as I watched my daughter grow into the wonderful young woman she is today, she never fit in mommy’s heels.  First, she inherited her shoe size from her dad instead of me, but more importantly, heels were just never her thing.  I remember in her teen years how she tried to fit into the mold of wearing what her friends wore, but she quickly went back to the style that was more comfortable for her.

Have you noticed that in every shoe store or shoe department there is a section that houses all the accessories for those shoes we buy that really do not fit? There are pads you can put on the back of a shoe to keep it from slipping off.  There are pads you can put in the bottom of the shoe to keep your foot from slipping forward.  There are barriers we can put on the sides to keep our shoes from rubbing blisters.

The interesting thing is none of these items is needed if the shoe fits!

If we go to a store to buy a suit, it is common that it will not fit every person just right. There are individuals trained to alter a suit jacket so it will fit in all the right places and be comfortable as the person moves around in it.  This may work for suits, but not shoes!

If they are too small, they hurt you because they stifle you and hold you back. They are not satisfying at all to wear.  If they are too large, they slip off when you try to walk. You cannot effectively walk, climb, or progress in shoes that are too large for you.

While our foot size grows during stages of maturity, for most people there is a point where your foot size is maximized and it often will not change for the rest of their life. That is why I have too many shoes!  I have been wearing the same size for a very long time.  Over the years, I have collected a variety of styles and colors for many different seasons and activities.

I love that I am not limited to one style.  Seasons and conditions require us to have choices.  These are options but the size is not. The creator determines the size!  Look at this passage of Scripture.

1 Corinthians 12:4; 11-12; 14-26 NASB

4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit…..11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills. 12 For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ….14 For the body is not one member, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. 19 If they were all one member, where would the body be? 20 But now there are many members, but one body. 21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, it is much truer that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; 23 and those members of the body which we deem less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, 24 whereas our more presentable members have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked, 25 so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. 

THE CREATOR DETERMINES THE SIZE!

I have a passion today to remind each person reading this of how much your Creator loves you and how He wants to see you walk in the shoes He has selected for you. He chose them long ago before you were even here.

Psalm 139:13-17 NASU

13 For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. 14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; 16 Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them. 17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!

 

YOU WERE FEARFULLY AND WONDERFULLY MADE! Each one of us unique and distinct.  No two of us with the same thumbprint, but each with precious thoughts and plans from our Father!

The thing that we must contend for is our own unique size or our individual identity in Christ. Each unique one is critical to the kingdom and if you are trying to wear someone else’s shoes, then yours are left abandoned on a shelf creating missed opportunities ordained by the Father.

Let me share an example. My sister-in-law and I are very much alike in many ways.  Years ago at her first Christmas with our family, we showed up wearing the exact same sweater and what was so funny was we didn’t even know each other then.  A couple years later, we actually came to vacation and had bought the very same swimsuit, the very same cover-up, and the very same shoes!

We are the same age, we have the same last name, and we even have the same shoe size. However, those who know us well will attest that if I tried to wear many of her shoes, it would not end well!  Here style is often very different from mine, and she wears heel sizes that I cannot tolerate.

This paints such a vivid picture of the fact that even though we have many similarities, I can’t be her and she can’t be me. We can only complement one another, encourage each other, and fulfill our own unique callings.

While it is such a simple principle, I feel this very thing is what has caused too many of God’s children to abandon the plans that He has for them….trying to wear shoes that do not fit!

We often feel like a square peg trying to fit in a round hole, trying to fit the mold, or meet everyone’s expectations. Let’s change that today and become free to be who He has called us to be!

No apologies! Just be who He is asking you to be!  No comparison, no intimidation, no jealousy, or envy, just wearing the shoes that fit you in the right season, and on the right occasion!  Make a commitment today if you have not already done so, to walk in the steps He has ordered for you.

DON’T ALLOW YOUR ONE OF KIND DESIGNER SHOES TO BE LEFT ON THE SHELF!

Signs of the Times

20 Sunday Aug 2017

Posted by in Prophecy

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IMG_0427Today on the eve of a North America total solar eclipse, I cannot help but think about Bible prophesy. One particular passage that stands out is the words of Jesus found in Luke.

Luke 21:25-32 NLT

25 “And there will be strange signs in the sun, moon, and stars. And here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides. 26 People will be terrified at what they see coming upon the earth, for the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 27 Then everyone will see the Son of Man coming on a cloud with power and great glory. 28 So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation is near!” 29 Then he gave them this illustration: “Notice the fig tree, or any other tree. 30 When the leaves come out, you know without being told that summer is near. 31 In the same way, when you see all these things taking place, you can know that the Kingdom of God is near. 32 I tell you the truth, this generation will not pass from the scene until all these things have taken place.”

Two years ago, I posted a blog “What Will September Hold?” At that time, many voices were predicting possibilities about end time events.  I said then that I didn’t know what September holds, but I know who holds September!  As I look at the signs all around me today, I find myself feeling the same way.  I don’t know what tomorrow holds, but I do know who holds tomorrow!  The passage above so describes the current events we are experiencing.  Never in my life have I witnessed the unrest we are experiencing today.

I realize that we cannot predict the exact time of our Lord’s soon return for His church. I have been taught all of my life that He could come back to take His children home to heaven any day.  I fear that many have become cynical about the rapture of the church and have become immune to the warnings of the times.  The Bible tells us that we must not do this!

1 Thessalonians 5:2-7 NLT

2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. 3 When people are saying, “Everything is peaceful and secure,” then disaster will fall on them as suddenly as a pregnant woman’s labor pains begin. And there will be no escape. 4 But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief. 5 For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. 6 So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded.

There are many other signs that could be considered beyond the solar eclipse. I read a very compelling set of examples from Mark Biltz from El Shaddai Ministries that I am pasting in at this link for those who are interested in reading.  BiltzScriptures_b

This is not a time to be sleeping, we need to do as the above passage instructs and be on guard. We should live each day looking for the Lord to return.  The question I like to ask is this, “If you knew for fact that the Lord was returning tomorrow, what would you do today?”  Let your response to that question drive you the remaining days of your life on this earth.

 

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Restore

09 Sunday Jul 2017

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IMG_0364.PNGSome may find this graphic that I chose to be a bit confusing, because it contrasts something beautiful and full of life behind broken glass. I hope your curiosity will cause you to read to the end where it will likely make more sense.

Have you ever felt broken? If you have lived long enough, the answer to that question is likely, “Yes!”  The depths of our individual brokenness vary, and the circumstances that bring us to that state are unique, but the result is often the same.

For me personally, I came face to face with that state of brokenness while I was driving to the airport early in the morning back in March of this year. The Lord interrupted me with a statement that shook me to my core.  It sounded as if He was riding along in the passenger side of my car speaking to me as if I had a friend riding with me, but the words that He said surprised me.

He said, “I can’t turn you loose because you are too fragile. It would destroy you!”  Now that may seem like an insignificant statement to you, but it sent my mind reeling.

After going through security, while sitting at my gate waiting for the time to board, I did what people do on the game show when they are stumped; I chose the “Phone a friend” option! I called a friend and told her what had happened, and she began to cry because she said she totally got it!  With that confirmation, I set out that week to try to understand better the meaning of the Lord’s words.

I began to research and study the Word of God about that word fragile, trying to uncover the message the Lord was giving me. The best picture to describe what I sensed and felt when God spoke those words to me was a fragile bowl or vase.  This particular verse stood out to me when I was searching.

2 Corinthians 4:7-9 NLT

7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. 8 We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. 9 We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.

I then began to search and read all the key Scriptures about being strong and courageous because in my natural mind, that seemed like the solution to being too fragile.

God told Joshua in Joshua 1:9 (NASU), “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

I also read in Psalm 27:14 AMP

Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.

I read about David’s instructions to Solomon and Hezekiah’s instruction to the people to be strong and courageous (1 Chronicles 22:13) (2 Chronicles 32:7-8 NLT), I read Paul’s instructions in the New Testament:

Romans 16:25a NLT

Now all glory to God, who is able to make you strong, just as my Good News says….

Ephesians 6:10 NKJV

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

I began to feel that the solution was proximity. I started meditating on Colossians 2:7a NLT

Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong…

I prayed and quoted words that came from the book of Psalms.

“Blessed is the man who delights in the law of the Lord….he is like a tree firmly planted and rooted and fed by streams of water….” (From Psalm 1:1-3)

I told myself that the solution to overcome my fragility was planting myself in close proximity to God and if I rooted myself to His supply, I would receive the nourishment to grow stronger.

All of this is truth! In many cases, this is the solution.  However, sometimes when we get in that close proximity to God, we get additional directions.  The more time I spent seeking the Lord, the more I knew there was more for me to do and my solution only began in this place.  Next, I set out on a mission to try to understand why the Lord would call me personally fragile.

I realized that I had not been feeling quite as strong and courageous as I used to be, but I had not fully realized the state I had allowed the disappointments and challenges of life to bring me to. I knew I didn’t always feel this way, because I remembered many times feeling as if I could do anything I set my mind to do.

I thought if I worked hard enough and long enough, there was no mountain I could not climb. Yet one day I found myself somewhere on the side of Everest! I couldn’t seem to climb anymore and I also couldn’t allow myself to descend, so I was searching for a cave to hide in.

A place of shelter where I would be relieved from the striving and the climbing, but I could at least hold on to ground I had gained below me. The problem was I found myself in a cave much like Elijah was when he ran for his life in the Old Testament.

I could hear God say to me as He did Elijah, “What are you doing here?” (See 1 Kings 19:9-10) Elijah had his excuses just as I did. Elijah told God he was the only one left, I told God everything I tried to do was a failure.  In this state of mind, the more I beat myself up for not being strong, the more fragile I became.

While I was in this state, my pastor hit a nerve while preaching one Sunday morning. He described an event from his childhood when his dad was teaching him to sing the scales.  One day when he kept messing up his dad spanked him on the leg out of frustration.  Pastor said that he looked up at his dad with tear-filled eyes and said, “I don’t want to ever sing again!”

When I heard that statement, I could not hold the tears back! He had described exactly how I felt!  I wanted to tell God, “I don’t ever want to ____ again!”  I could fill that blank with so many words at that moment.

You see it is in a state of total brokenness, that you are most tempted to quit, especially on the things you are most called to complete! Elijah one of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament was here and we can find ourselves in this state at times.  I certainly did!  I had listened to the enemy tell me that everything I had set out to do in my life and for the kingdom was a failure.  If you listen to lies long enough, you begin to believe that they are true!

In my human or soulish realm of thinking, I could have easily responded, as I believe Elijah did. I could have just proceeded with retirement mentality; feeling as if I had run a good race, fought a good fight, won some big battles, so I will take my chariot ride now please!

Somehow, even in this state, my spirit man was stronger than my soulish one and rose up inside me asking, “What is this thing God want to turn me loose to do?” I wanted to know…..and I still do by the way!

It was about this time as I was beating myself up for not being strong enough, two weeks after I had heard the Lord speak the first time that He spoke again. He clearly said, “You feel like I am taking you to the woodshed, but I am actually putting you back on my potter’s wheel!”

It was true! I felt like I was a failure at everything God had asked me to do.  I felt like if I had worked harder, prayed longer, studied smarter, wrote better, and handled trials and disappointments appropriately, I could have been what He expected me to be, but I felt that I wasn’t.

With His new words, I went back to the Bible looking for direction. I read

Isaiah 64:8 AMP

Yet, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our Potter, and we all are the work of Your hand.

Then I turned to the most familiar passage about the potter’s wheel found in Jeremiah 18:2-4 NLT. I read it from some newer versions and I saw something I had never seen in this passage I had read so many times before.

2 “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” 3 So I did as he told me and found the potter working at his wheel. 4 But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over.

Then I saw a version I had never read before, the Expanded Bible, it read this way,

“He was using his hands to make a pot from clay, but something went wrong with it, so he used that clay to make another pot the way he wanted it to be.” Jeremiah 18: 2-4 EXB

As I stated earlier, people get to a broken and fragile state for many different reasons. In my life it wasn’t one thing, it was a perfect storm of things that had happened over a long period of time, which brought me to this place of feeling as if I could shatter into a million pieces.

The turning point was the realization that it wasn’t something I did or didn’t do, it wasn’t my failure or my success, it wasn’t my could haves or should haves, I had a realization that I was feeling crushed, but it was a perfect opportunity for the potter to make me the way he wants me to be!

I am not here to tell you that this was an easy process. It took some very intense work, some pain, and tears along the way.

  1. I had to allow God to help me see all the lies and replace them with the truth.
  2. I had to allow God to heal my broken heart and help me forgive those people and situations that had hurt me so deeply.
  3. I had to process my pain and disappointments and find purpose for those situations.

IT WAS A PLACE OF FULL SURRENDER! Too often, we say we surrender ALL, but the reality is we surrender SOME!  Too often, we say we give God our pain, but we pick it back up.  Too often, we say we trust God, but we still do it in our own strength in our own way.

I want you to think about it this way. When you get a brand new computer, it will come with certain programs and software loaded to make it run efficiently the way it is created to run.

Over time as you use that computer it is exposed to things that cause it to begin to work less optimally. Sometimes that happens because we overload it.  We try to do too much with it, add too many programs and files to it and it can’t handle the volume.

Maybe you do not have the appropriate protection, so over time you go to places on the internet where you pick up viruses and adware and other threats that attack the operating system and cause it to slow down or stop working properly.

Perhaps you open emails that you think are important because you are trying to do the right thing and you thought it was a responsibility of yours you needed to address, but it was actually a cybersecurity risk attempting to steal your identity.

When these things happen and you find that your computer just cannot function, as you need it to anymore, there is a solution…..it is called “RESTORE”. Have you had to do this to your computer?  It is painful!  You have to back up all the good things like your pictures and files you will need so you can dump all the bad things and start all over at the beginning.

Using the “RESTORE” function will take your computer back to where it was when you purchased it. Let me take that analogy now and put that in context of this teaching.

When you receive Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are a new creation. You are like that brand new computer with a clean operating system.  Over time, you are exposed to things that can also cause you to function less optimally.   Just like the computer, sometimes it is because we are overloaded.  There is always a temptation to try to do more; there are many demands on our lives and all kinds of expectations and obligations.

Maybe you have been exposed to threats like the computer, which is what has left you in a broken or fragile state. Perhaps you have walked through relationship, health, or financial crisis.  Maybe it was loss, the loss of a loved one or a job, or something important to you.  Regardless of the cause, it has damaged your operating system.

The last example I gave with the computer was about opening harmful emails thinking you have a responsibility you need to address. The point I am making with this one is this, sometimes the right thing seems like the wrong thing and often the hard thing.  Sometimes the right thing is to say “No” and the hard thing is to strive to meet God’s expectations more than everyone else’s expectations including your own.

There are many good things we can do, but the question we must answer is if it is a “God” thing for us to do. If you are all wrapped up in doing “good” things God never asked you to do, ask yourself this question, “Who am I keeping from doing this, and what am I missing that I am supposed to be doing?”

This is why God’s statement to me shook me to my core; I want to know what He wants to turn me loose to do! It is worth the painful process of going to the “RESTORE” point!  Backing up all the good things and being willing to allow all the bad things to be removed!

A very familiar passage reads like this:

Psalm 23:1-3a NASU

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. 3 He restores my soul…

One of my favorite commentators says this about that last verse:

“[He restoreth my soul] literally, “He causes my life to return.” (DeWette,) “He quickens me,” or causes me to live. The word soul” here means life, or spirit, and not the soul in the strict sense in which the term is now used. It refers to the spirit when exhausted, weary, or sad; and the meaning is, that God quickens or vivifies the spirit when thus exhausted. The reference is not to the soul as wandering or backsliding from God, but to the life or spirit as exhausted, wearied, troubled, anxious, worn down with care and toil. the heart, thus exhausted, He re-animates. He brings back its vigor. He encourages it; excites it to new effort; fills it with new joy.” 1

Recently my computer was doing some strange things. I opened my software protection program and told it to do a cleanup, optimization, and identify and treat any security threats.  It ran the program for a few hours and then gave me a report about how many thousands of unneeded temporary files were deleted, and how many threats were identified and destroyed.  I was amazed that all that was needed since the last tune up.  After it was done, my computer was working correctly again.

Have you noticed that you are not functioning as optimally as you should be? Do you find yourself feeling bitter, angry, overwhelmed, fragile, irritable, sad, depressed, sick, tired, and sick and tired of feeling all these ways?

God wants to restore you. He wants to restore your soul.

Psalm 23 NASU

1The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. 3 He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

This passage is saying that it doesn’t matter what kind of circumstances you find yourself in, you can be still and know that He is your God! That He is with you wherever you go! He will never leave you or forsake you! You are not alone! His staff comforts you! He will feed you and anoint you even in the presence of your enemies! Goodness and loving kindness are your companions! He is your shepherd, you shall not want! He restores your soul!

Too often, we think we will be better or we will feel differently when our circumstances change. Certainly we all prefer the mountain verses the valley, but the Word tells us that in this life we will have tribulation, so the key is to find a resting place in God, to be willing to surrender ALL not SOME, and trust that He has you and He has your life and your situation in His hands.

A place of rest is not a complacent place. Just because you are still in your spirit does not necessarily mean you are physically still.  You are still in your spirit because you are in a place of trust and faith.  He may give you additional directions, He may guide you, direct you for what activities you need to do or stop doing, but then you have to respond with obedience.

FullSizeRenderI posted this picture on Facebook recently and I said that I had a completely new perspective of what this verse means. If you do not have this revelation, I want you to experience it!

Earlier I told about the story of my pastor and his dad. In that state, I told God, “I don’t want to _____ anymore!” To a degree on this side of the potter’s wheel, I still feel that way, but for a different reason.  I don’t want to do ____ anymore for the sake of meeting anyone else’s expectations or mine.  I don’t want to do _____ anymore out of sheer obligation.  I want to be still long enough for God to provide answers and direction for every aspect of my life, and then I want to respond in radical obedience!

When you get still long enough, you will be surprised what you notice, you will be surprised what He says, but we are going at such break neck speed all the time that He can’t get our attention.

It reminds me of a home video that we have. My daughter was only about 9 months old and her dad was busy helping her open her gifts at Christmas while I was videotaping.  My son who was a little over 2 years old was trying to get his dad’s attention to tell him about his gift he had just opened.  He kept saying, “Look daddy, I got Legos!  Look daddy, I got Legos! Look daddy, I got Legos!” Finally, he got right in his face and says, “Look daddy, I got Legos!” His daddy finally responded, “That’s awesome son!”  He couldn’t hear him because he was so preoccupied.

You would be amazed if you will get in His face, and be still what you will see, how He will direct you, and what you will know all around you that you need to do. He will show you not only good things to do, but also “God” things to do!

IMG_0365Look at that confusing graphic I chose with one slight modification. You will notice now that “Rest” is underlined. I want to share from a devotional I have been using in my study time.

“Do you find it difficult to rest? Are you always working or engaging in some type of ministry activity? As you step into the promise God has for you, remember how important rest is.

There is a place of rest in the heart of God. In this place, we learn to trust Him in the midst of chaos and difficulties. As we lean upon Him and hear His heartbeat, we discover its rhythm – when to run, when to rest, and when to release.  As we contend to enter into the rest He has prepared for us, we ourselves become resting places where He can come and dwell in greater fullness.

We can enter into the storms of life and release love only when we have learned how to rest in God. Hebrews 4:1-3 tells us to be careful not to fall short of His rest.  Also we will not achieve rest through the merits of our works, so that no one should boast. (See Ephesians 2:9)  Rather, we need to rest in the promises of God.  We will be safe in the King’s arms.  Indeed, we must learn to live there.” 2

I stated earlier that I felt like if I had worked harder, prayed longer, studied smarter, wrote better, and handled trials and disappointments appropriately, I could have been what He expected me to be. Do you hear the works mentality here?

“We will not achieve rest through the merits of our works….we need to rest in the promises of God.”2

It is in this place that He restores your soul, takes you and molds you and makes you into what He wants you to be. In this place of FULL surrender to His will and His way in your life, you will find the place where He will restore your soul and prepare you to start new in Him again.

Some need to allow God to do what we do to some computers. You need to back up the good things, but allow Him to run an optimization, delete all the bad corrupted files, all the doubts, the pain, the questions and take you back to the “RESTORE” point.  I can tell you, on this side of the potter’s wheel, I am so thankful that God shook me that day on the way to the airport….it caused me to be willing to submit to the process of restoration.  I have never known this level of stillness and rest in God.  I want you to have that too!  Let God make you beautiful and full of life on the other side of your brokenness!

  1. Barnes’ Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. Psalm 23:3
  2. Heidi Baker, Daily Insights to Birthing the Miraculous (Charisma House 2016) 316-317

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It is Written

15 Monday May 2017

Posted by in Christian growth

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Image1 (2)I am excited to introduce my third book, “It is Written” now available at Amazon.  I am sharing the introduction below for all of my blog readers.  I am particularly proud of this project, because it is all about God’s written Word.  It is a topical Scripture reference guide, we all should have available, which is packed full of passages for the topics you face in your life.

You will find passages on the following topics:

  1. The power of the Word
  2. What you speak
  3. Faith
  4. Protection
  5. Warfare
  6. Children
  7. Salvation
  8. Healing
  9. Financial freedom
  10. Needs
  11. Worship/Praise for who He is
  12. Anxiety/Fear/Stress/Worry
  13. Comfort
  14. Depression/Disappointment/Discouragement
  15. Hope/Peace/Courage
  16. Freedom/Liberty
  17. Overcoming temptation and addiction
  18. Anger
  19. Love

I love the Word of God and I view it as my roadmap, my book of instructions, my inspiration and encouragement, my list of promises, my prayer guide, and a mighty weapon against the enemy…just to name a few! We learn about the armor of God that is available to us in Ephesians Chapter 6.  All of the pieces of armor are defensive except one – the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  This is our offensive weapon and if we want to be victorious, we must learn how to use it wisely.

Ephesians 6:10-18 NKJV 

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.

Speaking, proclaiming, and praying the Word of God is so powerful in the life of a believer. Jesus Himself provides our greatest example.  When He walked on this earth, He faced the same temptations and challenges that we as humans face.  When He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to endure a great time of testing by Satan, he overcame him through three words, “IT IS WRITTEN!”

Matthew 4:1-11 NKJV

 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” 4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'” 5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'” 7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'” 8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him,  “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.'” 11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

When you use the Word of God as your weapon, you also can be victorious just as Jesus was.  The answer to every issue you face can be found in the pages of God’s Written Word.  I encourage you to use these passages or create even more of your own to arm yourself and to become strong in the Lord with the power of His Word.

When you have a need, begin declaring the answer with the promises found on these pages.  When you do not know what to pray, begin praying and claiming the Scriptures.  Take the Word of God and write your own declarations and prayers.  Hide it in your heart and you will become a mighty man or woman of faith!

Follow the link below to order your copy today!

 

Disarmed Means Defeat

29 Saturday Apr 2017

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18009464_10209232534790287_1735445591_nAre you or someone you know facing some kind of opposition in your life right now? If so, I want to encourage you today. Jesus said in second part of John 16:33, “…In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (NKJV)

Christ’s victory is a Christian triumph. Christ overcame the prince of this world, disarmed him, and cast him out; and He still treads Satan under our feet. He overcame the wicked of the world, he put his enemies to silence, and to shame; He is telling us here, “And you be of good cheer, for the Spirit will enable you to do so too.” 1

In mid-March, I woke up one morning hearing the Lord say the following message to me:

“The Lord is saying to you today, DO NOT be dismayed by the opposition that is surrounding you. I see the plots and plans with intent to overwhelm and DISARM you. Do not comply, for your weapons are mighty and powerful and they destroy every sophisticated argument that is set up against my plans and purposes being accomplished in and through you. Remember and stay alert that you have an enemy roaming to and fro seeking every opportunity to devour the good plans I have designed for you. Do not look to the left or to the right, keep your eye on the prize the I have set before you. Do not allow these attempts to alter your course. Be strong, be resilient, for if I am with you who can be against you says your Lord!”

When I began to consider this message, the Lord immediately started to show me the battle between David and Goliath.

1 Samuel 17:4-11 NKJV

4 And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6 And he had bronze armor on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders. 7 Now the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels; and a shield-bearer went before him. 8 Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, “Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.” 10 And the Philistine said, “I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.

Do you see that word in the last sentence? They were DISMAYED!  The opposition they were facing dismayed Israel’s army.  This giant was over 9 feet tall and wore a bronze coat that was 125 pounds!  His taunting was a specific strategy with intent to overwhelm and “DISARM” them and cause them to give up and run away.

This is exactly what our enemy does. In the Bible, we see a reference that compares the devil to a roaring lion. (1 Peter 5:8)  Did you know you could hear a lion’s roar for 5 miles?2

The enemy roars loud and taunts us just as Goliath was doing. However, the Word the Lord gave me reminds us that since our weapons are mighty, we should never allow these strategies to disarm us.

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 NLT

3 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. 4 We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.

This brings me back to the story; while Israel’s army was disarmed with fear, David responds differently. If you know the story, David was too young to be fighting, he was back taking care of the sheep, but his father sent him to the battlefield to take some food to his brothers, and get a report on how the battle was going.  When David saw what was happening, he said he would go fight Goliath.  Saul told him he couldn’t do that because he was just a youth, but look how David responded:

1 Samuel 17:34-37 NKJV

34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, 35 I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37 Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”

David recognizes that he didn’t fight the lion and the bear with his own strength, but through the Lord. His weapons were not carnal they were mighty through God!  If you know the story, David tried to put on armor, but it didn’t fit him, so he went out to face this 9 foot giant with a sling and 5 smooth stones, let’s pick up reading at that point in the story…

1 Samuel 17:43-46 NKJV

43 So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” 45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you.

In the natural, a sling and a stone is not a mighty weapon, but when it was used in the name of the Lord it became a supernatural weapon that was unstoppable, which took down the greatest giant!

1 Samuel 17:48-51 NKJV

48 So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. 51 Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it.

This brings me to my second point about weapons. Not only was David armed with a weapon with supernatural strength, but also now, we see that he takes the enemy’s weapon and turns it against him!

David demonstrates with God on your side, you can take the enemy’s weapon that is intended to destroy you and your destiny, and use it to cut off the head of your greatest opposition!

The enemy meant to cause you to be dismayed by the opposition he is bringing against you, he used strategies intending to overwhelm and disarm you, but your weapons are mighty through God and He can take what was intended to take you out and make it a strong weapon in your hands!

If you know the story about Joseph, the enemy wanted to use his brothers to destroy him, but God had a plan for Joseph’s life and when it was all over he told his brothers not to be upset with what they did, God used it to preserve His people. (see Genesis 45:4-5)

Now if you are facing great opposition, the last thing you often want to hear is how God will use it for good, but if we know that in this world, we will face tribulation and opposition, why not at least make the pain mean something?

You have heard it said, “New level, new devil” but what you must remember is that with every defeat of the new devil, you can disarm the enemy of the very weapon he attempted to use against you!

To demonstrate this point, consider David again. Goliath was just one of his first battles.  If you read about the life of David, he was a great warrior.  Saul was jealous of David and his success.  He knew the anointing that was on David’s life, and he knew he was anointed to become the next king.

Saul turned on David, and sought to take his life. David and a few of his men ran for their lives and they find themselves at the site of the tabernacle.  Look at what David asks the priest:

1 Samuel 21:8-9 NKJV

8 And David said to Ahimelech, “Is there not here on hand a spear or a sword? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.” 9 So the priest said, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, there it is, wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you will take that, take it. For there is no other except that one here.” And David said, “There is none like it; give it to me.”

First, we saw that God provided David with a supernatural weapon to use against his enemy. Secondly, David used the enemy’s own weapon to cut the head off the opposition. Now, we see that in a future time of need, David is able to go back and use that same weapon for a new opposition!

Can you see the pattern here? When David was faced with the biggest battle of his life, Goliath, he pulled from his previous victories.  He reminded himself that just as God had delivered him from the lion and the bear, he would help him defeat this giant.  He won the battle, he used the enemy’s weapon to complete the victory, and now that same weapon is available to help him win in another opposition.

We shouldn’t face our opposition from a victim’s mentality, happy to just survive the battle, we should disarm the enemy and then turn his very weapon against him and in all future battles!

How can you do that in your natural life? By understanding the strategies the enemy tries to use against you.

1 Peter 5:8-10 NLT

8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are. 10 In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.

The best way to form a winning game plan is to study your opponent, and to understand your own areas of weakness and vulnerability. If you have an area of weakness that the enemy always exploits, you need to allow the Lord to help you deal with that weakness for the last time.  Recognize that the enemy uses his plots and plans with intent to overwhelm and DISARM you. Remember and stay alert that you have an enemy roaming to and fro seeking every opportunity to devour the good plans God has designed for you.

Your enemy would not be trying so hard to overwhelm and disarm you if he wasn’t afraid of the good plans God has designed for you! In closing remember the last part of the Word of encouragement from the Lord:

“Do not look to the left or to the right, keep your eye on the prize the I have set before you. Do not allow these attempts to alter your course. Be strong, be resilient, for if I am with you who can be against you says your Lord!”

Stay firm in your faith today! Keep your eye on the finish line and you will see the great plans God has designed for your life!

 

  1. Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible, PC Study Bible Formatted Electronic Database Copyright © 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. John 16:33
  2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion 4/21/17

 

Feeling Fragile

31 Friday Mar 2017

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Have you ever had moments in your life where you felt as if you could shatter into a million pieces? IMG_0320The older I get the more I realize that life can bring deep disappointments and unfair circumstances.  Recently I began to ponder how these kinds of life’s experiences could leave a person feeling fragile.  Perhaps your confidence has been shaken, your faith is wavering, or you feel like one more obstacle or challenge will break you completely.

When I think of an item that is fragile, the first thing that comes to my mind is dishes that we put on display but seldom use. Maybe it is an heirloom you want to protect for sentimental reasons.  This thought process made me consider if it is possible for us to allow ourselves to become like that heirloom, just for display and no longer for use.

I strongly believe that Christians should never retire from their work for the Kingdom on this side of heaven. We should allow God to use us through the gifts and talents He has bestowed upon us to be His hands and feet extended, or His voice to those who need ministry, love, and encouragement.

If the path we have been walking on has left us in a state too fragile to be fully used by God, what is the solution? We certainly do not want to retire or leave parts of our assignments unfulfilled!

2 Corinthians 4:7-10 NLT

7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. 8 We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. 9 We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.

At the time Apostle Paul wrote this, he could have been killed for preaching the gospel, yet he encourages Christians then and now to realize that it isn’t about the fragility of our own state, but the great treasure we contain. The power to be strong does not come from us, but from the God who lives within us.  If God’s power and love is limitless, we simply must access it to overcome my fragile state.

God told Joshua, “…Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated) for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9 AMP)

David told Solomon as he trusted him to complete his work of building the temple, “Be strong and courageous do not be afraid and lose heart.” (1 Chronicles 22:13b NLT)

We read in Psalm 27:14, “Wait for and confidently expect the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for and confidently expect the Lord.” (AMP)

Hezekiah encouraged the people after rebuilding the broken section of the walls, “Be strong and courageous! Don’t be afraid or discouraged because of the King of Assyria or his mighty army, but they are merely men.  We have the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles for us!” (2 Chronicles 32:7-8 NLT)

Paul finishes his letter in the book of Romans by saying, “Now all glory to God, who is able to make you strong…” (Romans 16:25a) He again tells us before describing our Christian armor, “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” (Ephesians 6:10)

I believe the instructions we find in all of these passages is to overcome our fragile state through being strong in the Lord. Like most spiritual concepts, easier said than done, right?  I believe the key is proximity!

If I want to grow stronger, I have to get closer to the strength giver! His strength is perfect when our strength is gone. (see 2 Corinthians 12:9)

We have to become like a tree firmly planted and rooted and fed by streams of living water. (see Psalm 1:1-3)

“Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.” Colossians 2:7 NLT

A fragile person is easily broken or damaged. They are delicate, vulnerable, and easily destroyed, just like a tree with no root system.  The solution to overcoming fragility is planting ourselves in close proximity to the stream of living water.  There is nothing I can do in my own strength to change this state, except to be determined to plant myself so near to my creator that my root system has constant access to His supply.  This connection will provide nourishment for me to grow strong.  Before long, I will become strong in the power of God’s might and with God on my side, who can be against me!

 

Keys To The Kingdom

25 Saturday Mar 2017

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I am so excited to announce the release of my Keysnewest book, Keys To The Kingdom.

To peak your interest to get your own copy, I am going to share the introduction of the book with you below.  Get your copy today at Amazon.com.

Keys To The Kingdom

Introduction

Looking back I see now that I have always had a storied history with keys – physical, lock-opening, ordinary keys. Having been a Christian for many years, it should not have surprised me then that the Lord chose to use such a simple, tangible object as a touchstone for my spiritual growth and learning down the road. The book you hold in your hands contains many of those teachings. But first, before the spiritual significance of keys could ever become part of my experience, I had to learn a few things about keys in a general, human way.

As I consider my history with keys, a few stories come to mind.

The first time I really paid attention to keys was as a sixteen-year-old. Most of my friends at the time were younger than I, and we all thought it was cool that I could drive them home after basketball games. As teenagers, transportation freedom is one of those rites of passage leading to all other types of independence, and we were no exception. Also not unusual was the fact that we didn’t always act responsibly with our new freedom.

One night – and I still shudder to recall how we were allowed to do this, especially in the winter – our coach let us leave our game still in our sweaty uniforms. Shorts, a sleeveless shirt, and knee-high tube socks were hardly appropriate for the temperature outside the gym. My two friends and I drove through our small town that night. We came to a stop light, and one of them hollered, “Chinese fire drill!” The three of us reacted with great excitement by jumping out of the car, running around it, and clamoring back in before the light turned green. I don’t know if teens today still take part in this silliness, but it was great fun for us at the time.

My car, however, made “Chinese fire drills” difficult because it had a five-speed, manual transmission. This meant I needed to ensure the car was in neutral and the emergency brake was engaged before jumping out to run around the car. On that particular night my friends, as they ran past the driver’s side of the vehicle, hit the door lock and shut the driver’s side door. They thought it was entertaining to watch me standing outside the car, freezing, at a stop light.

Not one to let the fun pass by, I decided to return the favor. During the next fire drill, I ran past the passenger side doors, and I locked and shut them. It would have been funny, except that I didn’t realize my friends were doing the exact same thing on my side of the car, probably at the exact same moment! The humor of our funny prank quickly dissipated when we realized we were all standing outside the car at a stop light, in our sleeveless shirts and short shorts, in the middle of winter, at night, locked out of the car, with no spare set of keys. The feeling of frustration and discomfort is something I still recall to this day.

Years later, I had another run-in with keys, but this time it wasn’t such a funny story. It was, in fact, a bit scary.

My husband and I lived in the country, and our first child was about a year old at the time. I worked the late shift at a hospital about thirty minutes from home. One night the hospital was on “lockdown” because of a local situation where a manhunt for an escaped, dangerous convict was underway. Someone reported seeing a man sneaking in through the Emergency Room, so the hospital was locked while this report was investigated. After a thorough search, the convict was not located within the hospital. It was a good news/bad news situation, though – certainly I was relieved there wasn’t a runaway convict hiding in the hospital where I worked, but I was also about to leave my shift and head for home along a dark, rural road at 11:30 at night. The convict was still at large, and I was about to be out in the darkness, alone. As I left, I kept looking at the row of trees lining the road, scanning them carefully and anticipating that the convict would jump out at any time. By the time I arrived at home, un-attacked, I was a jittery mess and eager for the safety of our home.

Living in a rural area, we often left our doors unlocked. None of my neighbors or anyone I knew in the area could recall the last time there had been a home burglary, and it was nice to live in a trusting community where locked doors weren’t a frightening necessity. That meant, however, that I didn’t often keep a house key on my set of keys. Why would I ever need it?

That night, however, likely because of the manhunt, I found the doors to my home locked. I knocked and knocked, pounded on the door with all my might, and tried to awaken my husband. He was sleeping at the other end of the house and with the attic fan running, there was little chance he would hear me. In my spooked state, I was certain the convict would jump out of the bushes any moment and attack me.

At the time, we had a rescued Doberman named Max living with us in our backyard. Max and I hadn’t quite figured each other out yet by that time and, while I was fairly certain he was harmless, I’d had a run-in with him recently and knew he could be quite protective of our son and our yard. Still, since the front door was locked, making it through the yard to my bedroom window seemed my only hope. If I could arrive at the window unscathed, perhaps I would be able to bang on the window loud enough to wake my husband.

I approached the yard cautiously, and Max immediately began to growl. This didn’t bode well at all. In that moment, I had to choose between my fear of the dog and my fear of the man who might jump out to get me at any moment. After deciding to take my chances with the dog, I made my way to the window; it was just high enough to be barely out of my reach. About that time, I heard Max snorting and pawing at the ground. I turned in time to see a snarling Doberman in full stride, headed straight for me.

To my amazement, and I never will quite understand how it happened this way, he didn’t attack me. Rather, he jumped up and hit the window with his head. Then, he backed up and did it again!

I breathed a sigh of deep relief when, moments later, the porch light came one, the back door was opened to me, and my startled, sleepy husband stood in the doorway in a stupor, trying to figure out what was happening.

Without a key, without access to open a door, I needed to open, the anxiety and fear and hopelessness of being locked out was immeasurable. I’ve never forgotten what it felt like. But the sensation of having the door opened to me was equally memorable – there was joy, gratefulness, and a deep sense of relief.

I tell you these two stories to make a specific point: Keys are important because we do not like to be locked out. And, just as we need keys in our natural life, spiritual keys are also a necessity. Jesus provided us with some important spiritual keys.

During Jesus’ earthly time of ministry, He met with his disciples and asked them who people thought He was. The passage below tells this story.

13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” 14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Matt. 16.13-19)

Here, Jesus told His disciples at the time and all future believers that He had purchased some keys for us, keys which will enable us to walk in greater fullness and victory on this side of heaven. While I had read and quoted this particular passage from the Bible for years, the keys mentioned here took on new meaning about six months ago.

During a normal Sunday morning sermon, our pastor flashed the above verse about keys on the screen briefly. He did so to demonstrate one of the points of his sermon, though I don’t recall entirely now what the sermon was about. At the end of the service, I was led to pray for a particular friend who was fighting a physical illness. While I was praying, in my mind, a vision of an old-timey lock came to me. Some would call it a skeleton lock, and perhaps you have seen the antique skeleton keys which were used in such locks long ago. As I prayed, I heard the Lord say, “I have given her the keys!”

Remarkably, after that service, I saw keys everywhere I looked. I couldn’t escape them! For example, a billboard sign I pass by regularly and never take notice of had a key on it, and it stuck out to me like a sore thumb. I began to notice how many of the inspirational quotes I read mentioned keys in their messages. I even noticed there is a key emoji on my phone!

Around that time, my daughter asked me, “Mom, what do you want for Mother’s Day?”

While I don’t normally want or need anything, I knew as soon as she asked that this year was different. I had found a set of forty-two unique skeleton keys, and I really wanted a box with a skeleton key lock on the outside. I already knew exactly how I wanted to use the box and the keys, and I was excited to put my revelation into practice in a visual way.

In the chapters to come, we will talk about what I did with those keys and how transformational our vision of keys can be in our spiritual lives. The spiritual keys I discuss are closely related, and they become more powerful when connected together.

I pray that you too will realize every key on our key ring has a purpose. Relying on these keys is an important tool in making sure we aren’t locked out of all that is intended for us.

ORDER YOUR COPY BY CLICKING HERE

 

 

 

 

 

Pruning Season

10 Friday Mar 2017

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IMG_0293“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more.”  John 15:1-2 NLT

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, He taught the people using parables and analogies that made the message relatable. This particular passage of Scripture about pruning in the vineyard is packed full of truths that can be applied to our lives.  When we consider the practice of pruning, especially at this time of year before growing season, it is relatively easy to consider the importance of pruning away dead or diseased branches.  However, the interesting thought found here is the fact that he also prunes the good branches to make them better.

Sometimes the most powerful enemy of “great” is settling for good. These words that Jesus spoke challenge me to be open to the reality that sometimes our Heavenly Father will prune good things out of our lives to create great things.

Letting go of the good can be unsettling and very difficult at times. We like the comfort of the known and the security of the familiar.  Truthfully, we are often attached to the “good” in our lives, and it is difficult to release that without knowing what “great” looks like or when it will arrive!  This is the point where our level of trust in the gardener will be critical.  We have to believe that He knows best even while we wait to see the results that come from the pruning process.

Like many spiritual concepts, this is easier said, than done, so let me try to encourage you further. There are many factors that can affect the overall quality of a grapevine, but the three most important are climate, slope, and soil.1

For the best fruitfulness, vineyards need to be in a climate where there is a lot of sun. When they are positioned on a slope, they get full advantage of the sun, are more protected from the frost, and benefit from the best drainage.  Drainage is the most important factor for healthy soil, which is critical for strong root systems.  Healthy roots determine level of growth or fruitfulness.

How can we apply this to our own spiritual lives? Keep reading below from the passage we read at the beginning:

4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” 8 When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.  John 15:4-5; 8 NLT

Just as a climate with much sun is important for a fruitful vineyard, our connection to the “Son” is equally significant. We must remain in Him; spend time in His presence and in His Word if we want to be fruitful.

Our slope is crucial for two key reasons. First, in the context of position to best absorb the sun and avoid the frost.  From a spiritual standpoint, we must position ourselves as victors and not victims.  We cannot be fruitful with a victim mentality.  Secondly, proper slope determines drainage.  We have to position ourselves where the pain, stress, hurt, and all other negative influences can drain away.  If we allow those things to remain, the soil and ultimately our root system will be diseased and damaged, preventing growth.

If you find yourself in a pruning season, it can be very painful because you often do not understand what is happening. Try to remember that if He is pruning you above the ground, your root system is multiplying below the ground.  Even when the process is painful, try to focus on the fact that He wants to take you from good to great!

 

Reference
1.  Web.  10  Mar.  2017.  http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viticulture

 

 

 

In Your Place

04 Saturday Mar 2017

Posted by in Christian growth

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16933338_10208778665523839_1348636568_nDid you know when God created you, He had a specific place for you to occupy in His plan? Many people feel insignificant in this world, but no one is irrelevant in the kingdom of God.  Paul, the apostle who wrote the majority of the New Testament understood the significance of the place God designed specifically for him.

“But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it pleased him to reveal his Son to me so that I would proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles. When this happened, I did not rush out to consult with any human being.” Galatians 1:15-16 NLT

Paul realized that God was the one who chose him and selected his place. You could say that God anoints those He appoints for a specific purpose or place…and we all have one!  Elijah is one of the best examples of a man who was in his place mightily used by God.

We first read about Elijah in 1 Kings Chapter 17. “At this time Ahab, who was the seventh and worst king of Israel came to reign.  He took for his wife Jezebel who was a zealous participant of the worship of Baal.  Ahab’s marriage to her led to the official endorsement of this immoral and idolatrous worship.”1

God’s solution to Israel’s worst king was to raise up one of the greatest and most powerful prophets in the Old Testament named Elijah. He confronted King Ahab and tells him, “As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word” (1 Kings 17:1b NKJV).

Have you ever wondered why Elijah did this? Those who worshipped Baal believed that Baal controlled the rain.  Elijah cut to heart of Baalism and challenged their so-called god by proclaiming that there would be no rain until he said there would be rain!

After nearly three years of drought, the question about who really controlled the rain was answered in a battle between 450 prophets of Baal and 1 prophet of the Lord, Elijah. The prophets of Baal failed to call down fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice that was offered, but the one true God responded to Elijah’s prayer.  Then all 450 false prophets were slain (see 1 Kings 18:20-40).

He went on to prophesy the return of the rain to the land and the drought ended. He had a very specific purpose and place to occupy and saw an amazing victory in his place.  God has a place and a purpose for each one of us. He has specific calls upon our lives just as he did Elijah.  If you are struggling with that truth, I pray that the Lord will help you to step out in faith and believe that He predestined you for fruitfulness.

There are two common challenges that many of us will face. First, it is sometimes difficult to understand where our place is.  Secondly, when we find it, sometimes God will transition you to a new one.  A wonderful couple in my church used to lead our prison ministry. They were in their place, but then God called them to pass that ministry to someone else and become pastors of a different church.

When you find yourself in a place of transition, it can be very unsettling. I recently posted a picture on my Secret Place Revelation Facebook page that showed two different paths….the message said, “Rejection can be God’s way of saying wrong direction.”

There are times in life where we may find ourselves feeling obsolete or purposeless, but I am here to tell you that this is simply not true. Sometimes those feelings are compounded because the path in front of you seems to be going in a new direction and in order for you to move forward in the new way, you have to let go of the old way.  This transition can leave you feeling unsure of you place or your purpose.

There are also times when you are going the right way, but the enemy continues to put obstacles in your path to discourage you from continuing forward. Discerning which situation you are currently facing can often be very difficult.

This thought brings me back to the story of Elijah. This man just experienced the greatest victory that should have left him full of confidence that he was in the right place.  However, when Ahab told his wife Jezebel what had happened in the battle of the prophets, she sent a message that his life would be taken next!  This sent Elijah running for his life to a place of utter discouragement that made him want to die (see 1 Kings 19).

The Lord was so merciful to Elijah during this time, He continued to minister to him but he eventually finds himself in a cave and the Bible tells us that the Word of the Lord came to him there and said, “What are you doing here Elijah?” (1 King 19:9b)

1 Kings 19:10 NKJV

So he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

The Lord continues to try to encourage Elijah…

1 Kings 19:11-16 NKJV

11 Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. 13 So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 And he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.” 15 Then the Lord said to him: “Go, return on your way to the Wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria. 16 Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place.

Did you see those last three words…IN YOUR PLACE? If someone as mighty and powerful as Elijah can go from a place of such great victory to a place of such discouragement and purposelessness, we can too!

I have often asked myself, “What happened to his faith?” This man prayed there would not be rain and there wasn’t for almost three years.  He prayed for the dead son of the widow of Zarephath and he returned to life.  He prayed fire down from heaven that consumed the sacrifice, yet the threat of Jezebel sent him into a state of great discouragement that seemingly took him out of his place.

My pastor recently said, “Disappointments are inevitable but discouragement is a choice.” Do you think it is possible that Elijah could have continued in his place if he could have overcome the discouragement he was in?  I have always wondered.  He was an amazing and mighty man of God and he certainly received his reward with a chariot ride to heaven, but consider for a moment the possibility of what he missed completing when he was told to anoint Elisha to take his place?

I do not want to be a person who fails to be in my place. I don’t want God to have to look for someone else to complete the call He gives me to do.  We have a mission at our church, “To know Him more, and to make Him known.”  I have a place in this mission and so do you!  I cannot let the devil or a Jezebel talk me out of that.

I am encouraging you to make that mission personal….“To know Him more and to make Him know IN YOUR PLACE!”

 

References
  1. New Spirit Filled Life Bible 2002 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. p 467

Tempted to Look Back

12 Sunday Feb 2017

Posted by in Encouragement

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IMG_0268.PNGWhen the road of life leads us into difficult seasons, it is easy to be tempted to go back to the place that was more comfortable. When we decide to swing for the fence, take the big risk, only to strike out, it is tempting to stick with the status quo.  Let’s face it, risk can hurt and leave you horribly disappointed.  Change can be unsettling, and stretch us beyond our comfort zone.  At the same time, we have heard it said that if you always do what you have always done, you will always have what you have always had.

This makes me think about the Children of Israel. They were held captive to serve as slaves to the Egyptians, yet they were God’s chosen people living so far below their destiny.  God raised up Moses, who would lead them out of their captivity and toward their promise.  With the Red Sea behind them and their enemy destroyed, they found themselves in the wilderness, in a difficult season wishing to go back to slavery.

For many, the familiar, even if it is slavery, is better than the unknown is. This mentality limits progress and traps us in a place of mediocrity and in some cases misery.  Some of the Israelites died in the wilderness and never saw the land they were destined to inherit.  They were out of Egypt, but Egypt was not out of them.  They could not seem to stop looking back.

We read a different story of a man who was not afraid to head into the unknown. Elijah, one of the greatest prophets of all time, was directed by God to anoint Elisha to succeed him.

Elijah went straight out and found Elisha son of Shaphat in a field where there were twelve pairs of yoked oxen at work plowing; Elisha was in charge of the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak over him. 20 Elisha deserted the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said, “Please! Let me kiss my father and mother good-bye — then I’ll follow you.” “Go ahead,” said Elijah, “but, mind you, don’t forget what I’ve just done to you.” 21 So Elisha left; he took his yoke of oxen and butchered them. He made a fire with the plow and tackle and then boiled the meat — a true farewell meal for the family. Then he left and followed Elijah, becoming his right-hand man. (1 Kings 19:19-21 The Message Bible)

Elisha had a very different response than many of the Children of Israel did. He was so determined to avoid being tempted to look back, that he burned his equipment and sacrificed his oxen!  He had nothing to go back for.

What encouragement for us today. We can grow and learn from our past, but if we want to move forward, we cannot be tempted to look back.  Albert Einstein defined insanity, “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Make a decision today to swing for the fence, take the risk, head toward the unknown, and become everything God has called you to be. Don’t give in to the temptation to look back to your old ways, your old life, or your past disappointments and mistakes.  The Bible tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV)