Month: October 2018

When I listen to the news, commercials, or conversations around me I realize there are many things that vie for my attention. The words, agendas, and convictions of others have an affect upon me whether I realize it or not. What I do with the words I hear will impact my thoughts and my thoughts will form my beliefs, and my beliefs will determine my direction in life.

What words, agendas, or convictions of the world have you given power to?

Paul wrote in his letter to the Corinthians about this…

“All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.” 1 Corinthians 6:12

We are surrounded by a culture that has many world views; many diverse convictions, agendas, and beliefs. Within them there are many things that are okay in and of themselves. There is no law against them, but they may not be helpful or good for you. It is one thing to be surrounded by the things of the world, but as a child of God you are not allow them to have any power over you.

Paul was addressing some issues of the early church and he reminded them of the things they used to do, some of the things that they had given power to, and had taken them captive.

“Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality,  or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God. Some of you were once like that.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-11

Sexual immorality is rampant in today’s culture. Satan realizes purity in singleness and godly marriages are powerful influences for the kingdom of God. God created male and female to become “one flesh” in the covenant of marriage. The love and devotion they pledge to one another is a picture of Christ and His church. The intimacy they share with one another produces a legacy of godly off-spring. It is this beautiful and powerful gift from God that the enemy is adamant to steal, kill, and destroy by enticing people to come under the power of his lies that twist, pervert, and redefine.

Idol worship is imbedded in the core of our culture. Worship is a matter of the heart expressed by your lifestyle. It is the honor, love, and submission you give to something or someone. You were created to be loved by God and to worship Him alone! A life lived in the truth of who God is and of who you are brings God’s kingdom to earth and powerfully changes everything! It is the worship of God alone the enemy seeks to entice with the desires of the flesh. Everything around you promotes idol worship; to come under the power of material things, positions, and self.

Greed is what drives so much of our culture today. We have come under the power of “never enough.” God has always provided for His people and promises that those who seek Him first will never go without, but have everything they need. From the beginning in the Garden of Eden, Satan has enticed people to doubt that God is really good, that He is a good provider. Eve fell for the lie that she should take care of her self. That she should decide what was good for her. This is the lie the enemy still uses so that you come under the power of striving to take care of self.

Drunkenness and addictions plague our society and bring so much pain and brokenness. God has created us with a “void” that is intended to be filled with Him; empowered by His Holy Spirit, and overflowing with the fruit of the Spirit so those around us will taste and see that God is good. The enemy is threatened when God’s power is displayed and he rages when God receives glory. So he looks for the weaknesses of your flesh to discover how to entice to be sure you will to fill the “void” with a counterfeit.

“Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit,” Ephesians 5:18

You were created to give power to God alone and to be filled with His power!

A spirit-filled believer is a powerful force intended to bring the kingdom of God to earth so that His will and His works will be done here. It is this power that the enemy hates and he will do all he can to keep you from knowing about the power you have available. His strategies include; hiding the truth about the Holy Spirit, bringing division concerning the Holy Spirit, causing abuse of the Holy Spirit.

In today’s society you don’t need to look far to see those who have given power to the things of this world.

Paul wrote that many of the people of Corinth were “once like that.” And so today many believers in the church were like that, but perhaps many are still deceived in some of these areas.

There is a war between the lies of the world and the truth of God and you alone will decide which you will give power to.  

Paul made the distinction between people who are of this world and those who belong to God. Believers don’t need to give power to anything other than God because…

“But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:11 

When you fully know and fully understand the truth of this verse you will not allow anything of this world to have power over you, but to live fully empowered by God! 

Have you ever thought about what Jesus meant when He said, “I am in the Father,” “you are in Me,” and “I am in you”? Jesus used those phrases several times when He told His disciples that He would be going away and gave them some instructions about living without Him personally walking and talking with them.

“When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.  Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.” John 14:20-21

I pondered what Jesus meant by the word “in.” What does that look like? What does that mean? And so, yes, I actually looked up the meaning of “in”.

I know a man who needed for someone to die that he might live. He was diagnosed with a lung disorder that threatened his life. His only hope was a lung transplant.

I saw him several days ago and was amazed at the miracle God did  through the knowledge of medical science, and the skilled hands of doctors.

He is a living, breathing miracle!

It caused me to consider…

I too had the diagnosis of death upon me. My life was threatened with the guilt of sin. My only hope was salvation through the forgiveness of sin.

“For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.” Hebrews 9:22

I too needed Someone to die that I might live.

This is exactly what Jesus did on the cross, He died, that I might live!

“But now, once for all time, he (Jesus) has appeared at the end of the age to remove sin by his own death as a sacrifice.” Hebrews 9:26

The love of God poured out on the cross as Jesus’ blood was shed for the forgiveness of my sin is truly amazing! The power of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead so that I too have the promise of everlasting life is absolutely miraculous!

I am a living, breathing miracle…forgiven, and alive for eternity!

I wonder if the man with the new lungs wakes up each day with the thought that he is alive today because someone died? I wonder if he embraces each day as a gift to be thankful for; to be treasured and lived fully?

But then I consider…

Do I wake up each day aware that I am truly alive because Jesus died for me? Am I thankful for each day as a gift from God to be treasured and lived fully for Him?

Each new day is filled with possibilities, potential, and promises! The God who spoke light into darkness, and order into chaos, continues to speak creative ideas, unimaginable desires, and impossible dreams, into the hearts and minds of all  His living, breathing miracles!

He is a God of miracles and He intends to use us to display His supernatural power here on earth!

The amazing love, intense sacrifice, and supernatural power demonstrated in sending His Son to live, die, and rise again must not be taken for granted.

I’m sure the man who went through the pain of lung disease, the agony of hoping for lungs to become available in time, then finally undergoing successful surgery, will never forget his experience.

It was truly life changing! 

The miraculous experience of the new life we have been given through faith in Jesus was never intended to be taken for granted.

We are living, breathing miracles of God, filled with His Holy Spirit, set apart for His glory!

The power and love of God is within us so that we live differently than the world around us. We aren’t like those of the world and we aren’t to blend in with them.

Living, breathing miracles are intended to live miraculous lives!

We are meant to live beyond ourselves, supernaturally, so that those around us who are in pain from the disease of sin, who are hoping for an answer, who need surgery, will finally realize there is a cure, and His name is Jesus!

“These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.” Mark 16:17-18

You are a miracle…live the life!

There is a cycle of life, “death,” and new life God intends for your good!

The other day I walked past my flower garden and saw three monarch butterflies enjoying the nectar from the marigolds and mums. I marveled at their beauty and took tons of pictures! I love the life cycle butterflies go through. There is so much to learn and ponder from it. From a tiny egg, to a caterpillar, to a cocoon, to a butterfly!

The life, “death,” and new life the butterfly experiences can be applied to so many situations you face in life as well.

In writing my story I’ve felt like a caterpillar creeping along. It has been a struggle to make it a priority in my life. I realize the struggle is in my thoughts, the battle between believing that I really have something important to write and believing it’s a waste of time. My doubt gives reason to fill my time with other things that seem to be more important. Other things that have quicker results.

Those butterflies were a reminder that God uses a similar cycle in my life to accomplish His will.

Life, “Death,” New Life!

And that cycle reminds me of Jonah.

When God called him to go and announce His judgement on the city of Nineveh, he didn’t want to do what God asked him to and boarded a ship sailing in the opposite direction.

Jonah thought he could out run God.

Jonah thought he could escape God’s calling.

But, the relentless love of God chased after Jonah!

God caused a powerful storm that threatened to break the ship apart and all the sailors prayed to their gods for help and lightened the ship by throwing cargo into the sea.

Meanwhile, Jonah slept in the hold of the ship! 

The captain couldn’t believe Jonah was sleeping through all the commotion and told him to pray to his god for help.

Jonah’s disobedience to God didn’t only affect him, it affected those who were near him.

Once lots were drawn and Jonah was found out the sailors didn’t know what to do with him. They were in danger of losing their lives all because Jonah was running from God.

“What should we do with you to stop this storm?”

Jonah realized he needed to die so they would live.

He told them to throw him overboard and the storm would calm.

The sailors didn’t want to throw him to his death. They tried rowing harder, they prayed to the Lord, Jonah’s God. They pleaded that they not die for Jonah’s sins, but also, that God wouldn’t hold them responsible for his death.

What the enemy means for harm, God intends for good!

And so, they picked Jonah up and threw him over board and at once the storm stopped. They immediately believed in God, offered Him sacrifices, and promised to serve Him.

If the story ended there Jonah’s life had purpose. He gave testimony that his God was the True God, maker of land and sea. He told his story that he was running from God and the storm was because of his disobedience. And Jonah prophesied that by throwing him into the sea, the storm would stop.

And because of Jonah’s message all the sailors put their faith in the One True God!

The very message God sent him to tell Nineveh; God’s judgement was coming to destroy them, came upon Jonah.

God is a just God.

Disobedience must be dealt with.

But the story doesn’t end there…

Jonah was sinking under the raging waves to certain death on the ocean floor. It was there in the midst of his trouble he remembered God and he cried out for help.

God is a gracious God who is attentive to all who cry out to him!

God arranged for a fish to swallow Jonah!

Realizing he was rescued, at least for the time being, he continued his prayer to God. There in the belly of the fish Jonah acknowledged it was God who saved him and he offered up praise and thanksgiving to God. Then he promised to fulfill his vows, which I believe was his promise to go to Nineveh as God had called him to.

Jonah was in the belly of a fish for three days and three nights.

God ordered the fish to spit Jonah out of its mouth, onto dry land.

Life, “Death,” New Life!

When God told Jonah the second time to take His message to Nineveh, Jonah obeyed! And when Jonah walked the streets of Nineveh, shouting of the judgement of God, the people, from the least to the greatest, repented and turned from their evil ways.

“When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.” Jonah 3:10

The evil deeds being done in the city of Nineveh deserved the punishment of God’s judgement.

The disobedience of Jonah deserved God’s judgement.

Jonah was “dead” in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights, and was brought back to “life” as the fish spit him out on dry land. What looked like God’s judgement for disobedience upon Jonah worked together for the good as a sign to the people of Nineveh that he was sent by God with a message from God.

^“What happened to him (Jonah) was a sign to the people of Nineveh that God had sent him. What happens to the Son of Man will be a sign to these people that he was sent by God.” Luke 11:30

Jesus used Jonah’s story to validate His purpose here on earth. Jesus was sent to earth by God with a message from God. “Repeat for the kingdom of God is near!” But where Jonah’s “death” and “life” saved the people of Nineveh from God’s judgement while here on earth, the death and life of Jesus saved all the people of the world from God’s judgement while here on earth, and for all eternity!

I love the stories God has recorded in His word of those who didn’t get it right, but through their “mistakes” I learn of God’s grace and I understand that God truly does intend to work everything together for the good. This story of Jonah reminds me there is a much bigger picture to my life than what I realize. Though I may not have been running from God’s calling, I have put off and avoided writing my story. I have “run the other way” doing things I’ve wanted to do.

There is a certain dying to self that is required in fulfilling God’s calling!

I will only experience the joy of new life when I am willing to die to the life I have now.

My story is a story of this cycle; life, “death,” new life, and I realize that even the writing of it requires I stop running from the calling of God, choose to die to self, and surrender to the new life He has given me.

May my story be God’s message to bring truth, conviction, and new life to those who will read it.