Living Free... Day One

Our Monday night small group just finished watching a video series "He Is". It was great. We are

now in the process of doing the first week of a 6 week study, "Living Free". Living Proof Blog

I have only made it through the first week and already reminded of so many things I have known to do, but over time forget to do them. I really wanted to write it out as much for me and hopefully to solidify it in my own mind as much as share it with you readers.

The first week is all about "demolishing strongholds". It explains what a stronghold is and how it can be good or bad. Ultimately the only stronghold that should remain in our lives is the one from God. We can be hidden in Christ.  HE IS our stronghold, fortress, protection; HE IS our strong tower where we can go and seek refuge from the storms in this life. The definition in the book for stronghold and refuge: "to be too strong for, to be lofty, be exalted, to lift high, to protect, to be kept safe."

"God is (HE IS) our greatest stronghold"

We need to take all other thoughts that try to be higher than God in our minds and make them obey Christ...line them up with the word of God.

If God is our refuge and strong tower, the righteous can run into it and be safe! I don't have to be afraid of the days to come even if there is trouble ahead for He will protect me, lift me up and get me through. He will not leave me as an orphan in the midst of difficulty. He may choose to not rescue me from those trials to come, but He most certainly will be with me through it all.  Hallelujah!!!

We have determined that God is the good, right and appropriate stronghold. Now let's take a look at the false ones. See 2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV) We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.  (KJV) Casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

We typically produce many strongholds with a little help from the enemy. These strongholds are identified as those things we "substitute for God and the bondage they create." A stronghold is "anything that exalts itself in our minds, pretending to be bigger or more powerful than our God. It steals our focus and causes us to feel overpowered. Controlled, Mastered"

Examples of strongholds: "Addictions, unforgiveness, despair.  Anything that consumes our emotional and mental energy and strangles out our abundant life."  The part that really got me is this: "Our callings remain unfulfilled, and our believing lives become ineffective." (which is the goal of our enemy) "Strongholds steal our focus." See 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 "We live in this body but we do not do battle that way, since the weapons of our warfare are not of this world. They are powerful through God and able to demolish strongholds. We destroy/tear down arguments and everything pretending to be bigger than God and take all thoughts captive and make them line up with the word (Christ)."  We need to make our thoughts behave and line them up with His word.

So how do we know what His word is? It is the scriptures.  We need to read it, ponder it, study it and meditate on it.  In the study, the author suggest that we pray it. I wholeheartily agree. Please refer to my last blog to study this topic further. Do We Need the Word of God?

Studies in Scripture

I spent time after teaching my exercise class digging into a summer study by Beth Moore, Children of the Day; a study of the 1 and 2 Thessalonians.  Also, on my way home, I listened to James McDonald on the radio talking about parenting and using Proverbs as the foundation.  I will not summarize these today but I am attaching websites if you are interested in digging deeper into these.

Walk in the Word by James McDonald  

Children of the Day by Beth Moore  and if you are interested in purchasing the book online. (click here)

Abiding in Christ or Boot Strap Obedience?

Oh how we hear these churchy expressions and yet do we know what they mean or better yet, how to execute them or put feet to them.

I have been praying and pondering about some pretty heavy stuff.  Things like bad behavior in the Children of God, morality, bad choices, sin in the lives of the believer and the damage it does to our testimony, how many non believers are turned off to Christ (the one true hope) because of those of us unwilling to walk the path of righteousness; and then how we don't seem to be heartbroken and moved to change because we cause others to stumble.  We make excuses, justifiy and rationalize  our actions (Then we "yeah but" it to death).

So I kept asking the Lord about all of this.  I believe I am beginning to get a glimpse of His response.  One message after another keeps adding to His answer until it all seemed to come together in the last week or so.

I was listening to a message from James McDonald and then again the following day, "The Secret to a Joyful Life".  The message was playing in the car and I ended up downloading it and listening to it fully.

I will be referencing some of his message mixed with our Sunday School lesson, and my prayer time while listening through this message.

I began with the question "Lord why do we see so much world in the lives of believers?"  The believers of Christ should be going out into the world to affect it positively with the light and love of Jesus.  Instead we are going out and being infected by the world.  I asked God to open my eyes and my ears so I could see and hear His answer.  I believe He poured forth a fountain, and I will attempt to share what I believe He has shown me.

In John 15:1-17, we are told that Jesus is the vine and we are the branches.  If we REMAIN in Him we will bear much fruit.  But that apart from Him we can do NO thing.  We are to REMAIN in Him and He will REMAIN in us.  WE cannot bear fruit by ourselves. So we must REMAIN in Him.  (Remain - abide, lean into, dwell.)  We are to FELLOWSHIP with Him.  Remain is to abide; to abide is to remain  

• to remain, abide
  • in reference to place
    • to sojourn, tarry
    • not to depart 1a
  • to continue to be present 1a
  • to be held, kept, continually
  • in reference to time
    • to continue to be, not to perish, to last, endure 1b
  • of persons, to survive, live
  • in reference to state or condition
    • to remain as one, not to become another or different
• to wait for, await one

So I asked Him what does it look like to ABIDE or REMAIN in Him, and he quickly began to show me that it is abiding in His word and in His love.  We must rest with Him, live with Him.  The last words from Jesus before leaving this earth were this "go, and make disciples of every nation, and baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach them to observe all I have commanded and I will be with you always, until the end of the age."  So if we are to go make disciples by immersing them not just in a one time water bath but immersing them in who the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are.  This is how we come to KNOW Him.  As we do this for ourselves first, and then to the nations, we are motivated by the love that will emerge within us to obey His commands.  The obedience will be an expression of fullness, gratitude and devotion.  It will spur us on!

As I was listening to the message, James McDonald said the secret to bearing fruit is to abide in Christ  (walking and living with Christ)
As he said that, I wrote down "Lord teach me to abide"  and the next thing in the message was this:
The secret to living is Joy.
The secret to joy is abiding in Christ
The secret to abiding (fruit bearing) is obeying
We are told in John 15:9 to remain in His love, but vs 10 says that if we obey His commands we will remain in His love.

I asked God why is it so hard to obey?  We cannot be good enough by shear determination, concentrating or focusing because it is just too much.  According to Romans 7 because of grace should we sin all the more so grace can be displayed even more so.  Paul said "heaven forbid".  I say of course not.  We are incapable of keeping the law, yes.  For apart from Christ we cannot do it.  But in Christ it is possible.  He said he came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it.  If I am REMAINING in Him all day, I can obey.  His love will compel me to obey.  I will want to love my neighbor as myself and my heart will break if I have caused him to stumble.

So here's the thing.  Moses said if you will not go with me into the Promised land then I will not go.  He also said how will they know you sent me if you will not go with me.   This needs to be our cry as well.  (Lord I do not need to go into the world to represent YOU unless you go with me.)  We need to sit at the feet of Jesus long enough to be filled with His love, which will motivate us to love others, and obey His commands.  We will be a true walking testimony not misrepresenting Christ and causing others to turn away from Him.

The world doesn't need me to be obedient for the sake of rules, regulations and legalism.  According to McDonald, our passion and desire for obedience will come from love.  Obedience is not a to do list.  (or a to don't list)

In Jude 24 it says, "to HIM who is able to keep us from falling".    It is HE who keeps us from sinning.  It is HE who enables us to obey.

McDonald said that if we try to obey without abiding, we will fall short.  In order to keep blameless and not stumble, we must learn to lean into Jesus, listen to Him, fellowship with Him, ABIDE in Jesus.  Jesus in us is the power to obey and also the will to obey.    Jesus is the energy to obey.  Obedience without abiding is conformity. Abiding that leads to and motivates obedience will produce transformation.

The secret to obeying is LOVE

McDonald said that there are 3 false reasons we obey:
1. Ball and Chain -  I have to obey as if I am in a prison (this is considered the adolescent Christian)
2. Electric Shock- if I don't obey i will suffer (when we choose to sin we choose to suffer)  (this is the High School Christian)
3. Boomerang- if I obey I will get blessed

He said the one true reason to obey is in 2Cor 5:14 "the love of Christ compels me" (that is Christ's love for me)  McDonald said that all Christian failure is a failure to love, being motivated by self love above love for Christ and others.  He said that the secret to loving Christ is knowing Him.  The more we know Him the more we love Him.  As we get to know Him more, we must guard against allowing this knowledge to puff us up.  Instead as we grow in the knowledge of Him, we can grow in our love for Him and for others.  As we grow in our love for Him, we will grow in obedience.  

Galatians 5:19-21 is a list which is not exhaustive, of what we look like in sin, disobedience and apart from Christ; or at the least we see what flesh is capable of doing.  In contrast, we see in the next verses, a list of the FRUIT of the Spirit.  Verse 14 "the entire law is summed up in this, Love your neighbor as yourself."

If I see evidence of Galatians vs 19-21 in my life or in the lives of others, I need to not condemn myself or them, but use it as an indicator of the need to abide, lean into, live in Christ.  Just go spend time with Him.  Concentrate on His greatness.  Think on the price He paid for you and for me to have freedom FROM sin, a hope, a future and eternal life with God.

Lets stop trying to do bootstrap obedience where we just try to be good by our own strength.  We need obedience motivated by the Love of Christ.

If we see that a brother or sister in Christ is dwelling in the sin list of Galatians 5:19-21, according to Galatians 6:1 we are to restore them gently and warned to watch ourselves so we are not temtped or fall ourselves.  Ephesians 4:15 speak the truth in love Luke 17:3  So watch yourselves! "If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive.
2 tim 4:2  Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction.

To wrap this all up, I read my devotion this morning which was authored by Billy Graham.  I have included it below.  I was blown away by a NEW word for my vocabulary.  You will see ANTINOMIANISM is defined and then a link for you to read further on the matter.

Christianity is Serious

Jesus indicated that there will be a permissive society just before He comes back. “As in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the coming of the Son of man.” The world today is on an immoral binge such as has not been known since the days of Rome. We are in a hedonistic society, and what we are seeing is human nature expressing itself without God.

Many have fallen into an antinomianism in which they believe intellectually, and then go out and live like the devil, imagining that God will forgive them and take them to heaven. I believe there is an obedience to the Gospel, there is a self-denial and a bearing of the cross, if you are to be a follower of Christ. Being a Christian is a serious business.

Daily Prayer

Teach me to deny my selfish desires and obey Your commandments, Lord Jesus. Cleanse me so that I might be used to penetrate society deeply for You.

The word antinomianism comes from two Greek words,anti, meaning "against"; andnomos, meaning "law."Antinomianismmeans “against the law.” Theologically, antinomianism is the belief that there are no moral laws God expects Christians to obey. Antinomianism takes a biblical teaching to an unbiblical conclusion.
Antinomianism - Click on this link for more indepth study of this word

Read 1Jn 2:3-6  This is how we know we are in Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.”

Paul Harvey's Prophecy

This is a little something that was sent to me in an email.  Just something to ponder.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/H3Az0okaHig?rel=0

Science vs. Faith

A friend shared this information with me and I just had to pass it on.  It is worth taking the time to read.

Let me explain the problem science has with religion.' The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand. 

'You're a Christian, aren't you, son?'

'Yes sir,' the student says.

'So you believe in God?'

'Absolutely.'

'Is God good?'

'Sure! God's good.' 'Is God all-powerful?

Can God do anything?'

'Yes.'

'Are you good or evil?'

'The Bible says I'm evil.'

The professor grins knowingly. 'Aha! The Bible!' He considers for a moment, 'Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?'

'Yes sir, I would.'

'So you're good!'

'I wouldn't say that.'

'But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could.. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't.'

The student does not answer, so the professor continues. 'He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Hmmm? Can you answer that one?'

The student remained silent.

'No, you can't, can you?' the professor says. He takes a sip of water from glass on his desk to give the student time to relax. 'Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?'

'Er...yes,' the student says.

'Is Satan good?'

The student doesn't hesitate on this one, 'No.' '

Then where does Satan come from?'

The student falters, 'From God.'

'That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?'

'Yes, sir...' 'Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?'

'Yes.'

'So who created evil?' The professor continued, 'If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil.'

Again, the student has no answer.

'Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?'

The student squirms on his feet. 'Yes.'

'So who created them?'

The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question, 'Who created them?' There is still no answer...

Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized. 'Tell me,' he continues onto another student. 'Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?'

The student's voice betrays him and cracks. 'Yes, professor, I do.'

The old man stops pacing, 'Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?' 'No sir. I've never seen Him.' 'Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?'

'No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't.'

'Yet you still believe in him?'

'Yes.'

'According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?'

'Nothing,' the student replies. 'I only have my faith.'

'Yes, faith,' the professor repeats. 'And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith.'

The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of His own.

'Professor, is there such thing as heat?'

'Yes,' the professor replies. 'There's heat.'

'And is there such a thing as cold?'

'Yes, son, there's cold too.'

'No sir, there isn't..'

The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The room suddenly becomes very quiet.

The student begins to explain... 'You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit up to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees.' 'Everybody or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.'

Silence settled across the room. A pen dropped somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer.

'What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?'

'Yes,' the professor replies without hesitation. 'What is night if it isn't darkness?'

'You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and its called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?'

The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This will be a good semester.

'So what point are you making, young man?'

'Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed.'

The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time, 'Flawed? Can you explain how?'

'You are working on the premise of duality,' the student explains... 'You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought.' 'It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it...' 'Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?'

'If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do.'

'Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?'

The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.

'Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher?'

The class was in uproar. The student remained silent until the commotion has subsided. 'To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean.' The student looked around the room, 'Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?'

The class broke out into laughter. 'Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelt the professor's brain? No one appeared to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, with all due respect, sir.' 'So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?'

Now the room is silent. The professor just stared at the student, his face unreadable. Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answered, 'I guess you'll have to take them on faith.'

'Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life,' the student continued, 'Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?'

Now uncertain, the professor responded, 'Of course, there is. We see it everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.'

To this the student replied, 'Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light.'

The professor sat down.

The student was Albert Einstein.

Knowing God's Comfort (devotional from Life Today)

Know His Comfort

by Ruth Graham


“For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will

shower us with his comfort through Christ.” (2 Cor. 1:5)


Ruth Graham explores God's comfort in her book Fear Not Tomorrow, God Is Already There

One day, my daughter, Noelle, called asking if I could keep my then-two-year-old granddaughter for part of the afternoon. My desk was stacked high with mail and my email inbox was full, but Noelle assured me that Virginia Ruth would probably nap the whole time. I quickly agreed. I would just put my granddaughter down for a nap and go back to what I needed to do.

When Noelle arrived, she broke the news that she had left both “bear” and “blanket” at home. I knew this would pose some difficulty, but I didn’t realize the seriousness of our situation until I tried putting Virginia Ruth down for her nap. She wanted “bear” and “blanket.” Trying to be innovative, I showed her the monkey that was left over from my son Graham’s childhood, thinking it would substitute for “bear.” She looked horrified when she saw it. Then I offered her a baby blanket that belonged to Noelle. Her big, blue eyes filled with tears and she moaned, “Nooo…” I reached for an old doll, hoping that would comfort her. Her wail grew more intense. I felt helpless. Finally, I scooped my granddaughter up and held her close. I sat down with her as she snuggled and nestled her little blond head on my shoulder. Soon she was breathing heavily and sleeping sweetly.

My granddaughter would take no substitute for her bear and blanket, but so often we try to substitute something else for God’s comfort. God certainly uses relationships and the things of this life to comfort us. The problem comes when we look to our comforts to stop the pain. True comfort doesn’t stop the pain. It makes the situation bearable. It gets us through. We are human – we want the pain to stop. And yet, sometimes, pain is what opens the door to experiencing God’s comfort. It is when we are desperate that He steps in and touches us in unusual ways. He wants to cradle us, rock us, and soothe us.

We need comfort in a host of situations, experiences and emotional states, but there is a difference between needing comfort and what I call “coming undone.” We can come undone in our greatest moments of loss, failure, betrayal or fear. We are unable to find relief. When you are undone, you have exhausted your ability to get comfort from anything around you. People can’t comfort you. None of the familiar comforts work anymore. There’s nowhere to turn. No letup. You’re just undone.

When you are undone, it is as if you have been thrown out of the boat. You can’t touch the bottom, see the shore, or even get a hold of the boat itself. You feel alone and desperate. You can’t see what is ahead, nor can you reach back for what is behind you. You are at a complete loss. You are exhausted physically, emotionally and spiritually. And yet the waves keep hitting you, one after another. You are tired. You can’t battle it anymore. You have none of your own resources left. The problem has taken over, and you can’t focus on the Lord. He is out of focus; everything is out of focus. All you know is the problem. And it is overwhelming.

“Undone” is not a place God wants us to stay. His goal is to comfort us in our brokenness and then lead us out of it. But you do have an enemy committed to keeping you undone. He will use whatever means necessary to shut you down and convince you that you will never function and never be whole again. The enemy wants you to believe that undone is the new normal.

Jesus enlightens Peter about the enemy’s plan against him as they are sitting at the Passover meal. To his headstrong, passionate, willful disciple, Jesus says, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat.” (Luke 22:31) That’s what the enemy wants to do – sift us, fragment us, take us apart. When Peter is older, long after Jesus has been crucified and resurrected, the seasoned disciple-turned-leader advises the early church with a similar warning: “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)

Satan knows our failures and weaknesses. He knows our fears and the areas in which we find ourselves insufficient. The Bible calls him “the accuser” (Revelation 12:10) Some of his diabolical words will sound familiar to you:

“Nothing will ever change.”

“No one will ever love you.”

“You can’t possibly do that.”

“You’re inadequate for this – you’ll never pull it off.”

“You’ve blown it again.”

“You’ll always be a failure.”

“You’re destined for mediocrity.”

“Your hopes and dreams will never come to pass.”

“God can’t use you anymore. You’ve made too many mistakes.”

These are the kinds of words the enemy sows into our minds and hearts, but Jesus calls Satan “a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44) We don’t have to believe what the enemy says about us. We have the Word of God, which tells us what God says about us. Someone far greater than the enemy is living in our hearts and fighting on our side. (1 John 4:4)

God does not create our ruins. The Bible says, “The Lord will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins.” (Isaiah 51:3, emphasis added) God sees us floundering in that water. And He is looking at us with compassion. The verse from Isaiah goes on to say, “He will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing.”

Undone is never the final chapter with God. He promises comfort. He promises restoration. He promises joy and gladness. Thanksgiving. The sound of singing. No matter what the enemy says or does, we can know God’s comfort in our ruins. God will make our ruins opportunities to woo us with His love.

This Week

Where are you in need of comfort? Write down the areas in which you feel “undone.” Draw near to God and ask Him to meet you in the place of your pain.

Prayer

“God, I hurt, but I believe Your promise to comfort and restore me. I give you my pain and invite you to heal my heart. Please help me to know Your deep comfort. In Jesus’ name, amen.”


Adapted from Fear Not Tomorrow, God Is Already There by Ruth Graham

© 2009, Ruth Graham. Howard Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

The transcript from Life Today

Watched Life Today program this morning and what Beth Moore the speaker taught about was so awesome, I had to find a way to share this.  If you would like to see the actual video, go to http://www.lifetoday.org/site/PageServer?pagename=tel_USCalendar_Jan10 or watch it on one of the local Christian stations in your area today.  She is on the show each Wed.  Or you can see a quick donload on the home page at http://www.lifetoday.org/site/PageServer?pagename=homepage

Week 1   12/30/'09

Beth: "Why aren't you happy?" I want you to just lock in on this for a minute. This is when I wish so much that I was looking at every single person on the other side of that screen, just face-to-face, just the two of us for just a couple of minutes because I wonder, there is going to be a lot of people out there and a lot of people in here who really do have relatively speaking, nobody's life is easy, but you really do have a lot of the things that you pictured wanting along the way. Maybe you pictured that you'd have -- all we wanted growing up was like a cute little house. Not really looking for a kingdom mansion, we were just looking for a cute little house that we loved that was home to us. And maybe you thought, maybe I'm not picturing a perfect life but I hope I would have a spouse and I would hope I have a couple of children. Some of you have what you thought when you were a child you always wanted. I have women write me all of the time that say, "Listen, I have a loving husband and I can't figure out why I'm not happy." Anybody know what I'm talking about? Anybody got what you thought you were after and are you still thinking, how come I can't get happy? It's because we thought that thing was going to completely cut it for us. We can let that thing do what it does and be a joy to us but the moment that we place the pressure on it to really just measure up to what we have placed our hope that we have placed in it, we have set ourselves up for an emotional vacuum. It happens over and over again. When was the last time somebody said, "Why aren't you happy? You've got everything! You've got everything!" What pressure are we putting on what we've got? Because somehow we're trying to make our everything our everything and it is not and it's never going to be. Growing in wholeness emotionally is coming to that reality that this is not going to cut it. I've got to have Jesus. I want this, this is a blessing to me, I love this! But it is what it is. When I was a little girl all I could imagine ever being and it never occurred to me I would ever even really have a professional life, I really wasn't looking for that, I just wanted to raise children; I wanted to be a Mommy in the worst way. So many things had been like such a shock to me. My first daughter came along and it was like, this is everything I thought it was going to be. But boy, you start putting that kind of pressure on something that weighs seven pounds, you're about to have a problem. Anybody know what I'm talking about? I didn't even share her with Keith because I just knew one of us was going to drop her and I thought maybe it would less likely be me. We were both so incredibly young. Didn't have a clue what we were doing. I sort of set my sights on this little thing right here and most of the time when she was little, I just flat out played with her because it was like I have what I've always been looking for only she grew up.



[Laughter]



And then she had this delightful -- God knowing my personality, knew exactly what I needed. And then I get this second child who would have made James Dobson cry his eyes out.



[Laughter]



And started every day of our lives when she was three years old asking me if I was going to boss her today.



[Laughter]



-- A whole different ball game. Now I have no greater human joy in this world than just hanging out with those girls. That is the biggest blast to me. I love my daughters so much but they've got their own things going. I'll never forget the very first time I saw -- you know how we doodle all of the time and especially girls in middle school do that. And my girls, when they were little they would write all over stuff, "I love mom!" Then I'll never forget the first couple of times you start seeing, "I love so-and-so" and it is a guy! You're like, "I don't even know so-and-so! I'm calling so-and-so's mother is what I'm doing!" You know what I'm saying? Because we want to be their everything -- their everything. My granddaughter is just obsessed with her mother. My oldest grandson, he just loves his mother to pieces but he is his daddy's boy. When she gets this little girl and this little girls looks at her -- I say, "Amanda, you are Miss Universe to her." She can't get enough of her. Everywhere she goes, every time you look at her, she is just looking for her mother and she is just grinning ear to ear. She loves her! Be very tempting to think, she has cut it for me! Only then she is going to walk down the aisle with her daddy and he is going to dare to give her away!



[Laughter]



It changes -- life changes. We can't hang on to any of this -- enjoy that moment but it is not going to stay, it cannot -- it cannot! I want to show you something very interesting here because Elkanah was not the only one that could not comprehend what she was going through. I want to pick back up in the text now. We're in First Samuel chapter one, picking up in verse nine.



Now notice that she hasn't answered any of the questions, "Why are you weeping? Why don't you eat? Why are you so downhearted? Don't I mean more to you than ten sons?" And she is like trying to hold herself together here.



There is something I want to say to you today because there has got to come a time when if you realize that you are totally under oppression to your own emotions and all of us have been there at one time or another, if that's you right now, there comes a time when you have got to get up -- get up -- get up! When you can look around you and you see that you are putting pressure on your closest loved ones to try to somehow help you get satisfied emotionally and that's exactly what she is doing. Like fix this! Someone fix this! And she realized right then, it is not going to happen here. He doesn't get it and nobody in the world loves me more than him and he doesn't get it! There comes a time when you better get up -- you better get up. You can't keep -- you've heard this saying over and over again, I'm going to say it again, we can't keep doing the same thing the same way and we just keep expecting something different to happen. It is time to do something different! I'm not saying with someone different, these are families here, but it is time to do something different within that same framework.



What she is doing is she is taking out the vow call the Nazarite vow in the book of numbers, you can look it up for yourself; it is very, very interesting. It was a voluntary vow. Most of the time people took the vow for themselves. There are a couple of exceptions to this and Hannah is one of them where they determine in the midst -- it was not one of those vows that unplugged you from people; it was kind of a vow of dedication in the midst of much activity. So they would grow their hair out long and they would take no wine, nothing that would have any kind of influence. They were strictly to be influenced by God himself and there were all sorts of strange things to it. They also could not be around a dead body. They could not touch a dead body. Now Hannah calls upon the vow for her son, if God will give her the son and Samson's parents did exactly the same thing. So these are exceptions. Other than that it was a voluntary vow. There is this wonderful time where we're told in the narrative about the Apostle Paul that he left a particular place and that he got a haircut. You're thinking why in the world did the word just tell us that Paul got a haircut? Why do we care? Because it is telling us he had taken the Nazarite vow. He was in Corinth at the time, he knew he was going to be around tons of people doing all sorts of public things that a Hebrew man would never have dreamed of seeing, that there would be very, very open sexual perversity, it was part of the temple worship. He knew he was going to see things that his eyes had never even imagined. And in order to be sanctified in the midst of that, he had taken on this temporary vow. So that tells you a little bit about it. She is imposing that upon an unborn child, a child that has not been conceived. So this is the vow she is making to God in verse 12. Okay, are you getting this with me? So Eli is staring at her and so there she is, she is praying in her heart but her lips are moving. In other words, like she is not praying out loud. It is very interesting; I found it in my research for this lesson that silent prayer was almost unheard of in practice in the Jewish world at that time. That they had often very prescribed prayers but that prayer was said -- it was always auditory, always said out loud. So this was kind of a new thing right here. I love that we find it in the context with a woman. It says she is praying in her heart but her lips are moving, and he is watching her and he is finding it very troubling and disturbing.



I don't know about you but it is always such a surprise to me to find beer in the Word of God.



[Laughter]



That word, "wine" I kind of -- but beer, somehow, I don't know -- just a long neck -- I never can picture it.



[Laughter]



I always try to find a way to not have to read that part of it. It is not that I just -- it just seems so out of place. Somehow it is like for beer to be -- but anyways, she has not had a beer. I just need you to know right now, Hannah did not stop by the Stop and Go and grab her a beer on the way to the temple that day.



[Laughter]



Okay, case in point. Remember what our second point was?



We saw in Elkanah but you would hope that people that is as deeply spiritual as you would get it! Right? Right? Have you ever just kind of had a display of the spirit? Perhaps like grabbing the banner and running through your sanctuary during a really high time of praise and worship? I don't know what the practices are at your church, but it could be all sorts of things, but then later someone that you thought would totally get why you did what you did, maybe you just felt like God was telling you, go lay on the floor right at the altar, just go lay on it face down -- just go lay on it in front of everybody and you're thinking, everybody totally got it. And then afterwards, somebody says to you, "What in the world was that?" It is very disconcerting because you thought they would get it. And you realize along the way even your spiritual cohorts don't get you. So it is very unsettling. At this point she realizes, you know what? I'm really alone here. I'm really alone here. It doesn't mean without relationship -- it just means when it all comes down, I've got something happening that only God is going to get -- only God is going to get. Listen, there is no more important juncture in our lives than that, when we come to that place. But if we just stay there and just think, well, God is the only one that gets me, we're no healthier than we were. That this next thing has got to take place and that's when we look at three and four. Three is this, we'll see kind of the negative side of it, and then four the negative side of it:





We can take this one to the emotional bank. At times of our lives when we most need to pour out, we have the strongest tendency to pour something in. I want you to think this through for a moment with me because the thing about it is, Eli had seen a lot. Eli, as a rule, was dead on. The tendency was there and we all know that it is. He was wrong about Hannah but he was right about most people because when we most need to pour something out, that's when we most have the tendency in our humanity to stuff something in, whether it is food, whether it is drink, whether it is activity, whether it is images or pornography, we've got something inside of us that we're afraid is going to surface -- am I telling anybody the truth here today? We'll have something that we know that we're just trying to hold down, hold that down. We're scared to death of that part of us and so what we'll do instead of bringing that thing straight to the throne of Jesus and pouring that thing out right there and bringing every bit of it clean before him and going, "This is what is in here." And let him turn the light on in that closet and tend to us, we will pour on top of it, just when we most need to pour out. That's when we have the tendency to pour in. Look -- look at the next time you have a tendency to any kind of excess. What is it that you're stuffing? What is it that I'm stuffing? What are we trying not to have to deal with? What part of ourselves is it that we do not want to see and certainly, do not want anybody else to see it. You've got something you need to pour out. What is it we're pouring in on top of it? Because this is it, spiritually speaking. We binge to keep from purging. We binge on something because there is something else that needs purging and we don't want to do it so we keep that down and we keep putting stuff on top of it. The next activity after the next activity, the next responsibility after the next responsibility, the next work out, the next run, the next meal -- whatever it may be, we're just putting it on top of it. Keep it down. At all costs, keep that thing down. Is that speaking to anybody today? Here's what happens, we get to point number four. Four is this -- we know we're on our way to spiritual wholeness through our healthier emotions when number four:



When we can learn, this is going to be optimum health for us emotionally speaking, when we get to where we will pour every single one of those emotions, no matter how toxic, out right before God freely. Next time we're tempted to pour in what is it that we need to pour out? Can we find ourselves a posture to do that? I'm going to tell you something, most of the time I can do it silently but most of the time I need me a place. I'm a demonstrative person, I need me a place where I can shut the door and get all the way down on the floor. I can remember one time in our other office building, we had maintenance people and I normally kept my office door locked. I do not know why it was unlocked but I'll never forget that I had gotten up from my desk because I was working on a Bible study and God was so speaking to me personally about an issue that I was having that I was nearly overwhelmed. I thought just get up and get down. That's my thing, it's not everybody's thing to do a physical demonstration like that but I got up from my desk and I laid flat out on the floor and I was just telling him all this stuff, and I looked up and there was a maintenance man in there with me. I was so humiliated; I did not know what to do. But my pursuit was to pour out what was toxic in my emotions before the throne of grace and to know that somehow that became a drink offering to him. This is all my bitterness. Let me tell you something, he sanctifies that. When he touches it, when he touches it, it begins to heal. To pour them out freely -- I've got to tell you something, this is kind of another lesson all of its own, but here's something God has been talking to me recently about. We have to -- when something has gone awry and life is not coming through for us like we had planned for it to or like we want it to. When something has gone awry, when the family is not like we want it and we kind of feel like we've gotten a bad deal on something, there are two extremes that we can go to with all the negative things that we feel. One extreme is repression. Repression is just when we don't do anything with it whatsoever. Keep it in -- keep it in. The ones of us most prone to repression are going to be the ones that very often are the most spiritual. Either that or you were raised by a very emotionally -- I say this with all due respect -- a very emotionally constipated people.



[Laughter]



I think that still is a good medical term that ought not trip us up too badly. But some of you, like you never ever saw a parent even get tears in their eyes about anything. No one ever just put their arms around you and told you how much they loved you. So you got that. So that keeps you kind of frozen up, whatever it might be: repression. Then there is rebellion. Now these are our two extremes we can go to when life isn't going like we want it to. We can either repress what we're feeling or we can just go into all-out rebellion -- all-out rebellion and I don't even have to describe to you what that looks like. I want you, if you're taking that down and you're doing those arrows like that, I want you to put down an arrow from each one and this one, I believe you can as well take to the emotional bank. Repression will make you sick -- it will make you sick! Listen, we've got to do something with all those feelings. They need out. They need expression. They're in there for expression. We're either going to fly off on somebody or we're going to find a safe place to bring them to God. It is our unbelief that keeps us from doing it because we're not really positive he is there. We feel kind of stupid. Some of you are still convinced you have an imaginary friend you're dealing with here. This is God. He listens to every single word you're saying and he knows every single bit of your emotional upheaval. So repression will make you sick but make no mistake, rebellion will make you stupid.



[Laughter]



Anybody? Rebellion will make you flat out stupid. So we can either repress or we can rebel and that's when family -- my marriage is not going like I want it to so we spin out into an affair, or this or that or pornography or whatever it is going to be, and that can take a whole lot of forms and a whole lot of different situations. Rebellion will make you stupid; repression will make you sick.

Devotion from James Robison

I wanted to share a devotion I read this morning.  I was going to summarize, but as I tried to do so, I found that there was NO way I could.  it was all so good and profound.  Hope you have the time today to read and chew on this one.  I believe it goes along wonderfully with so much that I talk about in this blog.  Both in the physical realm and the spiritual realm.



Your Body, His Temple


by James Robison



"For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

'I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be

their God, and they will be my people.'" (2 Corinthians 6:16)



Whenever Christians talk about health and wellness, we invariably quote 1 Corinthians 6:19, “Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.” The implied message is, “Take care of your health, because God lives in you!”



That’s a valid message, but when we really examine the text of Paul’s letter, we discover something more foundational to the topic of health. In fact, until we truly understand and implement this particular Biblical principle, we will not be able to consistently practice the practical and beneficial advice presented in the new series, “The True You.” Once this deeper truth enters your spirit, you will be able to align your mind so that you can bring your body under control.



The context of the passage actually encompasses a discussion about marriage. Paul is drawing a parallel between the husband-wife relationship and our devotion to Jesus Christ.



“Don’t you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ?” he asks. Then he shocks his readers with a blunt question. “Should a man take his body, which is part of Christ, and join it to a prostitute?”



By now, Paul has the attention of his audience. Unfortunately, his question is just as relevant to today’s reader as it was back then! “Never!” he continues, “And don’t you realize that if a man joins himself to a prostitute, he becomes one body with her? For the Scriptures say, ‘The two are united into one.’ But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him.”



Here, Paul takes his discussion to a spiritual level. He’s talking about sexual purity, but he’s also elevating it to spiritual purity. He also echoes the prophet Jeremiah, who said to Israel, “Your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you...you said, 'I will not serve you!' Indeed, on every high hill and under every spreading tree you lay down as a prostitute.”1



Again, God’s messenger uses the image of prostitution to illustrate the unfaithfulness of His people. Paul and Jeremiah are not only condemning sexual immorality, but also spiritual immorality. It is in this context that the letter to the Corinthians continues:



“Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body.” Then Paul asks that question that we often associate with health and wellness. “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.”2



This is an issue much bigger than weight loss or physical training. The temple was the place where God’s presence dwelled. He didn’t call our bodies the “hotel of the Holy Spirit,” where He checks in after 3:00pm and checks out before noon the next day. He called it the temple – that holy place where God’s presence resides permanently. It’s the place where God manifests and reveals Himself to a lost and dying people. In a world where nearly everyone is under the control of other influences, the temple is the place where God is fully in control – your spirit and the indwelling Holy Spirit are united as one.



That is why it is so revolting and foul when believers fall under the control of anything else other than the Spirit of God. Like the faithful husband who flees the voice of a temptress, the faithful Christian must flee the seduction of any spirit other than God’s. We must never be under the control of any fleshly appetite, because we are a temple of the Holy Spirit! Remember, the enemy seeks to use our God-given natural appetites as a point of attack in order to lead us into bondage.



One of the most common invading forces in His temple is the simple lust for food. Imagine how different our lives could be if we hungered for God as much as we hunger for our next meal! I believe this is one reason God introduced the concept of fasting. When we deny our body to build our spirit, it changes our perspective and realigns our priorities. Remember the manna from heaven that God provided His people in the desert? It spoiled during the night. They had to rely on God every single day in order to sustain their strength and energy.



This is a recurring, foundational truth throughout the Bible. We must be one with God through daily unity with Him. There is no such thing as part-time marriage or part-time Christianity. If you’re not fully committed, you’re not really in a healthy relationship. You can’t bring prostitutes into a legitimate marriage and you can’t bring other gods into the temple.



So as you hear the wonderful truths and encouraging advice from our experts on health and wellness, you must first examine the spiritual side of “the true you” before you can successfully address the physical side. God wants us to prosper in our physical health as we prosper in our spiritual health. We can and should care for this temporary housing we call a “body,” but we must first start by giving our all to care for His eternal purposes and truth. As your concerned family and friend, we are offering you inspiration, direction and encouragement for your journey and care of your body - His temple.


This Week

Look to the new year as a new emphasis on the Holy Spirit's presense in your life. Commit yourself -- body, mind and spirit -- to being His temple.


Prayer

"Lord, I give myself wholly to You. Take charge of every part of me so that I may glorify You in every way. In Jesus name, amen."


1 Jeremiah 2:19-20, NIV

2 1 Corinthians 6:15-20, NIV

Christmas cheer or Christmas sorrow

Below is an excerpt of a Christmas letter from Mark Gregston from Heartlight Ministries.  His ministry is to teens in severe trouble.  Thought it really brought up some significant issues to consider during the holidays.

My tendency has been to open past Christmas letters with “Merry Christmas!”, “Happy New Year!”, “May the joy of Christmas, "Glad tidings,” “Let’s all be jolly,” or “May peace surround you and yours.” These are great words of encouragement, but hardly what the parents I rub shoulders with are feeling during the Christmas season.

Most are going through a tough time, are experiencing a great sense of loss, or are at “wits end” to know what to do as they see their family struggle through difficulties with their children. As they reflect on their year, sadness fills their emotions and it is not going to be a Christmas that they hoped it would be. A mother told me last week the two words that describe her year are “sorrow” and “suffering.” That’s the world of people that I am involved with.

It’s ironic to me that Christmas and its message of hope is celebrated at a time of the year when many people least feel it. Oswald Chambers wrote that sorrow has an amazing way of burning up "shallowness.” So, my prayer for you is that any sorrow you've experienced this year will move you to a deeper understanding of the One we celebrate, and that your hope would lie in His promises.