Renewing of the Mind

Last week, I went to see the movie 7 pounds with some friends, and although the theme of the movie was about redeeming ourselves, which is clearly not Biblical, it got me thinking about making a difference in people's lives. On the way home, I was moved by the Holy Spirit, and began crying and rebuking out loud in the car the lies I have been believing about my true identity in Christ. These are lies that I got prayer for last year during a Sozo session. As time went on, the enemy kept bringing these same thoughts to my mind. My mind was a battleground, constantly feeding me lies. Since it was happening between my ears, I felt powerless to do anything about it. When I was alone, or quiet, these were the thoughts that continually flooded my mind.

As I cried out to God and poured my heart out to Him on the way home from that movie (thank goodness I was in the car alone) something happened in the spiritual. I chose not to let those lies control my thoughts or my life. Instead, just as we learn in Sozo, I spoke the truth about what God says about me. He longs for me to have impact for him, and to touch the lives of others.

What I really want to get across here is this was my choice! Every day we are faced with lies that are not from God. We can either chose to accept them, and allow them to shape who we are, or we can rebuke them, and continue to live a fruitful life for Christ. That is why it must be a daily thing. Our mind must be renewed every day.

I asked God for a new passion, and new power to be seen in my life this week, for a desire to know Him more, every part of Him, and for opportunities to touch people this week. God has blown me away with His outpouring this week. If we truly want to see God work in our life, we must make the choice to refrain from the earthly things that weigh us down, and chose to think on heavenly things, and act on them. He leaves it in our hands. He is not going to magically come down and make everything in our life all better when we have not chosen to let Him do that.

I am excited to see Him move even more as I am obedient to Him every day.

Healing is For Today

Growing up, I did not learn a lot about the Holy Spirit. I learned that he is part of the trinity, and that he helps us to make right choices every day, like spending time reading the Bible, praying, and being nice to people. Since living in Valparaiso, and spending time with amazing men and women of God from Bethel, my eyes have been opened, and I have realized there is so much more to the Holy Spirit. Once I started reading the Bible with a fresh set of eyes, I saw all of the many ways the Holy Spirit works in our lives. He is a gentleman, though, and will not work where we have not allowed. With that thought in mind, I want to get some discussions going about healing and the work of the Holy Spirit. Please feel free to comment however you feel lead, whether you agree or not. These things are not easy, but I long to know Him more and more every day, opening my heart to what He longs to show me.

Here is the first thought for today from the book, When Heaven Invades Earth, by Bill Johnson.

" The invisible realm is superior to the natural. The reality of that invisible world dominates the natural world we live in....both positively and negatively. Because the invisible is superior to the natural, faith is anchored in the unseen.
Faith lives within the revealed will of God. When I have misconceptions of who He is and what He is like, my faith is restricted by those misconceptions. For example, if I believe that God allows sickness to build character, I'll not have confidence praying in most situations where healing is needed. But, it I believe that sickness is to the body what sin is to the soul, then no disease will intimidate me. Faith is much more free to develop when we truly see the heart of God as good."

As Long as it is Called Today

Words are powerful. Everyone knows this. Even as a young child, my son has figured out that he can use words that he knows to inflict pain when he is angry. When his anger subsides, he is just as quick to tell us how much he loves us. Words can never be taken back once they are spoken. If you look up passages in Proverbs, you will find quite a few truths about the power of our words. For instance, Proverbs 12:18, "Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." I have been very challenged lately to be thoughtful about the words I speak, specifically focusing on speaking encouraging words when I am talking to or about another person. The insight I have gotten on this matter will really land you in the middle of a battle, so be prepared to fight before you read.

If you are like me, you probably think about encouragement as something that makes someone else feel good. You say a kind word about how nice someone looks, or how considerate they have been, and you have made someone's day. Although there is value in having manners and learning to be considerate, the kind of encouragement that has been on my heart is about spiritual uplifting. Spiritual uplifting brings identity. When you tune your heart in to hear what the Father has to say about another person, you are using the power of agreement to call forth something God has placed within that person. This agreement brings with it identity and purpose within the body of Christ. Without identity in Christ, and a firm belief that we have a valuable place in the body of Christ, we will never have the fullness that Christ desires for our life.

In Hebrews 3, the passage is considering the spiritual battle of the people of Israel. The people of Israel were brought out of the Egypt. They saw miracle after miracle, including the parting of the red sea, but yet they had a hard time believing God when he said he was leading them to the promised land. They turned their hearts away from God, and their hearts were hardened by their unbelief. That generation was never able to enter into God's rest, God's complete fulfillment for His people. The passage states that we must not have unbelieving hearts that turn away from the living God, like the people of Israel. What is the sentence that follows this statement? Verse 13," Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness."

As I really thought about what that meant, I was again, struck by the power God has given us with our words. How are we supposed to avoid being deceived? By encouraging others, and receiving encouragement! So, when we tune into God's heart for someone else to ask what he might want to say, we are fighting a spiritual battle for that person. We are fighting off lies that person might be believing by the deceiver himself. We are not simply saying things that might make someone feel good, we are entering into a battle not against flesh and blood, but against the powers and principalities of darkness.(Ephesians)

I know that encouragement is also seen as a spiritual gift that some people have, and others do not, so sometimes we might think. This passage makes it clear that the command is for all of us. We can't leave the encouragement to those that are "good" at it, just like we can't leave all the praying to the prayer warriors. All of us can play a part and practice doing this, as long as it is called today.

It may be hard sometimes to encourage someone. Thoughts may enter the mind that may even be contrary to something encouraging. You may even feel that someone does not need encouragement because they seem so confident and sure of their identity. They may even seem arrogant. Again, the key to encouragement is saying something the Father would want to say to another person. If you take the time to listen and hear what that may be, you may be surprised at the response you could get from a "confident" person. Confidence can sometimes mask insecurities. I also think about people that I consider to be very spiritually mature. I wonder how they got that way. I am sure there were many people along the way that took the time to encourage growth. In order to remain in Christ, we must be renewed daily. Even these people need encouragement.

I am ready to fight battles for people around me. I am ready to hear from the heart of God so that none of us will ever be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. I will choose to speak words of life and healing with the authority God has given me.

Wisdom

Written November 2007

A passing thought today grabbed my attention more than I would normally allow. Strolling through shops during after-Thanksgiving sales, I normally get overwhelmed, and claustrophobic, and annoyed at the spastic nature shopping sales tend to bring out of the American population. But today, I noticed something small, and thought of something beautiful, yet sometimes forgotten, or misplaced in our society; the wisdom of age. I noticed a young girl, probably in her late teens or early twenties, and she seemed to be enjoying a day with a close friend or relative that appeared to be in her late sixties. I thought to myself how rare I noticed this scene. Our culture tends to shun the old, and embrace only things young and fresh. Have I learned to learn from the wisdom that comes with age? Am I allowing myself to embrace wisdom as I age? Or do I simply pass by, veering toward things that are shiny, pretty, fresh? It seems much like antique shopping, or going through stuff in your grandparents attic. You never know the beauty you might find buried under years and years of dust, but hidden beneath lies a treasure beyond value. I pray my eyes will be open to wisdom, to beauty, to the things that can be unseen by blinded eyes. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's eyes, and God's wisdom is seen as foolishness in the eyes of this world. God, open my eyes.

Is it just a Speck?

Written December 2007

I have been thinking a lot lately about our responsibilities to fellow believers. I can't even begin to count the number of times I have heard the word "judge" or "judging" in a conversation, and almost always in reference to a disagreement of character or integrity. Somehow, as believers, we have adopted the opinions of a cultural trend, being tolerance and acceptance. Of course, I firmly believe that we are to tolerate and accept unbelievers, regardless of their moral convictions, or lack thereof. But I believe we have skewed the definition of what it really means to tolerate and to accept, especially in relation to our fellow believers.

To tolerate or to accept an unbeliever would mean we would engage in a relationship with this person, knowing his/her moral code and convictions do not match up with our own. We love, we share, we don't preach that every decision they are making is wrong, unless prompted by the Holy Spirit to do so. The point of this relationship with an unbeliever is to love unconditionally, and accept the person who might be sinning because it is "kindness that leads to repentance." Accept in this definition would not mean to agree with the sin, or even to engage in the sin with an unbeliever, but simply to accept the person that is committing the sin without condemning.

To tolerate or to accept a believer has a different place, and this is where I have been trying to find the line. As believers, we have the same standard, the same moral code, The Bible. It is our responsibility as believers to know the code, if you will. We are to grow in love for our Father each day, and part of growing in love for our Father means we want to do as he commands. (1 John) Our love for him grows, and as it does, we become a different person. All of us are in the process of being transformed into the likeness of Jesus, or at least we should be. We should all be working on something. And this is where the word tolerance, or acceptance comes in as believers. As we see each other growing, we are to accept, to tolerate, and to forgive if we make mistakes. We are still being transformed, which means none of us are perfect. But did you know Christ says "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect?" (Matthew 5:48) In this reference, in the original language, perfect means complete. We can only be complete by the holiness (God's main attribute) of God. If we are holy it means we are ridding ourselves of the "patterns of this world." We are to be set apart, to be different. (Read the rest of the passage in Matthew 5:43-48 to get the context, and realize this is the sermon on the mount-Jesus is changing the way we are to do things)

What it does not mean to tolerate and to accept as believers is to accept, or tolerate each other's sin. And I know most people would say sin is different for one person than it is for another, but most of the time, we have a clear definition of sin in the Bible. Now, I know, there are gray areas where most of us tend to want to focus. If we are distracted by gray areas, we tend to side on tolerance so we are not accused of "judging" our fellow believers. And this is the skewed definition. We should not be so concerned with offending a fellow believer that we miss opportunities to see growth in each other's lives. This does not mean we point out each other's flaws constantly, or reprimand anyone who, in our definition, might be "straying," but we do have a responsibility to challenge each other. Again, all of us should be being transformed daily. And even if our actions may not be clearly defined in the Bible as "sin," if it is something that keeps us from being transformed, or growing more into Christ's likeness, then why keep it in our lives?

Then there is the real issue of outright sin, not just a gray area. What do we do when we see a fellow believer stray from a known Biblical standard? We approach them gently, in love. We are not there to condemn. We are there to bring this person back into growth and love of Christ. But in approaching, sometimes, a person may not feel loved, may not want to stop sinning. This person may even accuse someone of "judging." They may even sight the reference in Matthew or Luke that tells us not to judge. But we need to look closely at that passage. It says take the plank out of your eye before you take the speck of sawdust out of your brother's eye. It does not say never take the speck of sawdust out of your brother's eye. We just need to remove the planks so we can "see clearly to remove the speck from our brother's (or sister's) eye." (Matthew 7:5)

How can you point out the speck in your brother's eye when there is a plank in your own? But if we are all introspective, growing, and transforming, there is a place where we can point out the speck, and it is okay because we all have specks. It doesn't mean we are judging to point out the speck if none of us have a plank in our eye. So, lets all get the planks out of our own eyes so we can see more clearly and be able to discern the specks in our brother's eye so we can all get rid of those pesky specks. Isn't it annoying when you know there is something in your eye, but you can't find it, and you can't see it? Sometimes we need someone else to help us find the speck, right? So, lets all just settle down, stop saying we are judging each other, and be willing to let someone else point out our specks because we have such honor and respect for each other that we know the other person has taken the plank out.

First Things First

Written October 30, 2008

If you are like me, I am sure you have questions about the deeper things of God, things that always seem to be a mystery. As much as I try to figure them out, they always seem to escape my grasp. Today, as on quite a few other days, I decided to work out at the Y. Being some of the only time I have during the day away from the kids, I cherish these moments alone with the ability to really think.

As I began my work out with some of my favorite music, Needtobreath, I got a sense that there was a barrier that I needed to break through. Sometimes I just feel like I have hit a brick wall in terms of my growth or understanding of God. It is only when I ask to receive what God has that he hands me a tool to break down the wall, or shows me that all I need to do is jump over a 2 foot wall in front of me. Just as I began thinking and singing (in my head), my music shut off. No battery power remained, and I was frustrated. (I have been to the Y with the IPod many times, and almost every time, I get to listen to one song, then the battery dies. I just forget to charge it before I go)

Without my music to keep me company, I felt blank, as though I had nothing else inside me. In that moment, I began asking God what he wanted to show me, what he wanted to do in my life at that moment. I closed my eyes, and just saw a picture of myself running on this little track without the ability to see that I was missing the ledge that was directly above my head. In my mind, I just felt like God was saying, come higher. As I jumped onto the ledge above me, there was this whole world above me that was full of life, and made sense.

So often in my striving to find purpose, I lose the meaning of why I am running. I just keep running without the idea of where I am going, or what I need to be doing. It would be so easy if God would just say, this is what you are going to do with your life, and this is how you are going to do it. If I could be given a set of instructions every day, that would be very helpful. :) I am not sure if any of you have received instructions like that every day, but I know I have not been given specifics every day or for my whole life, only the Bible, and a day to day process of loving God and loving others. Those things in itself give so much wisdom that I have not even begun to tackle. How am I to know these things? By the wisdom given from above. I must come higher!

So, of course, my next question. How do I come higher? Coming higher is a state of mind when you decide to be with God, to know him, and to love him; To worship him with all that you have. In my search for purpose and meaning, I can sometimes lose track of the source of purpose and meaning, my creator, my father, God. How could I possibly fathom all mysteries and all knowledge without love? That means I would gain nothing. No purpose, no meaning in just having the answer when you are not connected to the provider of all the answers. There will always be more questions.

In that moment, I just wanted to reach up to heaven and find the source of everything good and perfect and lovely, and allow him to give me what I need by just loving him. Then, I realize I am at the Y, and there is a distracting 80's ballad playing in the work out room. So, I ask God for the ability just to be able to listen to my lifeless IPod so I can have some worship music. I picked it up, turned it on, and it proceeded to play three of my favorite worship songs.

Without love, I gain nothing. I chose to come higher, to long to worship and love, and in the agreement that I had with God's ultimate purpose, to love him, he moved in a way that was so simple to make me believe He was all I really needed. I didn't need anymore answers. All I needed was Him. Whether it was some fluke with the battery, or God giving that battery more life just so I could worship him, it was clear to me that it was his intended purpose. When we agree with God for his intended purpose for us, he can move in ways in the physical that would not be expected otherwise. We have free will, and God wants us to give him permission to do miraculous things in our life. If we want to see the true power of God, and purpose for our life, we must make that choice.

We are created to love, worship, and adore him. Apart from him, we can do nothing. In all of my striving, when will I ever get to the point that I put first things first, and come higher just to be with him? Today, I had that breakthrough moment. I pray for many more of them.

Sleeping in a Tent

So, today I was just thinking about when I was a kid, and wanted to sleep outside in a tent. I can remember the feeling of wanting an adventure, to be wrapped up in something new and different, without fear of what may be outside, or what could happen, or how uncomfortable I might be all night in that tent instead of my warm bed.

It is amazing to me what we can learn from children. Of course, Jesus told us we must be like children to truly understand child-like faith. I just think about this picture of me outside in a tent. I would never want to go sleep out in a tent in my yard as an adult because the adventure has faded. I am not saying we all need to go sleep in tents, but I do wonder how much we have lost that desire for adventure in our faith. Sometime we miss the opportunities we have as a believer because we fear what could happen, or how uncomfortable we may be.

But when I think on my childhood experiences in those tents on my lawn, I can't even remember thinking that I was cold or tired, or uncomfortable. It was not even a thought in my mind. Wouldn't it be amazing to be that way in our faith; that the thoughts of fear or doubt did not even come to our minds? It is much different even than to have the fear and the doubt, but to choose to step out. I imagine that as we become an adult, it is all about our choices. The more times that we chose adventure and to be swept away by God, the less we even have the thoughts about fear or doubt. I wonder if somehow I can train my children to never have those thoughts like I have, to always listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit and respond so that the doubt never creeps in....

I pray that whatever child-like faith and adventure I have lost, it would be replaced with the memories of what true joy and FUN it is to be in an adventure with God, and that my kids will never lose the child-like faith that they now possess.