Good...yawwwwn...morning!

Well everyone, it's that favorite time in the day...6 AM (now 6:41 AM)...and God has told me again, that this is His designated time for me to hear from Him the most clearly.  My flesh is saying "ugh...just a few more hours of sleep Lord, please?"  My spirit is saying "hey, He's been trying to woo you to Him for a while now.  You got tons of confirmation that He was waking you up on purpose, and yet still you fight this?  Get up, girl.  Run to your Father and get wisdom for your day!"

So, here I sat, at 6 AM, after feeding the cats, letting the dog out and in, and taking my daily pill for my sluggish thyroid.  I sat, I prayed a brief "good morning, Lord...I'm all yours," type of prayer, and then I wrote my opening question to the Lord.  "what would you like to say to me today?"  He began reassuring me about an important situation going on in life right now.  He told me to rest, trust, and believe that He has it in His hands and knows what to do with it.  It was another time of Him letting me know that, though I feel personally out of control, He has it covered!

In 30 minutes I am waking my daughter up for school and will have to be alert to do that.  As I continue to think about what just went on between Father and me, however, I ask why He didn't give me wisdom about helping a friend of mine.  Could it be that He knows she and I won't be meeting today so that info isn't pertinent in my life?  Now THIS is going to be interesting to watch unfold!

Stay tuned till next time.

~Laura

You say you're "sorry" but...

Have you ever encountered a situation where someone apologizes to you, but their flawed behavior remains the same?  I've not only met people like that; I have to really guard that in myself.  I believe it stems from an attitude of rebellion and pride.  A person seems to feel bad about hurting someone, but at the same time, they may be thinking "he had it comin" or "but what about THEM? They did such and such to ME!"  The truth is, no matter what THEY did, YOU are the one whose behavior YOU can change with the help of God.  The Lord promises to deal with the other person in His way and time.  You and I have to just let HIM have the final say about what the other person did.  If you've been confronted, said you were sorry, then you have some work to do on yourself.  Yeah, I know...OUCH!

4.)  Did you just say "I'm sorry" because you got caught or wanted to relieve a guilty conscience...or do you feel BAD about your part in things?

Again, if you are a person who is truly penitent and wants your life to reflect Christ, you are going to FEEL something when you have hurt someone or done something wrong.  If not, you might want to go back to the altar and rededicate your life to Jesus.  Be prepared though...once you've broken trust with someone, it can take a very long time to earn it back...sometimes, that person decides to never trust you again.  In this case, you have to rely on the truth that God loves you, forgives you and will never leave nor forsake His own who are "the called according to His purposes."  Yes, easier said than done sometimes when everything in you just longs for things to be "the way they used to be with her/him and me."  Being "heartfelt" repentant toward people you hurt, makes you SAFE to be around.

The Bible Way:

Proverbs 18 v 19

An offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a citadel.

5.) Is your word your honor?

Lying is way too easy to do.  Sometimes, we learn as children, to lie our way out of things, rather than suffer the consequences.  In relationships, honesty needs to be the foundation, the solid, steady thing that people can count on with you.  If someone knows you will tell the truth no matter what the outcome, this builds trust and proves you to be SAFE to be around.  Don't live your life trying to "get away with" things.  If someone shares that they are concerned about a fault in you, be sure to speak the truth, admit your wrongdoing, make things right through asking forgiveness, repenting, and changing your behavior with God's help.  Repentance means a "resolute turning."  If you are truly sorry, you don't lie about what you did.  Confront it in yourself, Admit it to the person, and set out to have God show you how to do the very opposite.

The Bible way:

Psalm 52 v 3

You love evil rather than good, falsehood rather than speaking the truth. Selah

Ephesians 4 v 15

Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.

5.) Are you spinning your wheels or moving forward in life?

The whole point of following Jesus, is that we need to be moving forward in life.  If we're doing nothing or looking back too much, we are going nowhere, accomplishing little, and actually shrivelling up, rather than growing.  

I'm considering a plant.  After it roots in the ground, it begins to grow up from the dirt! It becomes something awesome to behold! If you are still stuck "in the dirt" of your life, there is a problem!

  People who continually talk about the "dirt"...miseries, sorrows, lack of accomplishments, things that didn't work out" are miserable creatures to be around, and when you consider that you become like who you are with...these are UNSAFE people. 

 If you could be described in the above way, you also are an UNSAFE person to be around.  There is nothing wrong with asking for prayer, "confessing your sins one to another" but if the majority of your conversation is seasoned with "bitter root" rather than "salt" you will be pulling the listener right down into the "pit" you're in and vice versa.  Want to be SAFE?  Hang closely with SAFE people.

The Bible Way:

Proverbs 29:11: A fool vents all his feelings But a wise man holds them back.

It is interesting to note that the Greek translation of the word BITTER is PIKROS, meaning sharp and pointed.  When we hang around or when we ARE bitter, we are getting jabbed or jabbing others.  It is clear that we cannot hang closely with people who are spewing out negativity, or it will get onto us.  

This brings me back to what I said in my very first blog, about gossip.  As I said, I had to look at myself regarding this topic.  If I'm talking to someone about something they have no ability to change, I'm not only gossiping, I'm also being BITTER and bringing the listener into my hole of bitterness. Yipes! Not good!  and most importantly UNSAFE!

Now there is HOPE if you have been an UNSAFE person.

1 John 1 v 9 says that if you go to God, tell Him that you know what you did was wrong and are truly sorry for it, not only will He forgive you, but there will be NO STAIN on you from what you did. (my loose translation)  A stain is a lasting reminder of something "dirty" that we got on us.  All unrighteousness and ugliness and filth is cleaned off you when you go to God with a heart that is truly penitent, sorry, and ready and willing to make a change.

Here is a really great resource to learn more about heart-motivation, bitterness, and other topics that we need to focus on in order to be SAFE people.

http://www.realtime.net/~wdoud/topics/bitterness.html

The Company You Keep...are you SAFE to be around?

Here are some things to examine to find out if you are a SAFE person to be around:

1.)  When someone points out a flaw in you, do you argue, fight, defend yourself right off the bat?  Do you insist that you are "just fine" and could NOT have done or said what they claim?  Are you able to admit that you were weak in something and might have hurt someone by it?

How will you be restored, unless you are willing to admit that you messed up?  Arguing that you are right, the other person or people is all wrong, is not behaving with LOVE.

The Bible's way:

1 Cor 13:5 it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful

If you are the one confronting the behavior, you also need to check that you are behaving with LOVE.

Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Look to yourself, lest you too be tempted.

When correcting and receiving correction is done in the right way, both people are in good company and SAFE to be around.

2.)  Are you religious or are you Holy Spirit-led?

It's a wonderful thing to "go to church" and do "spiritual things" but what about your home, your friendships, your job?  Do you serve God on Sundays, only when you walk through the church doors and are around all the "right" people?  

Make sure your family and friends and job do not fall by the wayside while you are busy "serving God in the church."  Have those other things that are priorities, become less cared for, nurtured, and paid attention to, than what you are doing at church?  Don't become an UNSAFE person to those nearest and dearest to you.  Make sure your "lost sheep" (family, friends, etc) get sought after and taken care of, even at the seeming expense of the other 99. (church, spiritual things)

The Bible's way:

Matthew 18 v 12-20

12 “What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that is straying? 13 “And if it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray. 14 “Thus it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones perish.

3.) When confronted, do you listen and consider what is being said or are you ready to FIGHT?

I am so guilty of this, it's not funny.  When it comes to "fight or flight" reactions, my first one is to lash back at the "confronter" rather than listen calmly to what they are addressing with me.  How about you?  When someone says they need to point out something in your life, do you want to run or spout off at them?  Either of these reactions make you UNSAFE to be around.  If your leaders and others cannot speak to you about what they're concerned about, you will be left in a truly desolate place in your life.  Ask God to help you become open to correction.  I am doing the same.  

Before you even try to worship the Lord through your gifts, you need to be sure and make things right with whatever person or situation needs to be dealt with.

When your brother confronts you, be willing to consider what he's saying. ( "Quick to listen, slow to speak") Then, do what you need to, to make it right between you if possible. 

The Bible's way:

Matthew 5 v 24

leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

Next post: you say you're "sorry" but ...

The Company You Keep

As I was having some "God time" last night, I came across a book I read a long time ago called SAFE PEOPLE.  The last time I read this was because I was trying to avoid being hooked up to unsafe people and being abused again.

Last night, I discovered something really different.  I was asking myself "where am I in this? Am I a person who is SAFE to be around?"  Self-reflection is not only a good idea but important when you are in a position of helping others who are really struggling.  It's the "remove the board from your own eye so you can see clearly to remove the splinter from your brother's eye," example.

I went carefully through the signs of a "safe" person in the book, realizing I need to make some changes...well, God needs to make some changes in me.  Up until yesterday, I had no idea what the definition of "gossip" actually was.  I thought gossip was when you talk to one person about another person, with the intent of tearing down that person just because you don't like them.

I had heard that saying "we need to pray for so and so" can even be a form of gossip.  It even goes beyond looking at the "motive" for sharing information.  The definition someone gave me, is that gossip is "talking to someone about something they can do nothing about."  I honestly have NEVER heard this...but with it being described that way, I now realize that I've been very guilty of this over the years.  If I were to continue talking to people about other people, situations, that they have no control over or no way to change, that would make me an UNSAFE person.  I don't have a desire for people to feel "unsafe" around me, so now I'm re-learning some ways of behaving.

With all that soul-bearing having been done, I'm now going to talk more about what a SAFE person is, how to not attract unsafe ones, and what the Bible has to say about "the company you keep."

~

One last thing...how to BEAT Idolatry

Well, I've never been one to name a problem or dilemma, without offering a practical solution. Here ya go.

If you saw yourself in any of what I described in the last 2 blogs, do not be discouraged. Even as King David encouraged his own soul in the book of Psalms, there IS hope for you! There is a way OUT! Jesus is that WAY!

You may have heard the typical preaching about "fix your eyes on Jesus...the author and finisher of your faith." The thing is, whatever you are "fixed" on, looks HUGE in your life. Maybe you already know that what you lend your strength to, becomes your driving force, right? Well, I'll take that a step further, and say that whatever you are fixed, fixated, infatuated with, idolizing, obsessing over, focusing on, becomes GOD in your life! In essence, pondering about a certain topic is not a big problem...it's when that certain thing becomes "it" for you, that you have entered a danger zone and are headed for a hard fall!

So, now that you've figured out if this is your situation or not...the idolatry tendency of man, woman, child, beast, situation...how do you BEAT it?

Fixing your eyes on Jesus. Seeing HIM as your one and only. In order to do that, you have to KNOW Him. Why would you put someone as the RULER over your life, whom you don't even KNOW yet? That would be insane in my view. Get to know Him. Pick up a Bible, read the book of John, learn the nature of Jesus...who was He? how did He respond in different situations and to different people? Ask Him to make Himself REAL to you in a way only YOU can understand and know Him. He will.

Now, one last caution. NEVER and I mean NEVER let someone else tell you who Jesus is to you, unless that person is who you believe to be God's delegated authority. The Bible even has guidelines to determine this. A God-appointed authority, though imperfect, will be doing everything he/she can to follow the Way of Jesus. The apostle Paul told his students to "follow me AS I FOLLOW CHRIST." He was saying "watch me, do what I do, read what I read, respond how I respond." This does NOT mean, "become my clone" "be my puppet"...no, he was saying "observe, learn, act based on my EXAMPLE to you." Paul was NOT Jesus, nor a self-proclaimed ANYTHING. He was a human man, fallible, capable of falling, riddled with things to overcome in his own character...and yet, he was bold enough to know that he was following Someone who was the ONLY God and answer...the Way, Truth, Life.

Follow your leaders in this way. Watch, listen, learn, do...never believe for a second, that they don't have struggles or are closest to God of all mankind. When you keep that balance in your life...respecting, loving, honoring God's appointed shepherds over you, but you know the main one even THEY are being led by is CREATOR, you will NOT fall into disillusionment, disappointment, depression, or Idolatry. Fix your eyes on Jesus...whether through His Word, His leaders, or directly in relationship with Him. Keep it in balance. Keep it real!

When the Bough Breaks and The Pedestal Falls

I want to explain something...the bough breaking, the pedestal falling. I was thinking about the common song we sing to babies "Rock a Bye Baby." We sing "when the bough breaks, the cradle will fall..." There is even a movie that was made with that title. 

When we consider a mother, rocking a precious baby in her arms, we have a protected, secure feeling. Put that baby in a tree top where the tree branch breaks...not so much! Wouldn't that mother want to nurture and protect that child by holding it close, rather than counting on an "iffy" treebranch to sustain that cradle? Apparently not. When the bough breaks, everything that is precious...FALLS! Think about that! The foundation you trust your life upon, when it's not totally, 100% foolproof, infallible and rock-steady, WILL break and fall...and everything you held dear, goes with it!

Now, about pedestals falling, which is very similar to boughs breaking...when I mention this, it means that someone puts another person on such a level that they appear to be almost infallible, precious, flawless, like unto God. (The first chapter of Romans in the Bible talks about it.)
This is so EASY to do when the treasured person is someone who seems to have "always been there" for you, have "all the answers," and seems to have "arrived" in their own life. You might look at this "super-human" as THE exclusive friend, leader, guru, guide, mentor, God's spokesperson, chief, etc, and you might even feel a bit protective or possessive over this person, to a point of overlooking that they have even tiny faults. I think I've seen this a lot, not only in myself moreso in my past, but also in people who admire tv stars, movie stars, evangelists. It is definitely idolatry when it gets to such a point that "creature" replaces "Creator." Any decent, Godly man or woman who is in charge of a part of your walk with Jesus, will always direct your gaze from themselves back onto God!  

What it feels like when the pedestal falls, is that everything you had lived for, that controlled your behavior, thoughts, actions, has now totally crumbled into pieces. You forget who YOU were before this one main person entered your life, because all you now know is what THEY like, their interests, their habits, their expectations of you, their strengths and weaknesses...life became all about THEM and they became the FRAMERS of your inner and outer world!
Emotionally, this devestates you, causes you to feel confused, frustrated, out of touch with reality, almost post-traumatically stressed out! It causes the other person to feel like a failure, a disappointment, a fallen being. Red flags should be flying HIGH in thinking about all this. If they aren't, then you might really want to "have a lil talk with Jesus" about all of it and verify if what I'm saying is really the truth.
God indicated in His Word, the Bible, that HE is JEALOUS over us. In fact, I'm pretty sure it says in there that His very NAME is "Jealous." He will have NO OTHER GODS before Him in your life. Personally, when I've idolized any person, I've seen them fall and often be plucked out of my life. It's a hard lesson to learn, but think of it this way...in the end, the only 2 beings that will face to face, are you and Him!

Time for a New Post...daring to bare my soul

As I'm reading everyone's posts on here, I realize it's time for me to write again too. I have a lot to share today so I'm putting it into separate posts.

As I said in my last post, these next days in this week (as a short-term goal), are going to be about "less of me, most of HIM." As I'm learning to hush, listen, act according to what HE would want, I'm finding it very difficult. It's not the distractions from the outside that are getting to me, but the ones INSIDE.

I have always been a person who needed people. The only times I wasn't wanting someone in my life in some form, were when I'd just been wounded by another "someone." Then, I'd pull the shell up around me and say "I don't trust anyone. I don't need anyone. I am self-sufficient so GO AWAY!" I think I THOUGHT I meant it too, but deep inside, it was just me trying to convince myself that I was an ISLAND and could sustain myself just fine...knowing fully-well, it was a lie. Being a social type of person, it never lasted very long either...only till the next ideal situation came along.

At this point, I'm learning something called BALANCE in my life. I've actually been learning it since 2005 when the last "someone" burned me big time! You see, if you put people on the throne of your life, when they fall, you become disillusioned. Chances are, by that time, you've already given so much of "you" to them, that there isn't much left within yourself to hold onto. Yes, you always have God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, church, mentors...but if you lose your inner core, what it boils down to, is that you become empty in a bad way...lost again. Jesus said "love your neighbor AS YOURSELF." So, it appears that we ARE to have a love for ourselves, not just always give to others codependently, at the expense of our own health, emotional stability or life in general. (Bible verses need to be taken in context as much as possible)

Don't ever give yourself away to another person to that extent. Only GOD is safe to do that with. People will and do fail you and if you doubt that, just try and see any 1 person as your "all in all" and you will watch their pedestal fall and the person crumble before your very eyes. You will see and feel what it is like to have no compass whatsoever, when you trust any human who is NOT THE "way, truth, and LIFE." That sums up ALL of us, and if anyone tells you different, they are...and I will be bold about this...a LIAR! God says to "receive them NOT." Man equalling God is "another gospel" that we need to not even lend our ears to for a moment!

Jesus is the ONLY Way! In fact, in Bible times, I'm pretty sure that His followers were called "followers of the WAY." To be honest, I don't use the term "Christian" to describe myself very much. The world fears Christians; sees them as nutty, rebellious, insane creatures. I am doing the best I know how to listen to God's guidance with not only my ears but the ears of my Spirit...because only His Son, Jesus is MY Way. No man, woman, child, animal, situation can be EVERYTHING to me. Only Him.

(Go to the next post to read "when the bough breaks and the pedestal falls")

For 7 days I'm gonna try...

For the next 7 days, I'm going to try something I believe the Lord laid on my heart or maybe it was just me...I don't know, but I have to try it for a week.

I've already begun right after church today...totally, 100%, with everything in me, decided to give myself to the Lord. I mean, for this week, I will not go where He doesn't tell me to, won't speak what He doesn't tell me to say...it will be HIM living through me, not me trying to live FOR Him. I've tried to do that; it's not working at all for me. So now, it's time to be..something I have dreaded using even the term of for a long time, since a preacher said "God doesn't USE people...He works THROUGH and IN them"...I'm going to say it..."GOD USE ME! I mean totally empty me of any sign of "me" or "I" or "myself" and just UNDO me this week and every week after!

This is a totally new thing for me. Ya'll be praying and I'll be keeping you informed how it all goes.

Blessya

~Laura