Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Getting Back in the Saddle

Getting Back in the Saddle
It’s been over a week since I’ve posted on the blog. Last week was really rough and we are still reeling from some family issues that we must discern and deal with correctly. Sometimes when you’ve taken a hit it is easy to veer off the path that God has you walking upon if we aren’t careful.
I’ve felt the gentle nudge to write again and to allow the Holy Spirit to take some of the load of my burden from me. Trying to carry it alone can be unbearable and overwhelming. A Scripture has been ministering to me during this time. Perhaps it will be a blessing to you too. 1 Peter 5:7 “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. “KJV I still have my moments of despair…yet His presence lifts my head to experience the joy of the Lord.


  • Casting in this verse means “to throw”. The other day I was talking to my Mother in law and expressed the burden of my heart. It helped as she listened and told me that she loved me and cared. Soon afterward as the Lord brought this verse to me…I envisioned myself throwing my burden at the feet of Jesus. He truly cares with deep concern reaching into my brokenness with a healing balm. The situation in the natural is still the same, but the Word promises….”I am watching over My Word to perform it.” Jeremiah 1:12 Healing can begin even before things change when I know that He’s there.

  • Burdens can sting the heart, place a heavy load on your soul, and distract you from the call and purposes of God. Last week in the midst of pain God separately spoke to John and I through prophetic voice at a conference we attended about a new anointing. Really it was a confirmation of things He already been speaking to us about. My spirit received the word, but at the same time wondered why He didn’t speak to the problem. “Walk on“, I hear the Spirit of God say. “Don’t be distracted and trust Me for the manifestation of your answer.”

Friday, February 15, 2008

What are you saying?

Last night John and I went out to dinner with our son Joshua. We were making conversation on the way and he told us something interesting he'd learned. He blurted out from the back seat, "Did you know that it is not illegal to listen to someone elses cell phone conversations and the police do not need a wiretap to do it?" My interest was peaked so I asked how you would listen to a conversation...and found out that a scanner or cb can pick up the radio waves of a cell or cordless phone. It got me thinking. After dinner someone called me and got going on a conversation as I held our cordless home phone. The Bible is filled with words which tell us that we can do great damage with the small member of our body called the tongue. The phone conversation went a direction where I had a choice....say a few choice words about someone else...or becareful and watchful of what I said. Fresh from my conversaton with Joshua the Holy Spirit was even more able to speak to my heart in an area that I've been working on for a long time. Whether or not someone happens to be listening on a scanner or cb we know God hears every word. Ask yourself this...if the person you are talking about had a scanner and they happened to "pick-up" your words about them would you be pleased with what they are hearing from your mouth? Here are some things that may help us in the battle of being careful with our words. Let's ask ourselves how we can best use our words. Remember the wireless phones are no place to start.

  • Do you want your words scattered? Words scatter in more ways than one. Though you may repent you cannot completly catch where your words go. Your feelings of anger and dismay may have long subsided, but expressing your "feelings" to the wrong person may leave scars that you didn't anticipate upon reputations.


  • The need to talk to someone about feelings and issues. Sometimes we do indeed need someone to bounce off our feelings and ideas. However, we cannot deny that Biblically our speech is important and gossip and backbiting are not things a Christian should be engaged in at all. Talk first to the Lord about the issue. The Holy Spirit knows all things and is able to give us a right perspective. He is even able to calm our emotion and set us on the right path. If you do choose to talk to another person (and sometimes we do need that contact) examine why you are talking and who you are talking to.

  • Can the person you are talking to help you. Many times when we are hurt and angry we run straight for people who will take our side and be upset right along with us. Though this may temporarily make us feel better it is not always healthy. Sometimes when ministering to a hurt person at first it is wise to listen and let them know you care. Later however, bringing into perspective both sides of the issue and reminding the person of the love walk of Scripture is essential. While it may feel good to commiserate with someone who will not require you to examine yourself and the issue, doing so puts you in a position of taking on unforgiveness and bitterness. Also is sure to scatter words that you may later regret. How much better to talk to someone who cares enough about you to help you take a look at the entire situation and who will encourage you to walk in love as Jesus taught. Talk to someone who can talk. That right person is never a gossip, and that person is one who is willing to is not afraid to help us look into the mirror of the Word.

Betya are going to think twice about phone conversations. Go a step farther and think about every conversation.

Monday, February 11, 2008

Guard Your Heart

The stores are filled with Valentine hearts and gifts getting ready for the big day February 14. Couples young and old will mark the day with romantic dinners, roses, and chocolate hearts. Those are all great things that I love to participate in with my husband. We all know love is so much more than one dayof the year. Biblically our heart is more than a holiday or a pretty valentine. It consist of our intellect, our will and even our feelings. Proverbs 4:2323 tells us, " Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life."KJV The word keep here means to guard , to protect and maintain. Wow! Did you realize that God expects us to maintain our thoughts. The reason is clear our thought life determines the direction of our life and if we are not careful and diligent we will be led a way we didn't intend down a path that is destructive instead of productive. So in this season when we are enjoying the beauty of romance and boxes of every size shaped like hearts and filled with chocolate lets consider our real heart.

Here are some heart issues for us to examine. Let's be transparent before our God.

1. We serve a God who binds up the broken hearted. Psalms 147:3

Who among us hasn't needed to run to the Father with a broken heart knowing that he will lift our head and proclaim we are His child. When we try to handle heart break on our own we fall short and our heart becomes a bit harder with each seeming insult. It gets to the place where we cannot allow others to really know us because we are constantly defending ourself against hurt. People in our life are paying the price for things that happened long ago. When we come into His presence and allow Him to heal our wound...pour forth His love on us...we go forth healed and ready to meet the world with His viewpoint. We'll talk more about this in future post

2. Some times our thoughts need an overhaul.
The Bible is filled with words about our mind. It is easy to understand the spirituality of such things as reading the Bible, going to church and serving God, but controlling our thoughts is something that Christians sometimes neglect. Some years ago the Holy Spirit began to talk to me about how my thought life was directly related to my feelings and my actions. If I entertained a spirit of unforgiveness and continued to ponder all of the unjustices I felt had been done to me, for example, my actions would lean towards self justification and refusal to see my part in an issue. The Bible tells us to renew our mind with the Word of God. Wouldn't it be nice if this were a one time alter call experience? Renewing the mind is a daily process...determining to align our thougths to agree with the Word of God. The most recent change in a thought pattern with John and I is our attitude toward savings. We've always seen the good in savings, but somehow convinced ourselves that it wasn't possible. Many folks are in the same position with their income being spent before the paycheck is signed. Anybody can allow a false thought to reign. The Word says that a person who spends all that he has is acting the fool. So we decided no matter how small we wanted to obey the Lord. There are always temptations to go back to old way...the old familar way, but going forward in obedience means embracing God's thoughts not ours. What thought pattern do you feel the Lord addressing in your life?

Refusing destructive thoughts

The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 10:5 "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;"KJV It all may seem a little overwhelming at first, but we are not alone. The Holy Spirit is our teacher. It is not okay to let any thought continue to have access to our mind. It is not a sin for a thougth to cross your mind....but we are responsible for what we allow to linger and become part of our mindset. To some this may be a new concept. The Scripture in Proverbs tells us to be diligent and to "guard" our heart...our mind, will and emotions. It means that sometimes when we find ourselves pondering a thought that does not line up with God's Word we must refuse to continue to "think that thought" It won't always be easy...sometimes the we will have to refuse the thought more than once because we are used to the pattern....it can be rather like trying to stop an addiction. Thankfully, we don't do this alone...the Lord is with us. We are used to hearing about God's part....but here we see we have a part in whether or not we experience God's peace and security, based upon what we think upon. What we think about will eventually come out in an action. Examine your thougths today...and determine to guard your heart.




Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Transparency

Many of us have heard the Dr. Philism “You can’t change what you won’t admit” Recently a friend decided to be transparent before the Lord. She opened herself up to see things in her life and walk with Him that needed repair. She striped down the layers that so often cover our perspective of ourselves and was willing to look at the picture as God and others view it. I squirmed in my chair a little as I saw her openness. As a pastor/pastors wife it is exactly what I would advocate anyone do before the Lord , yet it made me uncomfortable because it brought me to a place of understanding that there are areas where I’ve pulled the wool over my own head. True openness before God means facing things that need to be fixed in your life. My friends willingness to be so open before God has had me thinking all week. Here are something’s I believe the Lord would speak to us if we are to be real with Him.

We can’t hide from God

If you’ve ever watched Dr. Phil or Joyce Meyers and thought they are extremely probing in their desire to get a person to face themselves realize God is even more so. The reason for this is His great love towards us and His desire to see His plan unfold in our life.

Mindset determines our actions

Many of us say we desire change, but change requires a new mindset. The Bible tells us we must renew our mind to line up with the Word of God. If we are not convinced of the necessity of something we will continue down the same path we are traveling. We can easily get a holier than thou attitude because we line up with doctrinal standards while God may very well be looking more toward our character.

Taking a hard look at ourselves can be painful

We often recoil at taking a look at our thoughts, our actions, or our words. Looking at these things reveal the condition of our lives. It forces us to see ourselves as others see us with all our faults and need.

God is our source of help and healing

Arguably there are many sources in the world to help a person face the issues of their life. However, we serve a God who is able to take our mess and bring healing. He is to be our source above all others..as He is our Maker. When we willingly allow the Holy Spirit to show us who and what we are, when we see that picture and ask for His help…There are no limits to the efforts God will go to to bring restoration to our soul. We place ourselves in His hands, admitting all, renewing our mind to His mind, and walk in newness of life.

Reward

The reward of facing ourselves and allowing it to change our perspective and our actions is that our tomorrow changes. The destruction that could have been is swallowed up in the goodness of God bringing about a New Day in our life.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Mike Huckabee on the imporatance of Godtube in the Election



It is very important to get to know the issues and get out the vote. Be a part of Election 2008 and believe God to give you wisdom. Take a minute and do the election poll on Godtube.com http://www.godtube.com/election/