Psalm 11:4-5
"The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord's throne is in heaven, His eyes behold; His eyelids test and prove the children of men. The Lord tests and proves the unyieldingly righteous, but His soul abhors the wicked and him who loves violence."
Have you ever felt like the inspiration for the song, "You and Me Against the World?" Let's take it one step further. Ever felt like there was no "you and me" about it ... it was just you against the world? Most of us have been there. If you, like me, are a person of faith, we know that we are never TRULY alone because God is always with us. But what about those times when it seems that even God has disappeared? I don't mean for a few hours or a few days. I'm talking months or years on end. Before anyone leaves a comment that God would never do that to His children, let me assure you that He has, does, and many of us have the canceled ticket to prove we've been on that ride.
If you find you are currently experiencing the aforementioned and can't for the life of you figure out where God has gone - or why He has abandoned you when He solemnly promised He would never leave us or forsake us - take comfort in the above scripture verses.
When I first read these verses I thought to myself, "What does that mean? How is it that God's EYELIDS test people?" It makes sense to me that the scripture declares that God's "eyes behold." He sees everything. Nothing escapes His notice. Then I realized what He was saying ... God's eyelids appear when He shuts His eyes. This will only truly make sense to someone who has cried out in their agony, "God, don't You SEE what's going on?? Don't You CARE?? Why are You letting this happen?!" When the pain has gotten to be way more than we can take, it is only made worse when all we get in response to our cries is deafening silence.
Why would a loving God do this to His own? The answer is in the same verse: "His eyelids test and prove the children of men. The Lord tests and proves the unyieldingly righteous..."
I had to ponder this. Every human being is promised trials and tribulations while they are living on this Earth. You don't have to be a person of faith for this to occur, you just have to be breathing. (It's a statement of fact from God, whether you believe in Him or not.) But there is a special testing for those who claim Christ as their Savior AND who have been faithful to walk in a manner worthy of their calling (notice I didn't say they've done everything PERFECTLY!), having held to their faith through previously difficult circumstances. These saints will be tested by God's silence. So much so that when God chooses to make His presence known again these same saints are "proven."
Steel is not steel until it's been proven. Before steel undergoes the transformation process it is iron. The simplified version of the process is this: Intense heat is applied to remove impurities. The iron is transformed into incredibly strong steel by the end of the process.
Most people are happy to be iron. They'd rather live with their impurities (after all, they're not THAT bad ... right?) than stay in the furnace long enough to be transformed into steel. It's easy to say we want more of God, but few are faithful enough to endure the full duration of the testing and proving process.
My own proving period took two and a half years. Yes, YEARS. In my anguish I said many things to God of which I'm now ashamed. I accused Him of punishing me for no apparent reason; of breaking His promise never to leave or forsake me; of not being a loving God; and worse. Yet, even in my deepest despair, I knew He was my only hope. I kept hanging on - by the thinnest thread at times! - to what I knew to be truth: "A bruised reed He will not break, and a smoldering wick He will not snuff out. In faithfulness He will bring forth justice;" (Isaiah 42:3). As badly as I was hurting, I knew He would not let it take my life. He would rescue me in HIS due time ... which He did. Since God is no respecter of persons, He will do the same for you.
I can tell you I never thought I'd be able to say I'm thankful for going through that hell. It DID make me stronger. I was purged of impurities I didn't even know were there. It's amazing what comes to the top when a fire is lit underneath! My knowledge of the Holy One and His heart, as well as His character, is SO much greater and so much DIFFERENT than what it was. There are no words to express what God did in me during those two and a half years. I now have unshakable faith in an infinitely loving and powerful God. Now I have to work on seeing myself through His eyes.
I have a feeling that will take longer than two and a half years.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
The Making of a NEW Year - 2011
I emailed this to some friends New Year's morning and was asked to post it on my blog.
My first thoughts as I woke up this morning were, "So many lives, so many needs ... what a HUGE God we serve!" I have a relationship with each of you, all of them different than any of the others. I appreciate that about you ... you are your own unique person with your own quirks and talents and faults that make you the incredible individual you are. What I like best about the quagmire that make up our beings is that we have lived enough life to laugh at the best parts of us and have learned to accept the worst, knowing that God is BIG ENOUGH to change what needs changing in us if we allow Him the time and methods HE chooses to do so.
Every one of you mean something to me in a very deep way. I won't pretend to know what God has in store for each of us this year, but I do know WE have a big say in it. Abel learned that lesson last night. All week long he was bellyaching and complaining about "how STUPID it is that people want to celebrate New Year's. It's just another day. It's no different than any other day. It's STUPID!" Soooooo, Kenny and I canceled our plans to go to the Pelican Drop (they drop a lit-up plastic pelican instead of a ball) in downtown Pensacola and stayed home. We had no desire to listen to a disgruntled teenager whine and complain the entire night, acting like he's too cool to be impressed by anything and too intelligent to enjoy what all the idiots at the celebration are enjoying (poor things, they are too stupid to know they shouldn't be happy to see another year of life and all the possibilities it brings). When the clock hit midnight and Kenny and I wished each other a Happy New Year, Abel handed me a piece of paper on which he had written, "Oh wow. What a great way to celebrate the New Year. We did nothing." To which I replied, "You have reaped what you have sown. You didn't get the blessings we had planned for tonight because of your whining and complaining all week about how stupid it is to celebrate. You got what you wanted, and you're still not happy."
Abel is a miserable person right now. He's not happy with the way life is because it hasn't measured up to what he thinks it should be. He's negative about EVERYTHING and it is a constant drain on the rest of us, which makes it difficult for us to WANT to be around him. He is expecting someone or some thing to suddenly change everything for him, but what he's giving out he is getting back. WE aren't doing that, it is a Law of the Universe that God Himself set in motion before the beginning of time as we know it began. I sat Abel down and told him that HE is the only one who can change his mind and attitude. What he speaks and believes is going to come to pass, whether to the good or the bad. Hopefully, he will see the wisdom in choosing the good and actually ask God to help him see it.
I don't want "life as usual" this year. I have spent the past few months sending out my resume' to countless employers, but have heard nothing back. That gets discouraging. Knowing I am a good employee and hard worker, knowing I can bring benefits above and beyond my skills to any office, it is hard not to hear ANYTHING. We could whine and complain about the lack of money, Kenny's prostate cancer, Abel's tidal waves of negativity, the pain I live with every day due to two car accidents that weren't my fault ... the list could go on ad nauseum. But why? Why complain? Every negative word out of my mouth turns my boat around and heads me back into the Sea of Turmoil. God wants my boat headed to the shore, where He stands waiting to receive me and bless me with every good thing He greatly desires to give. Every one of the circumstances with which we are dealing could change in an instant, and they WILL, at God's appointed time for each one of them. We would better spend our time while we wait focusing on God's heart and getting to know Him more intimately. We can reach the shore and His open arms much sooner if we stop turning the boat around with our words and attitudes. This is not just a lesson for a disgruntled teenager, but for all of us who are "spiritual beings having a human experience" while we are here on earth.
So, my dear friends, may THIS year BE WHAT YOU MAKE IT. Kenny has taught me many things since we've been married, and one of them is that God gave us a brain and expects us to use it. I was one who wouldn't do anything unless God specifically told me to do it because I was deathly afraid of making the wrong decision. What Kenny has learned from me is that you don't do whatever you want and ask God to bless it. There's a balance. God is not a consultant or a contract worker. He's GOD. There's a reason He gives us wisdom and principles in His word ... they are the basis and foundation for making wise decisions. If we make plans and decisions based on scriptural wisdom, they will have the blessing of God. If we do whatever we want with the "Oh, by the way, God, please bless this" attitude ... well, good luck with that.
Many of us are undertaking new paths at the moment. We each have our own set of circumstances with which we're dealing, fraught with their own pitfalls. The good news is, we can navigate our individual roads by KNOWING the map we've been given in the Bible. Know God's principles, but most importantly, know God. Make your plans according to His principles. Can't find your SPECIFIC situation in scripture? Then use the wisdom written in Ephesians to make your plans ... we are told to "let peace be your umpire." If you want to do something (sell or buy a house, change jobs, move to a new area, etc.) but there is no specific "do or don't" in scripture, then give it the umpire test. Do you feel a red flag in your spirit about your plan? You know that feeling ... that twinge of deep doubt that says, "I really don't know about this." THAT red flag. If you don't feel anything - or a deep peace - then continue with your plans, making sure to stay in constant communication with God. He WILL guide us! He PROMISES that!
Sooooo, KNOW GOD and MAKE PLANS! I pray for each and every one of you to be filled with His joy this year, starting TODAY. :-D
My first thoughts as I woke up this morning were, "So many lives, so many needs ... what a HUGE God we serve!" I have a relationship with each of you, all of them different than any of the others. I appreciate that about you ... you are your own unique person with your own quirks and talents and faults that make you the incredible individual you are. What I like best about the quagmire that make up our beings is that we have lived enough life to laugh at the best parts of us and have learned to accept the worst, knowing that God is BIG ENOUGH to change what needs changing in us if we allow Him the time and methods HE chooses to do so.
Every one of you mean something to me in a very deep way. I won't pretend to know what God has in store for each of us this year, but I do know WE have a big say in it. Abel learned that lesson last night. All week long he was bellyaching and complaining about "how STUPID it is that people want to celebrate New Year's. It's just another day. It's no different than any other day. It's STUPID!" Soooooo, Kenny and I canceled our plans to go to the Pelican Drop (they drop a lit-up plastic pelican instead of a ball) in downtown Pensacola and stayed home. We had no desire to listen to a disgruntled teenager whine and complain the entire night, acting like he's too cool to be impressed by anything and too intelligent to enjoy what all the idiots at the celebration are enjoying (poor things, they are too stupid to know they shouldn't be happy to see another year of life and all the possibilities it brings). When the clock hit midnight and Kenny and I wished each other a Happy New Year, Abel handed me a piece of paper on which he had written, "Oh wow. What a great way to celebrate the New Year. We did nothing." To which I replied, "You have reaped what you have sown. You didn't get the blessings we had planned for tonight because of your whining and complaining all week about how stupid it is to celebrate. You got what you wanted, and you're still not happy."
Abel is a miserable person right now. He's not happy with the way life is because it hasn't measured up to what he thinks it should be. He's negative about EVERYTHING and it is a constant drain on the rest of us, which makes it difficult for us to WANT to be around him. He is expecting someone or some thing to suddenly change everything for him, but what he's giving out he is getting back. WE aren't doing that, it is a Law of the Universe that God Himself set in motion before the beginning of time as we know it began. I sat Abel down and told him that HE is the only one who can change his mind and attitude. What he speaks and believes is going to come to pass, whether to the good or the bad. Hopefully, he will see the wisdom in choosing the good and actually ask God to help him see it.
I don't want "life as usual" this year. I have spent the past few months sending out my resume' to countless employers, but have heard nothing back. That gets discouraging. Knowing I am a good employee and hard worker, knowing I can bring benefits above and beyond my skills to any office, it is hard not to hear ANYTHING. We could whine and complain about the lack of money, Kenny's prostate cancer, Abel's tidal waves of negativity, the pain I live with every day due to two car accidents that weren't my fault ... the list could go on ad nauseum. But why? Why complain? Every negative word out of my mouth turns my boat around and heads me back into the Sea of Turmoil. God wants my boat headed to the shore, where He stands waiting to receive me and bless me with every good thing He greatly desires to give. Every one of the circumstances with which we are dealing could change in an instant, and they WILL, at God's appointed time for each one of them. We would better spend our time while we wait focusing on God's heart and getting to know Him more intimately. We can reach the shore and His open arms much sooner if we stop turning the boat around with our words and attitudes. This is not just a lesson for a disgruntled teenager, but for all of us who are "spiritual beings having a human experience" while we are here on earth.
So, my dear friends, may THIS year BE WHAT YOU MAKE IT. Kenny has taught me many things since we've been married, and one of them is that God gave us a brain and expects us to use it. I was one who wouldn't do anything unless God specifically told me to do it because I was deathly afraid of making the wrong decision. What Kenny has learned from me is that you don't do whatever you want and ask God to bless it. There's a balance. God is not a consultant or a contract worker. He's GOD. There's a reason He gives us wisdom and principles in His word ... they are the basis and foundation for making wise decisions. If we make plans and decisions based on scriptural wisdom, they will have the blessing of God. If we do whatever we want with the "Oh, by the way, God, please bless this" attitude ... well, good luck with that.
Many of us are undertaking new paths at the moment. We each have our own set of circumstances with which we're dealing, fraught with their own pitfalls. The good news is, we can navigate our individual roads by KNOWING the map we've been given in the Bible. Know God's principles, but most importantly, know God. Make your plans according to His principles. Can't find your SPECIFIC situation in scripture? Then use the wisdom written in Ephesians to make your plans ... we are told to "let peace be your umpire." If you want to do something (sell or buy a house, change jobs, move to a new area, etc.) but there is no specific "do or don't" in scripture, then give it the umpire test. Do you feel a red flag in your spirit about your plan? You know that feeling ... that twinge of deep doubt that says, "I really don't know about this." THAT red flag. If you don't feel anything - or a deep peace - then continue with your plans, making sure to stay in constant communication with God. He WILL guide us! He PROMISES that!
Sooooo, KNOW GOD and MAKE PLANS! I pray for each and every one of you to be filled with His joy this year, starting TODAY. :-D
Monday, July 26, 2010
Leaving The Past in the Past is a Present
The definition of a split second: the time it takes for something (a word, a phrase, an action, a look, a song, etc.) from the past to deceive your emotions into thinking it is the present. The feelings can be good or bad, however it has been my experience that the negative emotions triggered are much stronger than positive ones. Triggers from the past make feelings associated with them become the present. Because we can be overwhelmed by these emotions in the tiniest instant we, as a general rule, are not ready for the range of emotions we suddenly feel and will automatically react in the way we did when the experience first happened.
Maybe I'm the only one who deals with this ... but I doubt it. We all have triggers. When they are negative triggers they are commonly referred to as 'buttons.' Most everyone is familiar with the phrase "pushing my buttons" ... a confession (conscious or unconscious) that we have wounds in our hearts and/or mind that still need healing.
I'm not a psychologist (got kicked out of Christian college before I could get my degree, but that's another story), but I do know something about having to deal with my buttons. During the last year it has become apparent that I have several buttons ... ones I didn't even know were there. I'm a reasonably intelligent human being on most days, so I had to ask myself why I wasn't aware of their existence until this past year. The answer: nobody was pushing them.
Have you ever thought you were "over" something and then found out you really weren't?
That's happened a lot this past year. I married the most wonderful man God ever created and we are coming up on our first anniversary. The other night we laughed about all we've experienced in just one year - it seems like a truckload of stuff has had to be dealt with, on both sides. We have pushed each others' buttons, not even knowing they existed until they were pushed. It took a New York minute to find out they were there! We've gone toe-to-toe on several occasions, reacting to what was said/done as if we were dealing with the person who caused those buttons to exist in the first place.
It amazes me how our minds work. They are the most advanced 'storage device' on the planet! Every experience we've ever had, every emotion, every image we've seen, every piece of information we've ever learned, are all recorded in our brain. We do not consciously acknowledge all that is in there, but it's there nonetheless. All that is needed to access a certain piece of information or a certain emotion is a trigger - the password, if you will.
Suddenly you will find yourself - emotionally - transported in time to the place where you first experienced that emotion in such an intense way that it affected you for life. At least, until this moment in time.
Did you know you can diffuse and disarm the triggers in your life? I know this to be true because I've spent the last year doing just that. A big key is to realize that the people with whom you surround yourself now are not the people who hurt you. (Hopefully you've made wiser choices than you did in the past - I know I have.) It is important to keep your wits about you when a button has been pushed. Do NOT let the old emotions overwhelm you and deceive you into feeling that the past is starting all over again. Once you allow the past to become the present, at the very least it will cause friction with the one that inadvertently pushed the unseen button, and at worst it will take you down The Dark Vortex of the Past and suck you into hopelessness. Neither of these results are good, nor are any of the options in-between.
Here is an eternal truth that cannot be changed: What you feed grows, what you starve dies.
Because everyone's buttons are different, I will leave it to you to apply this truth to your own situation. You may not have anyone in your life at the moment to push your buttons so you don't have a button on which to apply them - or you don't even realize that you even have buttons. If that's the case, enjoy life until such time your buttons are pushed.
If you do find yourself fighting things from your past, now would be a good time to sit down and evaluate the button. Exactly what emotion(s) are you feeling when that button is pushed? What took place that caused the button to be created? Who caused that button to be created? Have you taken, or are you taking, steps to distance yourself from that person/situation so you can think objectively away from the line of fire? Do you have someone you can talk with - honestly - and who will be honest with you?
These are all important things to consider. But identifying the problem and answering the "whys" is not enough. We need to be healed, not just enlightened. Enlightenment just makes you aware that 1) you have a wound; and 2) the severity of the wound. Enlightenment makes you aware that you need healing, but it doesn't heal. Ditto for time. The old saying "Time heals all wounds" is false. Time puts distance between you and the occurrence of the wound, but it doesn't heal.
There are a few things that do heal wounds from the past: Forgiveness, Love, and the intimately personal touch of God's Holy Spirit.
I've touched on forgiveness in another blog so I won't go into all that. Just know that by forgiving someone you are not saying what they did was OK. It is never OK to hurt someone. What you are doing by choosing to forgive is handing God the permission slip to deal with them as He sees fit for what they've done. You take yourself off of the judge's seat and let God sit in your stead, trusting He will do what's right by you and them. Forgiveness frees YOU!
Love is not a feeling, it's action. It's a choice. We can choose to show love by any act of kindness, generosity, forgiveness, mercy, etc. Warm fuzzies are nice, but feelings are weak and fickle and change with the circumstance. Love is strong. It withstands much and accomplishes more than any fleeting feeling ever will. (Read I Corinthians 13 to see how you stack up in the Love Department)
God's love is the strongest of all. It loves in a way that is supernatural. It is not affected by life's circumstances or how it is treated. It has, does, and always will, stand the test of time. He promised His Holy Spirit would lead us into all truth, and that the truth will set us free. Free from our shortcomings, our sin, our wounds, our failures ... free from our past. He wants a bright future for all of us, and that can't be obtained when we're being paralyzed by the past. Allow God to love you and the Holy Spirit to heal you so you can receive His gift of freedom. Getting rid of the past is quite a present.
Maybe I'm the only one who deals with this ... but I doubt it. We all have triggers. When they are negative triggers they are commonly referred to as 'buttons.' Most everyone is familiar with the phrase "pushing my buttons" ... a confession (conscious or unconscious) that we have wounds in our hearts and/or mind that still need healing.
I'm not a psychologist (got kicked out of Christian college before I could get my degree, but that's another story), but I do know something about having to deal with my buttons. During the last year it has become apparent that I have several buttons ... ones I didn't even know were there. I'm a reasonably intelligent human being on most days, so I had to ask myself why I wasn't aware of their existence until this past year. The answer: nobody was pushing them.
Have you ever thought you were "over" something and then found out you really weren't?
That's happened a lot this past year. I married the most wonderful man God ever created and we are coming up on our first anniversary. The other night we laughed about all we've experienced in just one year - it seems like a truckload of stuff has had to be dealt with, on both sides. We have pushed each others' buttons, not even knowing they existed until they were pushed. It took a New York minute to find out they were there! We've gone toe-to-toe on several occasions, reacting to what was said/done as if we were dealing with the person who caused those buttons to exist in the first place.
It amazes me how our minds work. They are the most advanced 'storage device' on the planet! Every experience we've ever had, every emotion, every image we've seen, every piece of information we've ever learned, are all recorded in our brain. We do not consciously acknowledge all that is in there, but it's there nonetheless. All that is needed to access a certain piece of information or a certain emotion is a trigger - the password, if you will.
Suddenly you will find yourself - emotionally - transported in time to the place where you first experienced that emotion in such an intense way that it affected you for life. At least, until this moment in time.
Did you know you can diffuse and disarm the triggers in your life? I know this to be true because I've spent the last year doing just that. A big key is to realize that the people with whom you surround yourself now are not the people who hurt you. (Hopefully you've made wiser choices than you did in the past - I know I have.) It is important to keep your wits about you when a button has been pushed. Do NOT let the old emotions overwhelm you and deceive you into feeling that the past is starting all over again. Once you allow the past to become the present, at the very least it will cause friction with the one that inadvertently pushed the unseen button, and at worst it will take you down The Dark Vortex of the Past and suck you into hopelessness. Neither of these results are good, nor are any of the options in-between.
Here is an eternal truth that cannot be changed: What you feed grows, what you starve dies.
Because everyone's buttons are different, I will leave it to you to apply this truth to your own situation. You may not have anyone in your life at the moment to push your buttons so you don't have a button on which to apply them - or you don't even realize that you even have buttons. If that's the case, enjoy life until such time your buttons are pushed.
If you do find yourself fighting things from your past, now would be a good time to sit down and evaluate the button. Exactly what emotion(s) are you feeling when that button is pushed? What took place that caused the button to be created? Who caused that button to be created? Have you taken, or are you taking, steps to distance yourself from that person/situation so you can think objectively away from the line of fire? Do you have someone you can talk with - honestly - and who will be honest with you?
These are all important things to consider. But identifying the problem and answering the "whys" is not enough. We need to be healed, not just enlightened. Enlightenment just makes you aware that 1) you have a wound; and 2) the severity of the wound. Enlightenment makes you aware that you need healing, but it doesn't heal. Ditto for time. The old saying "Time heals all wounds" is false. Time puts distance between you and the occurrence of the wound, but it doesn't heal.
There are a few things that do heal wounds from the past: Forgiveness, Love, and the intimately personal touch of God's Holy Spirit.
I've touched on forgiveness in another blog so I won't go into all that. Just know that by forgiving someone you are not saying what they did was OK. It is never OK to hurt someone. What you are doing by choosing to forgive is handing God the permission slip to deal with them as He sees fit for what they've done. You take yourself off of the judge's seat and let God sit in your stead, trusting He will do what's right by you and them. Forgiveness frees YOU!
Love is not a feeling, it's action. It's a choice. We can choose to show love by any act of kindness, generosity, forgiveness, mercy, etc. Warm fuzzies are nice, but feelings are weak and fickle and change with the circumstance. Love is strong. It withstands much and accomplishes more than any fleeting feeling ever will. (Read I Corinthians 13 to see how you stack up in the Love Department)
God's love is the strongest of all. It loves in a way that is supernatural. It is not affected by life's circumstances or how it is treated. It has, does, and always will, stand the test of time. He promised His Holy Spirit would lead us into all truth, and that the truth will set us free. Free from our shortcomings, our sin, our wounds, our failures ... free from our past. He wants a bright future for all of us, and that can't be obtained when we're being paralyzed by the past. Allow God to love you and the Holy Spirit to heal you so you can receive His gift of freedom. Getting rid of the past is quite a present.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
WISDOM AND ENEMIES - Part I
Wisdom is something that will save your butt every time. If we take an honest look at the things that have caused us the most pain, and not stopped at the shallow level of blaming someone or something as the cause of the pain, we can get to the bottom line of truth: we didn’t use wisdom and our choices bit us in the butt at the very least and completely chewed it off in some cases.
I was recently asked about the relationship between wisdom and doing good to your enemies, prompted by a verse in the book of Proverbs in the Bible which is quoted by Jesus about doing good to those who hate or persecute you.
While it is true that Jesus wants us to love our enemies by doing good to them instead of repaying evil for evil, He also expects balance. Wisdom says you don’t walk more than once behind a horse that kicks. You can forgive the horse for kicking you (the well-known “70 times 7 Rule” that humbled Peter), but you don’t walk behind him again. To do so would be foolish. Shooting the horse for kicking you would be repaying evil for evil. Forgiving the horse for kicking you and purposely not walking behind him again is wisdom.
The catch seems to be somewhere in between. Most people who have been kicked by the proverbial horse will waste vast amounts of time and energy trying to teach the horse not to kick. This is insanity. When there are so many horses with a compliant and pleasant disposition, why would you waste time trying to change the very nature of the one that kicks? Many years of raising and training horses has taught me this: you can teach a horse not to kick but the amount of frustration and time it takes to accomplish it is not worth it. You will only change the behavior … you will never take his “want to” away. The end result is a horse that will give you the action you desire but will never give you his heart or trust. It will be a continuous battle of wills.
Why would you desire a constant fight rather than a peaceful, pleasant ride? Wisdom says, “Accept the horse as he is, knowing his faults, and work around them. Let him be useful for whatever purpose he was created, but don’t walk behind him.” If you are intent on getting the horse to behave as you think he should, that is not wisdom – that is a dual issue of pride and control. Pride says, “I’m not going to let that horse get the best of me! I’ll show him who’s boss!” Control says, “He just doesn’t understand that it’s in his best interest to (fill in the blank). I know what’s best and he needs to comply. If he would just do things my way, everything would be fine. If he doesn’t do what I want, I’ll make his life miserable until he complies.”
We all know there are times in life that people can seem to be our enemies. Horses are much easier to work with than people! It is especially difficult when a person continues to inflict pain on you despite your best efforts to do them good. This is where God expects us to use wisdom, the root of which is love.
To be continued …
GOOD FRIDAY (Posted by request)
I wrote this last week on Good Friday. It was suggested I post it here.
Since yesterday I've been telling Jesus how much I appreciate what He had to endure at the hands of man and on the cross to pay for my sin and to redeem me from Hell. My mind cannot really wrap around how expansive, deep, and complete Christ's work is. I just know that the blood He shed was perfect and entire, obtaining salvation and forgiveness for all of us.
It may sound illogical but I really dislike Good Friday. Not because I don't want to celebrate Jesus' overcoming sin, Hell, and death - there is no greater thing to celebrate in this world or the next! - but because of the pain involved. It hurts me in a place I cannot even describe. Every one of those horrible blows Jesus took - every spit in his face, every hair of his beard pulled out, every lash that ripped open His back - rightfully belong to me. Knowing He took all that, plus the weight of every sin of every person of all generations past, present, and future, as He hung mutilated on that cross is more than I can bear at times. Keeping that reality at a safe distance intellectually is how I deal with it most of the time. But not on Good Friday.
This is the day when I force myself to look at the reality of how my Jesus suffered because of me. Because of MY sin. I have to own it, to let it fully sink in and break the Safe Distance Barrier so it transfers from my brain to my heart - to my very soul. After the nausea and heartsickness subsides, and pained prayers have stopped flowing, I realize that it was FOR my very soul that Jesus did what He did. It's personal. It's not a "for the masses" thing - even though it was. It's a very personal, intensely intimate, thing.
I love Him so much, and it hurts me beyond measure to know what He suffered. After all these years, I still can't comprehend that kind of love.
Since yesterday I've been telling Jesus how much I appreciate what He had to endure at the hands of man and on the cross to pay for my sin and to redeem me from Hell. My mind cannot really wrap around how expansive, deep, and complete Christ's work is. I just know that the blood He shed was perfect and entire, obtaining salvation and forgiveness for all of us.
It may sound illogical but I really dislike Good Friday. Not because I don't want to celebrate Jesus' overcoming sin, Hell, and death - there is no greater thing to celebrate in this world or the next! - but because of the pain involved. It hurts me in a place I cannot even describe. Every one of those horrible blows Jesus took - every spit in his face, every hair of his beard pulled out, every lash that ripped open His back - rightfully belong to me. Knowing He took all that, plus the weight of every sin of every person of all generations past, present, and future, as He hung mutilated on that cross is more than I can bear at times. Keeping that reality at a safe distance intellectually is how I deal with it most of the time. But not on Good Friday.
This is the day when I force myself to look at the reality of how my Jesus suffered because of me. Because of MY sin. I have to own it, to let it fully sink in and break the Safe Distance Barrier so it transfers from my brain to my heart - to my very soul. After the nausea and heartsickness subsides, and pained prayers have stopped flowing, I realize that it was FOR my very soul that Jesus did what He did. It's personal. It's not a "for the masses" thing - even though it was. It's a very personal, intensely intimate, thing.
I love Him so much, and it hurts me beyond measure to know what He suffered. After all these years, I still can't comprehend that kind of love.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
No Man Is An Island ... More Than Just a Simon & Garfunkle Song
Why is it everyone wants the freedom to do or say whatever they want, whenever they want, but don't want to be held personally accountable for their own actions, words or thoughts?
I'm all for freedom and I'll be the first to get my dander up if I feel one of our liberties, rights, or privileges are being infringed upon (yeah, I'm one of "those." I don't like big government, no matter what party it is, and I hold the Constitution of the United States as it was originally written and intended to be one of the most sacred - for lack of a better term - documents we have.) However, I'm not talking about political ideologies.
I post the question on a personal level. I want to challenge people to think about the ramifications of their words, actions, and thoughts because they DO affect all those around them - whether intended to or not.
Why do we act with such bravado, then get angry when someone asks us to explain ourselves? Are we so distorted by pride that we feel we are above being questioned for our own actions or words? I pondered this thought and came to some conclusions for myself, whether or not anyone else agrees.
We know there are two kinds of pride. One type is the pride you feel in doing something well, or when your child or someone you love has accomplished something at which they have been working, or it is what you feel with the person you love or admire because they exemplify solid character, etc.
The other type of pride is the kind that warps reality. It blinds people to their real condition. Pride is the root cause of not being able to admit when we are wrong. Pride causes us to focus on the faults in others so we can feel better about ourselves. "At least I'm not like so-and-so!" Pride is false confidence, which is why some people get angry when they are questioned about their actions, words, or beliefs.
I would venture to say that anyone who is not willing to be held PERSONALLY accountable for their actions, words, thoughts, or beliefs is acting out of self-centeredness and pride rather than true confidence. When someone truly knows or believes something, they don't feel defensive about that thing. It just IS. Truth cannot be changed. You can disagree with it, dislike it, war against it, or pretend it doesn't exist ... but it cannot be changed.
This brings me back to my original point. Everything we do affects someone or something. We cannot act irresponsibly in the name of freedom, and we cannot refuse to give account for ourselves, for that would be anarchy. We are not demi-gods who have the self-appointed right to do or say whatever, whenever, to whomever, then dare anyone to say one word to the contrary.
This type of mindset and behavior requires no thinking. It stubbornly refuses true self-reflection because it doesn't want to see any personal faults. How do we grow if we don't take an honest self-assessment on occasion? You can't leave rotten fish in the refrigerator without it stinking up the whole kitchen! We are all mortal humans and we all have rotten fish that needs to be thrown out from time to time, and we are not above reproach or beyond question.
Intelligent people question until they find an answer. When they arrive at the truth, they can hold to it with pure confidence. They are not shaken by being questioned and are more than willing to be personally accountable. Truth is never intimidated.
I'm all for freedom and I'll be the first to get my dander up if I feel one of our liberties, rights, or privileges are being infringed upon (yeah, I'm one of "those." I don't like big government, no matter what party it is, and I hold the Constitution of the United States as it was originally written and intended to be one of the most sacred - for lack of a better term - documents we have.) However, I'm not talking about political ideologies.
I post the question on a personal level. I want to challenge people to think about the ramifications of their words, actions, and thoughts because they DO affect all those around them - whether intended to or not.
Why do we act with such bravado, then get angry when someone asks us to explain ourselves? Are we so distorted by pride that we feel we are above being questioned for our own actions or words? I pondered this thought and came to some conclusions for myself, whether or not anyone else agrees.
We know there are two kinds of pride. One type is the pride you feel in doing something well, or when your child or someone you love has accomplished something at which they have been working, or it is what you feel with the person you love or admire because they exemplify solid character, etc.
The other type of pride is the kind that warps reality. It blinds people to their real condition. Pride is the root cause of not being able to admit when we are wrong. Pride causes us to focus on the faults in others so we can feel better about ourselves. "At least I'm not like so-and-so!" Pride is false confidence, which is why some people get angry when they are questioned about their actions, words, or beliefs.
I would venture to say that anyone who is not willing to be held PERSONALLY accountable for their actions, words, thoughts, or beliefs is acting out of self-centeredness and pride rather than true confidence. When someone truly knows or believes something, they don't feel defensive about that thing. It just IS. Truth cannot be changed. You can disagree with it, dislike it, war against it, or pretend it doesn't exist ... but it cannot be changed.
This brings me back to my original point. Everything we do affects someone or something. We cannot act irresponsibly in the name of freedom, and we cannot refuse to give account for ourselves, for that would be anarchy. We are not demi-gods who have the self-appointed right to do or say whatever, whenever, to whomever, then dare anyone to say one word to the contrary.
This type of mindset and behavior requires no thinking. It stubbornly refuses true self-reflection because it doesn't want to see any personal faults. How do we grow if we don't take an honest self-assessment on occasion? You can't leave rotten fish in the refrigerator without it stinking up the whole kitchen! We are all mortal humans and we all have rotten fish that needs to be thrown out from time to time, and we are not above reproach or beyond question.
Intelligent people question until they find an answer. When they arrive at the truth, they can hold to it with pure confidence. They are not shaken by being questioned and are more than willing to be personally accountable. Truth is never intimidated.
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