Praise and Glory to God our Father! Let's go deep with Him. There is nothing shallow about a Jesus follower. I guess the Lord did prepare me, my entire life to be a future committed follower. (This is not a phase. I am finally on the Holy Spirit led journey). I was such a deep thinker my entire life, even as a kid. I have been condemned for this over and over again. I asked alot of questions my entire life. I asked questions that most adults cannot answer, but I still sought out. I did find out I was mostly surrounded by people that were not comfortable going deep. There was alot of hiding going on. Not alot of sharing. And not alot of hope.
I remember asking my mom about eternity. I must have been 10. I first talked about the element of time and eternity to her. And then about the sky. "Does it really not end?". She answered it pretty well. We got into a short talk about God. I can remember the pain and tears I had, realizing that there is a concept out there and it cannot be explained or experienced on this earth. And it is called eternity. My head hurt. I could not wrap my brains around it. It bothered me for days after that realization. Yes, I did cry.
My life has changed dramatically the last 15 months. I have girlfriends, family members and old boyfriends asking everyone but ME what is going on. They are all Christians. Some go to church, some do not. No one contacts me to ask me why I have changed. I quit joining in on the social circles. Nothing was getting accomplished. It had been bugging me for a few years. No one really talks about their achievements, their kids achievements or their faith journey, their goals with work. Just getting caught up on who's doing what. And where the next party is. I quit going to extended family gatherings that have proved year after year to be unpleasant. No, there is no sin in that. You need to protect yourself from one of the most powerful forces on earth: Negativity.
You see: I found I was not walking in the light. The Holy Spirit is quite helpful in correction once you do decide to walk in the light.
Once you proclaim Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, who has died on the cross for your sins so that you may have eternal life, well, you just can't say that, have the Holy Spirit fill you and keep doing the darkness. And it is depressing, the darkness you missed seeing that encompassed much of your "old" life. So much is "darkness" that I did not realize. Now, the veil has been lifted. But, it is overwhelming, all of this knowledge that you have.
I will tell you: Have faith my friends. Read your Bible with passion and the Holy Spirit will guide you, help you make decisions. Be daring and let go of the past people and circumstances if you need to. They may be drawn to you eventually, hoping to be more like you, in your new created self.
What if you are the only one in your family that is born again? What if your family is a weekly church going family and they still do not support you?
Again: Fear not. Many of the leaders in the Bible were babies of the family. Isn't that a relief? And even Jesus was questioned by his own family. That is why our Holy Book is so helpful!!! You will find that the stories (they are all TRUE stories) are guides for your life now. I love this!! I sometimes find myself thinking I am a Paul, or a Joseph or a David. (no, I am not being arrogant--this is what the Bible wants to do FOR YOU. Come to life!)
One problem I think "religious but not Holy Spirit filled" people do is have a hard time with born agains because they don't truly believe in 1) Prayer that really is powerful and works for you or your loved ones (how arrogant they say). 2) Having conversations with God through the Holy Spirit (how arrogant they say). 3) Conversions in other Christians that are so life-changing for others and not them (how arrogant they say).
Lord Jesus Christ, please help all Christians remove the veil that is obstructing their view from these miracles you want to expose here on earth in 2011!!!! It truly is my prayer some mornings!!! How much to miss.
If you are a born again, I would bet you can relate with this blog today. It is a hard journey. I could easily slip back into my past life. And also forfeit the progress I have made. And let alcohol and sexual immorality creep back in. And not spend this precious time with the Lord daily. And probably satan would leave me alone, on purpose. He would show me how EASY it is, by stopping his spiritual attacks on me and everyone around me. The gossip would stop and everyone would take a deep sigh of relief that Missy is ok now. "She was just obsessed with the religion thing for awhile".
Truly, I even have people in my life who I believed were on the road to being Holy Spirit Jesus Followers who are the most critical. You see, life got hard and they stepped back. One of these precious people hasn't went to church in years now.
Why is it that even in religious matters, let alone general achievement matters, peers cannot just support your journey upward? Women are so guilty of this. We almost wait for the bad news about the "other" women. Be honest. It is hard to be genuinely happy for others that have something that you do not.
And then when it comes to someone who is so excited about the Lord, we can't stand to be around them. Almost just make a cross with the index fingers of each hand to force them back away from you.
Why is that so uncomfortable? I can tell you I was uncomfortable with born agains around me. I didn't really have many in my life, but when someone mentioned in gossip circles that "so and so went wacko for the Lord and we think they are losing their mind", I probably avoided them. I had it all figured out, having my checklist complete for God: Baptized at birth, went to church off and on, taught religion class off and on, prayed a memorized prayer sometimes, didn't murder anyone and thought I was doing better than those criminals out there.......
That is where most Christians get stuck.
And people like me come from religions that do not open their Bibles. The Bible obviously has not come to life for many in my life. There is little support in my small, tight circle of relatives and friends.
That is where the gossip starts. They think your new church is a cult. They think "they" are brainwashing you. But, really, you are on your own because everyone that was weaved into your old life does not support your new life. You are being judgemental because you don't want to drink. You don't want to gossip. You want to be painfully honest and positive. You have contemporary Christian music on and TV crap off.
I am so happy for the generational healthy Christian families that are out there. I work with some. They are and always have been surrounded by deeply spiritual, Bible reading, prayer believing people. They produce these beautiful fruits. Their parents and grandparents produced this luscious fruit from the vine. I am not jealous. I am so happy for them. And keep on truckin' you glorious, healthy families!!!!
So, I do not have that. But a few people in my life have come to the Lord since I have. (Amen, Father! Father, You are so awesome and all praise to You!) So, since I do not have the immediate resources, I have to go out and get them. I need to buckle down and find a support group. I do have a Bible study weekly, I do read my Bible at least 5 days a week and I do try to keep Joyce Meyer Ministries on the TV daily, along with a devotion to praise God for all he does. I have a new plan. My new plan is just the beginning of a lifelong walk with God.
As some have put it to me: We (born agains) are the most powerful tool God uses to get more Christians and non believers over to Him. And those of us born again that do not come from Holy Spirit filled families, we are the most (in my opinion) radical and outspoken and excited. Because we simply cannot believe how good this feels and how different it is from the lies we have believed our entire lives!!!!!
Have Faith! Find resources. Read great books. Read your Bible! Don't waiver. Worship with all your might!! (It feels great to put your hand in the air during worship!)
If you have a bad day, remember it's just a bad day. Your old life would call that a day to turn back to evil things. Now, you have the Spirit living in you. Sometimes the work it is doing in you is not evident right away. I will never turn back, because this time the Word of God came alive to me in the Scriptures. He has provided me all I need. And I am continually handing him the wheel. Altar placing daily. Refining. Repenting. Praising. Praising!
Psalm 69: 18-20 Come near and rescue me; redeem me because of my foes. You know how I am scorned, disgraced and shamed; all my enemies are before you. Scorn has broken my heart and has left me helpless; I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none.
Psalm 70: 3-4 May those who say to me "Aha! Aha!" turn back because of their shame. But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, "Let God be exalted!"
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Challenge to all chuches--no worship unless the Bible is cracked open. And some fun Halloween nuggets are in this blog!.
Praise and glory to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! He has blessed me greatly, taken me into his arms, now a following daughter. There is a new Papa in the house!!!!
Halloween is fast approaching and the hype is really abundant, isn't it? Marketing techniques bring wares creeping into more and more isles of stores. Spooky commercials, gore galore. If my parents were alive I would like to again ask them how Halloween was when they were young. From conversations in past with them, they got apples, homemade goodies, nickels. Mom said there was no set time. You stayed out as late as the lights were on. You made your own costume. You did a trick if they asked you to and you got a treat if they liked it. It was once called All Hallows' Eve. Does anyone remember that? I think the scariest costume was a ghost, not like today, with demons roaming all over the neighborhoods. Not real comfortable with that. I think satan is. He is slowly transforming this innocent holiday into a costume ball for Hell. Not that I am being a poop, but more and more as I age, I am sitting back and studying what seems to really be going on. And when I have a gut feeling that something is getting out of whack, well, alot of times I am right. You will find the same. Learn to follow your gut. (Holy Spirit flank jabs).
Mom was an antique dealer. We had Halloween decorations that were pretty old. I would guess some were from the turn of the century. I remember seeing the inscription "Hallowe'en" on them. I understand that is the shortened version of All Hallows' Eve. These decorations consisted of jack o' lanterns, black cats and ghosts. Truly, that is all I remember. Maybe some witches, but the oldest decorations seemed to not include witches.
All I can say, is that I am aware of what Halloween seems to be becoming. I will not glorify satan. I will be on guard of his trickery. I truly have always gotten a little spooked this time of year, and I believe that is because of the lack of sunlight and the horror flick commercials and dying of the vegetation outdoors. It does equal a little bit of gloom. I am very sensitive, always have been.
My granddaughter is 13 months old. I had to take her into a huge Halloween store because my daughter needed to find something specific for her costume. I can tell you it was interesting. This innocent baby who has never seen a horror film and certainly can't remember last Halloween. She shook, hid in my arms and was very nervous her head going side to side, trying to find a safe place to fix her eyes on. There is something to say about what evil looks like. She has nothing to gauge it to. She viewed evil and it made her want to crawl out of her skin. And that was "fake" evil. Or was it?
This is my hope and faith: Ephesians 6:10-11 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.
1 John 5:18: We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe; and the evil one cannot harm him. We know that we are children of God, and the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
Yesterday I was blessed with having what is called "church". In my sister's home, she had a couple over that were seasoned Christians. My kinda Jesus Freaks! We had such good church time. Prayer, laying on of hands, suggestions for prayers for our children. It was uplifting and powerful. And we sure praised God for everything that we spoke of. Kept it in the context of His Word. That is what is missing. We need a Holy Bible Roll Out. Acts of the Apostles church time. Church in coffee shops, homes, McDonald's and on front porches. Many people do this and I am enjoying exploring this. That is what Jesus Church is. We fell away from that the last 75 or so years, in my estimation. Please keep reading, I want you to really be informed. Most of all, read your Bible if you quit reading my blog. I would be honored if you did that! That is where it's all at, baby.
I blog this and all of my blogs to reach out to you. To read your Bible for further information. (eventually to be so hungry that you can't quit reading it) To have the Bible come to life for you. To search and stretch and learn and confess and regroup---all continually and forever until the day we leave this earth. I am concerned about Christians, a Christian as I once was, who stopped with their infant baptism. Or stopped because they had communion four months ago. Or stopped entirely because of the pains of life. I almost missed this Holy Spirit Filling. Do I know why the Holy Spirit decided to enter me like a flood this spring? No, I only know that my Father decided that was the plan. I am so grateful my head hurts at times. Seriously. I hold my head in my hands because I now have REAL worries. Not earthly worries. But I now have experienced true joy in surrender (and continual surrender against my earthly flesh). I am so pumped about what a true intimate relationship is. And it is with the Father of the Universe!!
Luke 24:44-45 He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms." Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
I think about who is not cracking open their Bibles. Even scores of churches. Denominations of churches. But fear not. I am visited many churches in the Cedar Valley and I am finding churches that parishioners bring their Bibles! And each and every service they all open that Love Story and read together. And that is part of how I believe I finally got my Holy Spirit Filling!
Yes, I know that Lutherans and Catholics (both I was at one time) have "readings". They have readings from the old and new testament and Gospel weekly. But it is read to you and it is printed on a piece of paper. And it is not discussed. There is a sermon or homily, but there is no Bible Study going on.
The churches I will now attend (and I am praying for a church home and have been for many months), have a very, very experience pastor reading this, you are reading it, and he is describing what is going on, and how it relates to your world now. You are are strongly encouraged to take notes. Love that!
I took my Bible for the first time to church this June. I was nervous. It was a step for me. Your Bible typically stayed in your house, never leaving the premises! How great is it for firsts! Lots of firsts, now being born again.
I hope you have more firsts coming your way. It feels so good to grow. What a relief. Everyone else is growing to, so there is no agenda.
And I do believe you can be born again in Christ and attend any Christian church, if that works for you. I find it hard to attend the Catholic church and I imagine I would have that problem attending a Lutheran, Methodist or Presbyterian Church. (I have attended all of these denominations in the past). Their format is similar and it does not involve charismatic music or open Bibles or open prayer or proclamations from the audience. It is very sterile. So go worship the Lord if that still works for you. Remember, I am very sensitive.
I see I have viewers from Tokyo and Russia. Please let me know how your spiritual journey is coming, in comments. Please don't give up. Americans, you have every freedom. You can have Bible study over an unpaid lunch hour (we do). You can attend any church without fear. You can stop and pray publicly any time. Don't forget that freedom, exercise it.
I am so fortunate and most days I journal that I have so much more than I ever need. Especially now. I have the ultimate gift of salvation. Investigate what born again means. It isn't probably what you thought it was. Throw out what your parents told you about "those" religious people. Born Agains are popping up everywhere. Mostly it is Christians who missed the Holy Spirit element. And when it decides to fill your being, it will provide you with so many answers and guidance.
Amen. It is so. Lord, please bless this blog.
Halloween is fast approaching and the hype is really abundant, isn't it? Marketing techniques bring wares creeping into more and more isles of stores. Spooky commercials, gore galore. If my parents were alive I would like to again ask them how Halloween was when they were young. From conversations in past with them, they got apples, homemade goodies, nickels. Mom said there was no set time. You stayed out as late as the lights were on. You made your own costume. You did a trick if they asked you to and you got a treat if they liked it. It was once called All Hallows' Eve. Does anyone remember that? I think the scariest costume was a ghost, not like today, with demons roaming all over the neighborhoods. Not real comfortable with that. I think satan is. He is slowly transforming this innocent holiday into a costume ball for Hell. Not that I am being a poop, but more and more as I age, I am sitting back and studying what seems to really be going on. And when I have a gut feeling that something is getting out of whack, well, alot of times I am right. You will find the same. Learn to follow your gut. (Holy Spirit flank jabs).
Mom was an antique dealer. We had Halloween decorations that were pretty old. I would guess some were from the turn of the century. I remember seeing the inscription "Hallowe'en" on them. I understand that is the shortened version of All Hallows' Eve. These decorations consisted of jack o' lanterns, black cats and ghosts. Truly, that is all I remember. Maybe some witches, but the oldest decorations seemed to not include witches.
All I can say, is that I am aware of what Halloween seems to be becoming. I will not glorify satan. I will be on guard of his trickery. I truly have always gotten a little spooked this time of year, and I believe that is because of the lack of sunlight and the horror flick commercials and dying of the vegetation outdoors. It does equal a little bit of gloom. I am very sensitive, always have been.
My granddaughter is 13 months old. I had to take her into a huge Halloween store because my daughter needed to find something specific for her costume. I can tell you it was interesting. This innocent baby who has never seen a horror film and certainly can't remember last Halloween. She shook, hid in my arms and was very nervous her head going side to side, trying to find a safe place to fix her eyes on. There is something to say about what evil looks like. She has nothing to gauge it to. She viewed evil and it made her want to crawl out of her skin. And that was "fake" evil. Or was it?
This is my hope and faith: Ephesians 6:10-11 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.
1 John 5:18: We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe; and the evil one cannot harm him. We know that we are children of God, and the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
Yesterday I was blessed with having what is called "church". In my sister's home, she had a couple over that were seasoned Christians. My kinda Jesus Freaks! We had such good church time. Prayer, laying on of hands, suggestions for prayers for our children. It was uplifting and powerful. And we sure praised God for everything that we spoke of. Kept it in the context of His Word. That is what is missing. We need a Holy Bible Roll Out. Acts of the Apostles church time. Church in coffee shops, homes, McDonald's and on front porches. Many people do this and I am enjoying exploring this. That is what Jesus Church is. We fell away from that the last 75 or so years, in my estimation. Please keep reading, I want you to really be informed. Most of all, read your Bible if you quit reading my blog. I would be honored if you did that! That is where it's all at, baby.
I blog this and all of my blogs to reach out to you. To read your Bible for further information. (eventually to be so hungry that you can't quit reading it) To have the Bible come to life for you. To search and stretch and learn and confess and regroup---all continually and forever until the day we leave this earth. I am concerned about Christians, a Christian as I once was, who stopped with their infant baptism. Or stopped because they had communion four months ago. Or stopped entirely because of the pains of life. I almost missed this Holy Spirit Filling. Do I know why the Holy Spirit decided to enter me like a flood this spring? No, I only know that my Father decided that was the plan. I am so grateful my head hurts at times. Seriously. I hold my head in my hands because I now have REAL worries. Not earthly worries. But I now have experienced true joy in surrender (and continual surrender against my earthly flesh). I am so pumped about what a true intimate relationship is. And it is with the Father of the Universe!!
Luke 24:44-45 He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms." Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
I think about who is not cracking open their Bibles. Even scores of churches. Denominations of churches. But fear not. I am visited many churches in the Cedar Valley and I am finding churches that parishioners bring their Bibles! And each and every service they all open that Love Story and read together. And that is part of how I believe I finally got my Holy Spirit Filling!
Yes, I know that Lutherans and Catholics (both I was at one time) have "readings". They have readings from the old and new testament and Gospel weekly. But it is read to you and it is printed on a piece of paper. And it is not discussed. There is a sermon or homily, but there is no Bible Study going on.
The churches I will now attend (and I am praying for a church home and have been for many months), have a very, very experience pastor reading this, you are reading it, and he is describing what is going on, and how it relates to your world now. You are are strongly encouraged to take notes. Love that!
I took my Bible for the first time to church this June. I was nervous. It was a step for me. Your Bible typically stayed in your house, never leaving the premises! How great is it for firsts! Lots of firsts, now being born again.
I hope you have more firsts coming your way. It feels so good to grow. What a relief. Everyone else is growing to, so there is no agenda.
And I do believe you can be born again in Christ and attend any Christian church, if that works for you. I find it hard to attend the Catholic church and I imagine I would have that problem attending a Lutheran, Methodist or Presbyterian Church. (I have attended all of these denominations in the past). Their format is similar and it does not involve charismatic music or open Bibles or open prayer or proclamations from the audience. It is very sterile. So go worship the Lord if that still works for you. Remember, I am very sensitive.
I see I have viewers from Tokyo and Russia. Please let me know how your spiritual journey is coming, in comments. Please don't give up. Americans, you have every freedom. You can have Bible study over an unpaid lunch hour (we do). You can attend any church without fear. You can stop and pray publicly any time. Don't forget that freedom, exercise it.
I am so fortunate and most days I journal that I have so much more than I ever need. Especially now. I have the ultimate gift of salvation. Investigate what born again means. It isn't probably what you thought it was. Throw out what your parents told you about "those" religious people. Born Agains are popping up everywhere. Mostly it is Christians who missed the Holy Spirit element. And when it decides to fill your being, it will provide you with so many answers and guidance.
Amen. It is so. Lord, please bless this blog.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Is there anyone left who doesn't talk negative about marriage?
Praise to you! It is another glorious, sunny Sunday. I am continuing to practice Sundays the way they were meant to be honored. Worship in the morning, fire in the fireplace, soup, playing piano, family and reading. Please find ways to slow down and utilize Sundays for your family. You do not need to buy things as a hobby, a time waster, on Sundays. You don't need to have the TV on for background noise. You can make meals full of love for a few dollars. A warm meal you made for your family. Make traditions on Sundays. Even if it is just one Sunday a month.
I counted one week how many times married and unmarried people said something harmful about marriage in my presence. It was six times.
What do you think of that? Do you think that people need to "vent"? Blow off steam? No, it wasn't really that. They were just chiming in with our American culture, continuing the blows to marriage. Simple comments that they probably had no idea how harmful they were.
I have had countless numbers of Christian people say to me "Why would you ever get married again?" "You should just live with someone".
Addionally: "Melissa, you should marry for money. That's what I would do".
Other comments: "If my husband dies I'LL NEVER GET MARRIED AGAIN. It is too much work. I wish I was free like you". Wow. I hope your husband doesn't die. And if he did, do you already really have this completely thought through? What about the funeral arrangements?
"You don't know how hard it is in my marriage. You are lucky. You don't have to put up with what I do". (There doesn't seem to be any obvious physical, mental or substance abuse issues in any of these church going families)
When I am a little stressed about being a single parent, having no parents or grandparents alive to help me all of these years, I throw out a few comments about being alone and tired and worried about daycare and if my child (children) are sick. I have had married people say to me "Married people have spouses that don't help at all, so they are just as alone as you are and they are married". Wow.
We are so quick to have a comment roll off of our lips. They are almost automatic. Sometimes I wonder if the origin of these is from somewhere darker than we want to acknowledge. And yes, many of us repeat what someone else has said. It just sticks with us. Guard our tongues, Lord.
I was watching my only TV show, The Office this fall. There is a sitcom after The Office and it appears to be about a couple living in sin. Sorry, my parents and the generations before my parents called it that, and they are correct. It is called Whitney. The commercials are somewhat inappropriate and my 12 year old and I can't grab the remote quick enough, to get it turned off before we have to watch an unmarried couple act married.
I actually could go on and on and yes, I need to be careful. None of us are perfect. Some of us have had failed marriages. But, some of us want to be married and want our adult children to be married. But first, we need to believe in marriage.
I can say there is very, very little support for marriage in our generation or our children's. I applaud those of you that are doing something about it. A coworker of mine has organized at church a series of classes for married people. I also hear in sermons regularly at church about support for marriage between a man and a woman. Praise to all of you that make a conscious effort to stay positive about marriage. Our nation is crumbling in this department, and yes, you can do something about it with simple positive words on this Biblical principle, marriage. (and go see the movie Courageous!!)
TV shows: There is a show called King of Queens. It comes on. It is about a married couple. And they disrespect one another the entire show. That is the satire of the show. I feel like someone threw a bucket of mud on me and after I figure out why my mood is changing to hopelessness, in my kitchen, making a meal for my son, I get it turned off. I keep turning it off. Oh, yes, satan is behind all of this, by the way. Destroy, tear down what God intended.
As I told my boyfriend, I think the comments that keep coming at us about "Why wouldn't you just live together" are about this: People are equating that divorce is more sinful that living together. Here we go again. Legalistic Christians trying to weigh for others what would be a better, but still sinful option. I'm not buying it. And I am not planning on getting divorced again, anyhow.
I do remember when I was engaged in 1997, my fiance and I went to his priest. It was not my question, because I have never believed living together was an option and certainly is a dangerous option for a female, losing her heart to a man, playing married and getting no real commitment, putting herself financially in someone Else's mess, possibly. But, my fiance wanted to ask his opinion about living together. Luckily, the priest was very firm about the statistics of divorce in couples that lived together prior to marriage. And he also pointed out scripture. There is absolutely no support in the Bible for living together.
We left that visit with the priest with a clear understanding of our option. Get married before you live together.
I certainly am not the judge. I am being radical (this wasn't radical 50 years ago, speaking out against living together and speaking strongly for marriage). I am typing this blog to present my personal experiences so that you may grow closer in your relationship with Christ. Why I say I am not the judge is that many people are young and lack wisdom. They may have lived with someone and they regret it now. That's ok!! We all were young and made bad choices. Forgive yourself after you repent. Do it often, as I do. I feel pain for my past choices. He helps me reflect on my bad choices from my past so that I do cringe a little and then I thank Him for being such a loving Father. And I learned. I keep learning. Maybe at 43 I am still young and lacking wisdom. Ask me when I am 80!! I will say I didn't know anything yet, even at 43!!! Lord, help me get to 80 to say that!
Also, I made mistakes. I remember watching the cleaned up version of Sex In The City for years. It was on TBS, not HBO so there was no swearing or nudity. But this Manhattan culture of single ladies probably wore on me. I also had a counselor for years that I went to. I finally had to end our counseling relationship. As my counselor we could not agree that I said that I was never comfortable with sex outside of marriage. And her response was that there is nothing illegal about having sex outside of marriage. We finally agreed to disagree. She couldn't support my stand and I couldn't support hers. I now have found a Christian counselor who is also born again, who absolutely supports my opinion that sex belongs in marriage and outside of marriage it will only cause guilt, disease, shame and mostly, my God who loves me to be disappointed in me. And being born again, I feel this relationship with the Lord is a two way street. I want my Abba Father to be happy with my decisions and I feel I let him down when I fail.
I read a book this summer that was very, very helpful. It is called Every Woman's Battle. There is also a men's version, Every Man's Battle. It is specifically about what society does to women that makes single and married women less pure than God intended. It speaks of TV, advertising, romance novels, pornography for women, Passion Parties, you name it. It was very conservative in it's nature. It wasn't easy to read. But, I have to say, it was right on the money. It has Biblical references throughout. I would recommened this book to any woman. You would be surprised, even for your daughters what is out there that is pulling them away from the purity that has been especially lost the last few decades. We need to pay attention to how we dress, what we say, how long our glances are, and so forth. I read the book, I got some good nuggets out of it, and I would recommend it if you are ready to dive into a topic that is not often covered. It doesn't mean you have to buy into every book, editorial or article you read. That is the beauty of reading much and often. You just keep sorting your information that you read. And make an ever changing conclusion of the topics as you use the Holy Spirit to guide you.
I read through the Song of Solomon a couple of months ago and read it like I have never read it before. Such a delight. I found myself in past years jealous of couples at church, married couples in general. I have worked through that to a healthy place. So, reading this married love story is just wonderful. Praise to all married couples.
In closing, we need to support marriage. Our words are like weapons. Our children are hearing our negative opinions/comments about marriage. They are not finding healthy marriage situations on TV. Modern pop music never mentions it. Do not put your children first in your marriage. Put your spouse first, after God. Go to church as a family. Try not to separate yourselves to go to separate services. You married your spouse, so spend time with him/her. Be careful to not separate your interests too far from your spouses. And if you finally have the money and time to go on vacation, please go with your spouse! Keep the Lord close in your relationship. And let's all work on praising married people!
Ephesians 5:31-33 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
I counted one week how many times married and unmarried people said something harmful about marriage in my presence. It was six times.
What do you think of that? Do you think that people need to "vent"? Blow off steam? No, it wasn't really that. They were just chiming in with our American culture, continuing the blows to marriage. Simple comments that they probably had no idea how harmful they were.
I have had countless numbers of Christian people say to me "Why would you ever get married again?" "You should just live with someone".
Addionally: "Melissa, you should marry for money. That's what I would do".
Other comments: "If my husband dies I'LL NEVER GET MARRIED AGAIN. It is too much work. I wish I was free like you". Wow. I hope your husband doesn't die. And if he did, do you already really have this completely thought through? What about the funeral arrangements?
"You don't know how hard it is in my marriage. You are lucky. You don't have to put up with what I do". (There doesn't seem to be any obvious physical, mental or substance abuse issues in any of these church going families)
When I am a little stressed about being a single parent, having no parents or grandparents alive to help me all of these years, I throw out a few comments about being alone and tired and worried about daycare and if my child (children) are sick. I have had married people say to me "Married people have spouses that don't help at all, so they are just as alone as you are and they are married". Wow.
We are so quick to have a comment roll off of our lips. They are almost automatic. Sometimes I wonder if the origin of these is from somewhere darker than we want to acknowledge. And yes, many of us repeat what someone else has said. It just sticks with us. Guard our tongues, Lord.
I was watching my only TV show, The Office this fall. There is a sitcom after The Office and it appears to be about a couple living in sin. Sorry, my parents and the generations before my parents called it that, and they are correct. It is called Whitney. The commercials are somewhat inappropriate and my 12 year old and I can't grab the remote quick enough, to get it turned off before we have to watch an unmarried couple act married.
I actually could go on and on and yes, I need to be careful. None of us are perfect. Some of us have had failed marriages. But, some of us want to be married and want our adult children to be married. But first, we need to believe in marriage.
I can say there is very, very little support for marriage in our generation or our children's. I applaud those of you that are doing something about it. A coworker of mine has organized at church a series of classes for married people. I also hear in sermons regularly at church about support for marriage between a man and a woman. Praise to all of you that make a conscious effort to stay positive about marriage. Our nation is crumbling in this department, and yes, you can do something about it with simple positive words on this Biblical principle, marriage. (and go see the movie Courageous!!)
TV shows: There is a show called King of Queens. It comes on. It is about a married couple. And they disrespect one another the entire show. That is the satire of the show. I feel like someone threw a bucket of mud on me and after I figure out why my mood is changing to hopelessness, in my kitchen, making a meal for my son, I get it turned off. I keep turning it off. Oh, yes, satan is behind all of this, by the way. Destroy, tear down what God intended.
As I told my boyfriend, I think the comments that keep coming at us about "Why wouldn't you just live together" are about this: People are equating that divorce is more sinful that living together. Here we go again. Legalistic Christians trying to weigh for others what would be a better, but still sinful option. I'm not buying it. And I am not planning on getting divorced again, anyhow.
I do remember when I was engaged in 1997, my fiance and I went to his priest. It was not my question, because I have never believed living together was an option and certainly is a dangerous option for a female, losing her heart to a man, playing married and getting no real commitment, putting herself financially in someone Else's mess, possibly. But, my fiance wanted to ask his opinion about living together. Luckily, the priest was very firm about the statistics of divorce in couples that lived together prior to marriage. And he also pointed out scripture. There is absolutely no support in the Bible for living together.
We left that visit with the priest with a clear understanding of our option. Get married before you live together.
I certainly am not the judge. I am being radical (this wasn't radical 50 years ago, speaking out against living together and speaking strongly for marriage). I am typing this blog to present my personal experiences so that you may grow closer in your relationship with Christ. Why I say I am not the judge is that many people are young and lack wisdom. They may have lived with someone and they regret it now. That's ok!! We all were young and made bad choices. Forgive yourself after you repent. Do it often, as I do. I feel pain for my past choices. He helps me reflect on my bad choices from my past so that I do cringe a little and then I thank Him for being such a loving Father. And I learned. I keep learning. Maybe at 43 I am still young and lacking wisdom. Ask me when I am 80!! I will say I didn't know anything yet, even at 43!!! Lord, help me get to 80 to say that!
Also, I made mistakes. I remember watching the cleaned up version of Sex In The City for years. It was on TBS, not HBO so there was no swearing or nudity. But this Manhattan culture of single ladies probably wore on me. I also had a counselor for years that I went to. I finally had to end our counseling relationship. As my counselor we could not agree that I said that I was never comfortable with sex outside of marriage. And her response was that there is nothing illegal about having sex outside of marriage. We finally agreed to disagree. She couldn't support my stand and I couldn't support hers. I now have found a Christian counselor who is also born again, who absolutely supports my opinion that sex belongs in marriage and outside of marriage it will only cause guilt, disease, shame and mostly, my God who loves me to be disappointed in me. And being born again, I feel this relationship with the Lord is a two way street. I want my Abba Father to be happy with my decisions and I feel I let him down when I fail.
I read a book this summer that was very, very helpful. It is called Every Woman's Battle. There is also a men's version, Every Man's Battle. It is specifically about what society does to women that makes single and married women less pure than God intended. It speaks of TV, advertising, romance novels, pornography for women, Passion Parties, you name it. It was very conservative in it's nature. It wasn't easy to read. But, I have to say, it was right on the money. It has Biblical references throughout. I would recommened this book to any woman. You would be surprised, even for your daughters what is out there that is pulling them away from the purity that has been especially lost the last few decades. We need to pay attention to how we dress, what we say, how long our glances are, and so forth. I read the book, I got some good nuggets out of it, and I would recommend it if you are ready to dive into a topic that is not often covered. It doesn't mean you have to buy into every book, editorial or article you read. That is the beauty of reading much and often. You just keep sorting your information that you read. And make an ever changing conclusion of the topics as you use the Holy Spirit to guide you.
I read through the Song of Solomon a couple of months ago and read it like I have never read it before. Such a delight. I found myself in past years jealous of couples at church, married couples in general. I have worked through that to a healthy place. So, reading this married love story is just wonderful. Praise to all married couples.
In closing, we need to support marriage. Our words are like weapons. Our children are hearing our negative opinions/comments about marriage. They are not finding healthy marriage situations on TV. Modern pop music never mentions it. Do not put your children first in your marriage. Put your spouse first, after God. Go to church as a family. Try not to separate yourselves to go to separate services. You married your spouse, so spend time with him/her. Be careful to not separate your interests too far from your spouses. And if you finally have the money and time to go on vacation, please go with your spouse! Keep the Lord close in your relationship. And let's all work on praising married people!
Ephesians 5:31-33 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
God In-God Out. And what's with the demonic tattoos?
Praise and Glory from my home to yours! God has blessed us with an extension on summer. Melting ice cream, hot football games, grilling our suppers into mid-October and children playing outdoors without coats. We have so much to be thankful for.
I pray often that my blog will only glorify our Lord Jesus Christ. This is not of my talent, and my prayer is that this typing of words is just a channel of information from the Holy Spirit that I can compliment with my life experiences, along with Scripture, so that you might come along in your Christian journey another step (with me!) I try to read over my previous entries for appropriateness. I have made corrections and please privately contact me if you feel I stepped over a line that would hinder someone from moving forward with their faith. If I made you uncomfortable, it may also mean that you may need to reflect on exactly why that sentence or phrase touched you that way. Growth is painful. I experience those growing pains often since being born again. And as Paul states, we should welcome them.
I will warn you that I will soon be writing more about fathers and men. And it is not a stab at anyone in particular out there. My earthly father is deceased. I feel to share some crucial information about my upbringing may be a future blog that will likely help someone else. Also in regards to men, my future blogs about them will be an exact picture of how, in the past, I put men before God, and how sinful and destructive that was. And yes, in marriage, no man comes before God. Most humans cannot sustain a grand level of power or wealth. We are not God, and because of that, we fall very far and hard when we are given the reigns, as to say. Many, many women are doing this in marriage, in living together situations and dating situations. I am alarmed at what I am now uncovering about myself and am finding many women around me in "stressful" relationships. I see what is happening. They are putting the love of the man before their love for God. They are allowing mental and physical abuse to continue to occur, neglect, and even more common, the partner is constantly throwing a bucket of water on their dreams. And I see a direct link. They missed an intimate relationship with their earthly "daddy", so they didn't start an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, and now an earthly sexual partner is the road block. Over and over and over again I see this. Please consider this. And please check back for these future blogs. I feel compelled to type this information because it is critical for me to be genuine to you, to risk doing that so that someone else can make that faith leap that I finally did this last year. It feels so much better.
On to God In and God Out!! Some things are very clear to me. Some of these things have always been clear to me, but I was in denial and wanted to ignore and put off being healthy spiritually and physically. I decided to be a healthy eater in 1994. And I have actually improved my eating habits since then. It is a choice. I also decided in around 1993 that I needed to do more exercise. I bought a bike. I had always pushed the stroller around town with the kids after work, to get them fresh air, to give me some outside time, to just get rid of the stress from sitting in an office all day. I pushed strollers many years and when the kids could walk, we would go on walks. I now throw football and baseball with my 12 year old Ross. He laughs because he can't believe I can throw a spiral at age 43. He loves when I throw the baseball hard and it "smacks" his mitt just right. He just shakes his head and laughs. He has said to me that he knows that many moms won't do that.
We actually don't have a big yard, so we throw in the street. It is perfect. And I put myself out there, making mistakes for the neighbors, but I don't care. They can decide that this single mom cares and is and always has put alot of time being home with her children, and doing the things that many two parent homes don't do. They sit and watch TV and grumble about their jobs to their kids. How healthy is that? Let's put some God into those children instead by praising after work that we even have a job.
I sat at Long John Silver's last week, alone with a great Christian book. I had some quiet time and also had a great coupon for supper (No, that is not healthy, but I don't do that every day). I was reading and then an adult couple sat near me with an 8 year old boy. The father or male adult said the F word three times. One time was directly in yelling at the boy. Just over drinking his root beer too fast. They were talking about inappropriate things in front of the boy. I almost left the restaurant. But, I decided to eat quick and leave. In our society, in is very difficult to confront these parents making grave mistakes. I really, really wanted to calmly ask him to not swear in the restaurant. To have the boy see me or someone correct the dad would have been beneficial. That would have left an imprint on the boy for future reference. I weighed it out and decided that the dad was acting a little too stressed and he could be on some type of drug, so my safety was more important. As most of us wonder: When parents scream at their kids at stores and restaurants comfortably, what is going on in the house behind four walls? I cringe. People, get a handle on your emotions. Your kids are watching you.
I bought poster board many months ago and decided to use it to show the different things that seem to be the elements to success in life. I had not at the time read a specific book on this, but was aiming to get reading The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People. I wanted to FIRST see if I was on track with this.
I took sticky notes and wrote on them the elements that successful Christian people that I know, seem to possess. (Yes, I really do these things at home. I want to tap into what so many people seem to be gleaming over and missing)
You can imagine that regular exercise and general movement of the body are one. Healthy eating choices is one. Christian worship with a church home and activeness in that is another. Interest in growth in their career by reading, attending workshops, networking or attending classes. Healthy hobbies is another. Who you hang around with is another. Positive attitude and making a conscience decision to have a positive attitude is another. Staying away from addictive habits another: alcohol, cigarettes and gambling.
These came to mind for me after really observing certain people in society. I think you would agree that these are pretty basic truths. They make sense. But, people say "Who has time?". That is a crock!
I have found ways to at least walk, most of my life. Now, I put my work out days on my calendar. I look ahead at my week, many times during the month and plan my life. I write my work out in the planner to be as important as a meeting or church service. I work out at home. This does not require drive time, daycare or a membership fee. That simple!!
My hobbies I enjoy in my home. On purpose! It's cheap to read books or the Bible (on purpose). My piano is here. My kitchen loves me to cook in it. And food is healthier when you know how much salt is going into it, and using fresh items.
I find the television to be a very, very unhealthy hobby. The commercials alone are too sexual and commercialism is saturating us and we don't even feel alarmed by it anymore. I sit to watch about one hour of TV a week. I put the local news on when I get ready for work, and that is another 1/2 to 1 hour a day. But, I don't sit. I am making the bed and brushing my teeth.
There is such an addictive trait to the TV shows now. You have to keep tuning in to see who won the dance show or who "survived". That is fine and good if you DECIDE to control how much TV you will watch a week. Turn it off and listen to the sounds of your home. It is so wonderful! I like to hear the crunch of the carpet when my cat is entering a room. Is your home that quiet? How about having the TV off when the kids are in bed. I love to hear them breathing and snoring. It is so great! They are safe, they are sleeping and they don't need anything from me.
And then God In God Out in very obvious ways. This one is getting more and more popular. The demonic tattoos. Let's all put the mark of the beast in some artful way on our body! That one Satan LOVES! He is laughing at all of these 20-30 year olds. I shiver. I wish they knew the portal they are opening for him to keep enticing them, ever so quietly into his eternal web. It's people like me that he is really bugging, loudly. He is wanting to make me into a complete hypocrite as a born again and will try every way to make me doubt what I am doing with my life now. He wants me to drink. He wants me to gossip. He wants me to get distracted and get in front of the TV, find all kinds of idols, give up on the joy of life, be negative.
He is wrong. I am a Warrior for Christ. I am making plans to get my Bible read. I am doing my daily devotion. I am keeping my body healthy and strong (as much as I can control). I am spending as much time as I can with family. I am making a plan to get baptized (again). I am praying for my church home, but enjoying two local churches just wonderfully in the mean time. I am talking to God frequently through the day. Praising him for all the little and big things. I am keeping the Holy Spirit very near me. I am praying, praying for strength, for endurance. Praying for others more than myself.
I am putting tons of God In. And I hope you notice I am putting tons of God Out. Have a great Sunday night!
2 Corinthians 7: 1 Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.
I pray often that my blog will only glorify our Lord Jesus Christ. This is not of my talent, and my prayer is that this typing of words is just a channel of information from the Holy Spirit that I can compliment with my life experiences, along with Scripture, so that you might come along in your Christian journey another step (with me!) I try to read over my previous entries for appropriateness. I have made corrections and please privately contact me if you feel I stepped over a line that would hinder someone from moving forward with their faith. If I made you uncomfortable, it may also mean that you may need to reflect on exactly why that sentence or phrase touched you that way. Growth is painful. I experience those growing pains often since being born again. And as Paul states, we should welcome them.
I will warn you that I will soon be writing more about fathers and men. And it is not a stab at anyone in particular out there. My earthly father is deceased. I feel to share some crucial information about my upbringing may be a future blog that will likely help someone else. Also in regards to men, my future blogs about them will be an exact picture of how, in the past, I put men before God, and how sinful and destructive that was. And yes, in marriage, no man comes before God. Most humans cannot sustain a grand level of power or wealth. We are not God, and because of that, we fall very far and hard when we are given the reigns, as to say. Many, many women are doing this in marriage, in living together situations and dating situations. I am alarmed at what I am now uncovering about myself and am finding many women around me in "stressful" relationships. I see what is happening. They are putting the love of the man before their love for God. They are allowing mental and physical abuse to continue to occur, neglect, and even more common, the partner is constantly throwing a bucket of water on their dreams. And I see a direct link. They missed an intimate relationship with their earthly "daddy", so they didn't start an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, and now an earthly sexual partner is the road block. Over and over and over again I see this. Please consider this. And please check back for these future blogs. I feel compelled to type this information because it is critical for me to be genuine to you, to risk doing that so that someone else can make that faith leap that I finally did this last year. It feels so much better.
On to God In and God Out!! Some things are very clear to me. Some of these things have always been clear to me, but I was in denial and wanted to ignore and put off being healthy spiritually and physically. I decided to be a healthy eater in 1994. And I have actually improved my eating habits since then. It is a choice. I also decided in around 1993 that I needed to do more exercise. I bought a bike. I had always pushed the stroller around town with the kids after work, to get them fresh air, to give me some outside time, to just get rid of the stress from sitting in an office all day. I pushed strollers many years and when the kids could walk, we would go on walks. I now throw football and baseball with my 12 year old Ross. He laughs because he can't believe I can throw a spiral at age 43. He loves when I throw the baseball hard and it "smacks" his mitt just right. He just shakes his head and laughs. He has said to me that he knows that many moms won't do that.
We actually don't have a big yard, so we throw in the street. It is perfect. And I put myself out there, making mistakes for the neighbors, but I don't care. They can decide that this single mom cares and is and always has put alot of time being home with her children, and doing the things that many two parent homes don't do. They sit and watch TV and grumble about their jobs to their kids. How healthy is that? Let's put some God into those children instead by praising after work that we even have a job.
I sat at Long John Silver's last week, alone with a great Christian book. I had some quiet time and also had a great coupon for supper (No, that is not healthy, but I don't do that every day). I was reading and then an adult couple sat near me with an 8 year old boy. The father or male adult said the F word three times. One time was directly in yelling at the boy. Just over drinking his root beer too fast. They were talking about inappropriate things in front of the boy. I almost left the restaurant. But, I decided to eat quick and leave. In our society, in is very difficult to confront these parents making grave mistakes. I really, really wanted to calmly ask him to not swear in the restaurant. To have the boy see me or someone correct the dad would have been beneficial. That would have left an imprint on the boy for future reference. I weighed it out and decided that the dad was acting a little too stressed and he could be on some type of drug, so my safety was more important. As most of us wonder: When parents scream at their kids at stores and restaurants comfortably, what is going on in the house behind four walls? I cringe. People, get a handle on your emotions. Your kids are watching you.
I bought poster board many months ago and decided to use it to show the different things that seem to be the elements to success in life. I had not at the time read a specific book on this, but was aiming to get reading The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People. I wanted to FIRST see if I was on track with this.
I took sticky notes and wrote on them the elements that successful Christian people that I know, seem to possess. (Yes, I really do these things at home. I want to tap into what so many people seem to be gleaming over and missing)
You can imagine that regular exercise and general movement of the body are one. Healthy eating choices is one. Christian worship with a church home and activeness in that is another. Interest in growth in their career by reading, attending workshops, networking or attending classes. Healthy hobbies is another. Who you hang around with is another. Positive attitude and making a conscience decision to have a positive attitude is another. Staying away from addictive habits another: alcohol, cigarettes and gambling.
These came to mind for me after really observing certain people in society. I think you would agree that these are pretty basic truths. They make sense. But, people say "Who has time?". That is a crock!
I have found ways to at least walk, most of my life. Now, I put my work out days on my calendar. I look ahead at my week, many times during the month and plan my life. I write my work out in the planner to be as important as a meeting or church service. I work out at home. This does not require drive time, daycare or a membership fee. That simple!!
My hobbies I enjoy in my home. On purpose! It's cheap to read books or the Bible (on purpose). My piano is here. My kitchen loves me to cook in it. And food is healthier when you know how much salt is going into it, and using fresh items.
I find the television to be a very, very unhealthy hobby. The commercials alone are too sexual and commercialism is saturating us and we don't even feel alarmed by it anymore. I sit to watch about one hour of TV a week. I put the local news on when I get ready for work, and that is another 1/2 to 1 hour a day. But, I don't sit. I am making the bed and brushing my teeth.
There is such an addictive trait to the TV shows now. You have to keep tuning in to see who won the dance show or who "survived". That is fine and good if you DECIDE to control how much TV you will watch a week. Turn it off and listen to the sounds of your home. It is so wonderful! I like to hear the crunch of the carpet when my cat is entering a room. Is your home that quiet? How about having the TV off when the kids are in bed. I love to hear them breathing and snoring. It is so great! They are safe, they are sleeping and they don't need anything from me.
And then God In God Out in very obvious ways. This one is getting more and more popular. The demonic tattoos. Let's all put the mark of the beast in some artful way on our body! That one Satan LOVES! He is laughing at all of these 20-30 year olds. I shiver. I wish they knew the portal they are opening for him to keep enticing them, ever so quietly into his eternal web. It's people like me that he is really bugging, loudly. He is wanting to make me into a complete hypocrite as a born again and will try every way to make me doubt what I am doing with my life now. He wants me to drink. He wants me to gossip. He wants me to get distracted and get in front of the TV, find all kinds of idols, give up on the joy of life, be negative.
He is wrong. I am a Warrior for Christ. I am making plans to get my Bible read. I am doing my daily devotion. I am keeping my body healthy and strong (as much as I can control). I am spending as much time as I can with family. I am making a plan to get baptized (again). I am praying for my church home, but enjoying two local churches just wonderfully in the mean time. I am talking to God frequently through the day. Praising him for all the little and big things. I am keeping the Holy Spirit very near me. I am praying, praying for strength, for endurance. Praying for others more than myself.
I am putting tons of God In. And I hope you notice I am putting tons of God Out. Have a great Sunday night!
2 Corinthians 7: 1 Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Christianity is the door. Going from the pit to the door.
Praise and Glory to our Lord! What a great stretch of autumn weather. I hope you find this entry helpful in your journey towards a deeper relationship with Jesus. If you are like me, I was so relieved to find other Christians, who I thought were "on another level that I could not achieve", were really just a step or two ahead of me. And to have them admit to me that they were truly on a journey just like I was, was such a relief! Thank you to those co-workers who witnessed to me, and since our I Am Second Bible Study began in January of this year, they have shared items intimately to their course with the Lord that could only help others. Now, I am sharing intimately with you. It is worth all risks! I have my sister-in-Christ, Denise who is helping monitor my blog for emotional items that might hurt others, along with my boyfriend, Joe. I am so blessed with a handful of people that have sprinkled my life, that are true friends. We have been bound in Christ, and I have never experienced such joy, knowing people in this new realm. If you don't have these kinds of people in your circle, please find a way. Witness more, even if in subtle ways. Wear a religious piece of clothing or jewelry. Or if you are reading a good religious book, if they ask what you are reading, look at that as an open door to share the book's contents and why you are reading it. Don't lose those chances. And also, look at who you are spending your time with. If you only have so much free time to be social, why spend it where it is loud and always has to include alcohol? Try a coffee shop or your kitchen table. If those people don't conform to your new walk in Christ, you need to move on. If you are valued in their eyes, they will see you in the atmosphere of a quiet coffee shop. If they decline, there is the answer for you. It is painful. I have had great pain because of this. But, I have gained so many other friends. I have had women contact me on Facebook, women from my past. And I AM having coffee with them. And we ARE talking 80% of our valuable, limited social time about Jesus Christ. And it includes tears, usually. And we share our love for this awesome God! I have been blessed with this walk with the Lord which included loss of loved ones. In their season, they may be back. Or they may decide a quiet kitchen table is a fresh alternative to a loud restaurant/pub.
I mention that "Christianity Is The Door" because of an incredible "coincidence". Yes, we born agains and others who have a personal relationship with Christ have all kinds of collisions with items, sometimes on a daily basis. It is the Lord's way of showing us he is here, through the Holy Spirit.
For a number of months into my very fast paced awakening to the Holy Spirit, I was thinking of "the door". I told my coworker, that "I feel like I am almost ready to break through the door". It is so interesting. The author, John Eldredge (Please, please read his books if you have not. May I especially recommend The Sacred Romance?) had mentioned in his book "Waking The Dead", that Christianity IS the door. That concept completely makes sense. Someone put it into human terms. John is such an excellent author, using his love story type themes to help us understand this romantic relationship with Christ, that so many of us are missing!
What I believe he is trying to say, is that so many Christians are not opening the door. They are living out their church rituals, they are loving the easy to love, they are not swearing, they are not doing drugs, they are stating things like "my family founded our church" or "we got our church in this weekend". And the evil one is telling them that is enough. They are set. (John 3:16). So, they don't read their Bibles, they don't crave church services hungrily, they don't sit with their loved ones and discuss who in the community needs to hear the word of God and how are they going to accomplish getting His word out to more people.
I used to be a person, a Catholic person, that would "get my church in". I may have blogged this earlier, but one service I went to, I clocked it and it was 37 minutes. And some Catholics leave the church after they receive communion, so that person probably clocked in it at 29 minutes. In my opinion, in my old self, I figured I was getting the Bible read to me during the 1st and 2nd Readings and the Gospel reading, and also through the lyrics of the hymns. So in my world back then, I had it covered. I was missing out on so much.
I sat at work last week, in the early morning hour, and did my devotion. And then I felt compelled to sketch.
What I drew was the pit. And drew a stick figure (me). And I am in the pit. And then I drew an area between this and a door.
For years (oh my, can you believe years) I thought in my head and proclaimed to some loved ones that I felt like I was in a pit. But, I was nearly out of the pit. I just couldn't get out of the pit. My feet were dangling yet in the pit, but my hands were clawing, trying to get completely out.
It was an awful feeling. I felt somewhat relieved, because at least when I finally could put it into words (the pit), I realized the end was near. The dreadful, darkness times were soon to be over. A new start was ahead.
And then I started attending more hopeful churches. I started asking a ton of questions of those around me. I started loving more and complaining less. I started to take note of what I was really doing with my time and who I was doing it with. I started realizing what guilt and shame were doing to me. I started to read great books (The Shack, etc.). I moved my boys to Waterloo, to get a fresh start in a larger town with more opportunities and a bigger population of diverse people. I bought a big old house in a great neighborhood, with all kinds of people that were not all related to each other like in small towns. (That's just fine, unless you are the family that isn't related to anyone in the small town) I realized there was so much beyond the pit!
So what do you do when you are out of the pit? Well, I guess I was cruising and enjoying for a while. But, I was growing and didn't realize it!!! Everything I observed, I believe was preparing me for this intimate relationship. So, I kept on attending open Bible/born again type churches. I was listening, listening. And asking some deep questions of people.
And then, I began to realize there was another layer that was out there. I started to observe people that I thought were seeing a bigger picture. They had went through The Door. Now I realize that.
And I went through that door in July of 2011!!!! It was such a relief to proclaim that. But, I can also say that it took alot of tears and talking to God. And alot of altar placing. And now, continual self reflection and readjusting. And asking that Holy Spirit to please come into my presence when I feel he is far away. And as I told a loved one today, the moist eyes come then. And I have that wonderful feeling. And I know He is right there. We are through the door together. He doesn't want me to go too far from Him. He loves that I call him often. He loves that I jumped into his Fatherly arms in July. And I will never go to the pit again. I can't. He is holding me!!! Amen, Jesus. From, your lovely beloved daughter. Thank you for being there all along. Thank you for not giving up on me because of my worldly behaviors. Thank you for dying on the cross for us!
Revelation 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.
Psalm 40:2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire, he set me fee on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
I mention that "Christianity Is The Door" because of an incredible "coincidence". Yes, we born agains and others who have a personal relationship with Christ have all kinds of collisions with items, sometimes on a daily basis. It is the Lord's way of showing us he is here, through the Holy Spirit.
For a number of months into my very fast paced awakening to the Holy Spirit, I was thinking of "the door". I told my coworker, that "I feel like I am almost ready to break through the door". It is so interesting. The author, John Eldredge (Please, please read his books if you have not. May I especially recommend The Sacred Romance?) had mentioned in his book "Waking The Dead", that Christianity IS the door. That concept completely makes sense. Someone put it into human terms. John is such an excellent author, using his love story type themes to help us understand this romantic relationship with Christ, that so many of us are missing!
What I believe he is trying to say, is that so many Christians are not opening the door. They are living out their church rituals, they are loving the easy to love, they are not swearing, they are not doing drugs, they are stating things like "my family founded our church" or "we got our church in this weekend". And the evil one is telling them that is enough. They are set. (John 3:16). So, they don't read their Bibles, they don't crave church services hungrily, they don't sit with their loved ones and discuss who in the community needs to hear the word of God and how are they going to accomplish getting His word out to more people.
I used to be a person, a Catholic person, that would "get my church in". I may have blogged this earlier, but one service I went to, I clocked it and it was 37 minutes. And some Catholics leave the church after they receive communion, so that person probably clocked in it at 29 minutes. In my opinion, in my old self, I figured I was getting the Bible read to me during the 1st and 2nd Readings and the Gospel reading, and also through the lyrics of the hymns. So in my world back then, I had it covered. I was missing out on so much.
I sat at work last week, in the early morning hour, and did my devotion. And then I felt compelled to sketch.
What I drew was the pit. And drew a stick figure (me). And I am in the pit. And then I drew an area between this and a door.
For years (oh my, can you believe years) I thought in my head and proclaimed to some loved ones that I felt like I was in a pit. But, I was nearly out of the pit. I just couldn't get out of the pit. My feet were dangling yet in the pit, but my hands were clawing, trying to get completely out.
It was an awful feeling. I felt somewhat relieved, because at least when I finally could put it into words (the pit), I realized the end was near. The dreadful, darkness times were soon to be over. A new start was ahead.
And then I started attending more hopeful churches. I started asking a ton of questions of those around me. I started loving more and complaining less. I started to take note of what I was really doing with my time and who I was doing it with. I started realizing what guilt and shame were doing to me. I started to read great books (The Shack, etc.). I moved my boys to Waterloo, to get a fresh start in a larger town with more opportunities and a bigger population of diverse people. I bought a big old house in a great neighborhood, with all kinds of people that were not all related to each other like in small towns. (That's just fine, unless you are the family that isn't related to anyone in the small town) I realized there was so much beyond the pit!
So what do you do when you are out of the pit? Well, I guess I was cruising and enjoying for a while. But, I was growing and didn't realize it!!! Everything I observed, I believe was preparing me for this intimate relationship. So, I kept on attending open Bible/born again type churches. I was listening, listening. And asking some deep questions of people.
And then, I began to realize there was another layer that was out there. I started to observe people that I thought were seeing a bigger picture. They had went through The Door. Now I realize that.
And I went through that door in July of 2011!!!! It was such a relief to proclaim that. But, I can also say that it took alot of tears and talking to God. And alot of altar placing. And now, continual self reflection and readjusting. And asking that Holy Spirit to please come into my presence when I feel he is far away. And as I told a loved one today, the moist eyes come then. And I have that wonderful feeling. And I know He is right there. We are through the door together. He doesn't want me to go too far from Him. He loves that I call him often. He loves that I jumped into his Fatherly arms in July. And I will never go to the pit again. I can't. He is holding me!!! Amen, Jesus. From, your lovely beloved daughter. Thank you for being there all along. Thank you for not giving up on me because of my worldly behaviors. Thank you for dying on the cross for us!
Revelation 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.
Psalm 40:2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire, he set me fee on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
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