As a Man Thinketh...

Where do your thoughts lead you?

I went for a walk today. I don't get out very much as my pain and fatigue levels have been high. No sooner did I get outside then I saw one of my neighbours. I went over and we had a nice chat, but part way through I could feel my energy plummeting, my pain increasing, and I began to feel anxious. Afterward, I did force myself to go for my short walk, but as my energy slipped away my anxiety grew. At one point I didn't think I had the energy to make it home... and my anxiety grew.

I think we could all agree that my thoughts were not helping me in this situation. My biggest struggle since developing chronic pain and fatigue has been to not let anxiety overtake me. Yet it's hard not to feel fear or anxious when my body starts to shut down.

How then, do we overcome this?

Whose voice do you believe?

Deceit

The enemy will do his best to fill our heads with lies to keep us in bondage. In 1 Peter 5:8 we are warned to -

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.

Do you ever feel like your life is being devoured? Your bank account is below zero, your health is slipping away, or you lost your job? It is so easy to stay focused on what we don't have or what we have lost. I know what it's like to be down this slippery slope and it ain't fun!

Truth

It is time to change our focus to the Truth instead of being held captive by lies! 1 Peter 5:9 continues on to say -

Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.

While we can take comfort that we are not in this alone, you might not be too excited about all of this suffering going on. But not to worry; we are given hope in verse 10 -

In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.

Have you ever really stopped to think about this? God has called us - you and me - to share in his eternal glory... WOW! Notice it then says, after we have suffered "a little while". We know that there will be suffering in this world. We live in a fallen world and unfortunately this is the result (oh if only Adam and Eve had been obedient).

I don't know what the heck happens after we turn 40 but it seems the older I get the faster my life zooms by all the while with me burning through my brake pads as I try to slow it down! Whether we experience our restoration next week, next year or the end of our lives, it will seem like the blink of an eye, as though it was just "a little while". 

How do you want to live?

Each one of us must make a decision right now, this very day!

Will you live by fear or by faith?

Don't waste another day living in fear and anxiety, wondering when or even if God will answer your prayers. He already has! God's timing is not our timing nor is our will necessarily His will. However, we need to live by faith, trusting God to work everything out for our good and His glory. And just as they did in verse 11, we will spend each and every day declaring -

All power to Him forever! Amen.

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I will be starting a 30 day devotional to help us stay focused on trusting and thanking God. Please email me if you would like to be notified once a date has been set.

God bless,

When Life Serves Up Lemons (and you really hate lemons)

Where's Dessert?

We've all heard the saying "When life serves you lemons, make lemon-aid".  I wonder if that was said by the same person who said "It's always darkest before the storm" or "Tough times never last but tough people do"...  I don't want to sound all grouchy but to heck with the tough stormy lemons, I'm ready for desert!

Life Lessons

I am a firm believer in life lessons. People can try to warn us and save us from heartache, but the bottom line is we MUST learn the really important stuff through experience, otherwise we won't remember the lesson. Remember as a kid learning to ride your first bike? It was terrifying but there was no way you were going to ever learn to ride the darn thing unless got got on it and started peddling! Sometimes we learn other lessons, like don't believe the person who says "I promise I won't let go of the bike", but that's for another post. The thing with life lessons is that they often hurt.

God Lessons

There are many lessons for us to learn throughout our lives. As believers in Christ, the journey becomes dramatically different. Notice how I didn't say "better" or "easier". However, the stakes are infinitely higher! Our walk with God often goes through phases as well, with each phase bringing new lessons. Based on my own walk with the Lord and those I've observed in others, these are the phases I am proposing we look at:

I'm engaged! - Ah, to be a new believer! This is often such a place of release and peace because all too often we get here through a broken road littered with jagged rocks and broken glass! When we come before God in that state and receive His forgiveness and salvation, it can feel like the entire world has miraculously been lifted from our weary shoulders. We may join a new church and are enveloped in the loving arms of our new family.

The Wedding Day - The amount of time it takes to get from "engaged" to the "wedding day" (aka baptism) can be very quick or there can be a period of required study, depending the church doing the baptism. Just as pre-marital counselling is always a good idea, so is a formal process of learning before making such an important commitment. First of all, baptism is not just some ceremony dreamed up by someone a long time ago. This was commanded by God and was first used to signify purity and devotion to God. In the New Testament, the message had two stages: 1) to show acceptance of God's message of the coming Messiah, then 2) to signify the death and resurrection of Christ; it was also an act of obedience for the believer.

I now pronounce you... - You've had the ceremony before friends and family, you have sworn an oath before God. It's official, you're a Christian! Oh, if it were that easy. You see going to church and wearing a cross around your neck won't make you a Christian any more than will sitting in your garage every day make you a car! (This has to be my favorite Joyce Meyer quote.)

You will soon discover that the more you study God's Word, the more you will see that He expects certain types of behaviour from us. Most of us are familiar with The 10 Commandments, i.e. "thou shalt not steal" or "thou shalt not commit adultery", to name a couple. Jesus had many teachings, but His most "famous" if you will is probably the Sermon on the Mount. He starts off telling us just how blessed we are when we go through the trials of life. This is great news because... wow, the list is a bit scary. 

Have you heard the phrase "To whom much is given, much is required"? Honey, if you want God to bless you abundantly, then you had best be prepared to give back to the Kingdom. WAIT, does this mean that we do things for God just to get stuff from Him! No, no, NO!! What it does mean is that the more we honestly pursue a close and loving relationship with Christ, the more we surrender all aspects of our life to Him for HIS will to be done (not ours), then we will WANT to be obedient! Another thing to consider is that God wrote these laws for OUR benefit! Think about it - imagine how this world would be if we all obeyed the 10 Commandments. Kind of gives you the warm pink fuzzies, doesn't it?

Graduation Day! - Oh Hallelujah! This is the day that we finally get to meet Jesus face to face! Just thinking about it makes me feel giddy!!  This is where our suffering ends and we get to spend eternity with our creator.

Does everyone go to heaven? This has been a heated debate for centuries no doubt. Some people say that as long as you are a "good person" you will go to Heaven, while others even debate its existence. The bible makes it very clear that only those who accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour and proclaim it with their mouth will be saved (Romans 10:9). It says nothing about being a good person. You can be the sweetest person on the planet, but if you have not accepted Jesus Christ as Lord, sorry but you will not be saved.

It took me a long time to accept this. It can be especially hard if a loved-one dies and they haven't accepted Christ. I don't pretend to have all the answers (or even some of them) and I pray that God will have a system in place to give those people one last chance. In the meantime, we should be doing everything in our power to help people learn about Jesus and the power of His love. But, there is an old saying that says "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care". In other words, helping people and meeting their immediate needs will make sharing His Good News much easier and more easily accepted than if we come running at them and bashing them over the head with our bibles.

In closing, if you are hurting turn to Jesus and ask Him to help you. If you haven't already done so, accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour and give your life to Him. Spend time studying the bible and be sure to spend quiet time with God. He will show you how to turn your lemons in to the sweetest lemon-aide you ever had!

And Forgive Us Our Trespasses

The Lord's Prayer. It seemed like I learned how to recite it before I learned to walk. I memorized it before I ever understood it. I never questioned it, nor really thought much about it. It was just something I had learned, something I prayed before going to bed and something that I recited at church. It's what a good Catholic girl ought to do.

For those of you not familiar with the Lord's Prayer:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors" - lately, this verse has been really messing me up.

How would you feel if God forgave you the way you forgive others?

This puts a whole new spin on that forgiveness thing, doesn't it? Do you know why God makes forgiveness such a big deal? Perhaps it is for the other person's benefit. If someone has come to you begging for forgiveness, then - yes, they will certainly feel much better if you forgive them. But what happens when someone hurts you and they DON'T ask for forgiveness. What if they don't think they have done anything wrong at all?

"That's not right!" you say, and I agree. "Why should I forgive THEM?" you ask. Because God tells you to. Why would He tell you to forgive someone who has harmed you? Perhaps it is because anger, bitterness, resentment are all emotions that lead to sinful behaviour. In fact, anger gives a foothold to the devil! (Ephesians 4:27). 

Have you ever been angry with someone for a long time, maybe even years? Have you then talked to them only to find out they had no idea you were angry? You have spent all this time with all these emotions eating you up inside only to discover the other person has been carrying on with their life as though nothing was wrong!

So many times in life someone says or does something that offends us, but like most people we hold grudges instead of settling the matter right then and there. Then, like a cancer, these ugly emotions fester and grow. Have you ever been so angry that you felt sick to your stomach, or ended up with a horrible headache? Perhaps God asks us to forgive others not just for their benefit but for ours as well. 

I know what it feels like to hold on to resentment and unforgiveness. I know that it not only destroys relationships with others, but my relationship with God as well! I am so thankful that I am now a student of God's Word and learning the Truth.

Yes, it is true folks - the Truth will set you free, in every sense of the word!

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Dear Lord, we live in a world that seems to celebrate sinful behaviour. I am so thankful that You are leading me to Your Truth and It will set me free! I pray for the strength and courage to forgive others the way You forgive me. I want to be a bright light in a fallen world. I pray that when people see my actions, they will see You. I pray these things in Jesus name, Amen.

Devout or Delusional - You Decide

My phone call with my LTD provider left me agitated - as always. As my anxiety levels increased throughout the phone call, I found myself reciting Philippians 4:7 in my head to try and stay calm.

After I got off the phone, questions began flooding my brain: What the heck I would do if my employer fired me or if my LTD provider cut me off? What if my husband can't find work? What if he can't work?? What if we had to sell this place? Where would we live? How could I possibly handle another move? What if I my health never improves? What if I keep getting worse? How will I afford my medications? What, what, when, will...

STOP! With all these questions swirling around in my head I suddenly thought -

Am I a devout Christian or delusional?

By the world's standards, we are up the proverbial creek without a paddle! Yet, God has shown us extraordinary favour these past few months. I know that He did this so that if things got really tough I would not have to worry; I would know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He is looking out for me. Logically it makes no sense. But God is not limited by our human logic. He is a God of miraculous wonders!

God certainly is able to answer all my prayers, but what if He chooses not to? What if there are lessons I still need to learn and this is the path He has set out for me? I would need to find that peace that transcends all understanding and go through it all with a joyful heart. That is how we become a bright light for others. When people see us going through trials and we have peace and joy, THEN they will want what we have. Then we can tell them the Good News of Jesus Christ with boldness and courage!

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What trials have you been going through lately? Are you trusting God to look after you? If not, what is holding you back? What good could you see coming out of your current situation? Is there anyone who could benefit from the lessons you are learning? How do you think your current situation could help you in the future?

Dear Lord, I pray that You would show favour to the people reading this post. I pray that You would give them a peace that transcends all understanding. There are many people who are living with sickness, financial crisis, loss of a loved one - we live in a fallen, hurting world. BUT You are our hope and salvation! You died so that we could be saved! I pray that people will realize the significance of that gift, and that Your Truth will set them free. Amen!

The Power of Words

I recently watched a fantastic sermon on The Hour of Power. Bobby Shuller talked about the Voice of Love and the power of words. He quoted numerous scriptures that talk about how we are to use our words and what happens when we don't use them wisely. What I found fascinating was when he explained how God used words in the beginning to create everything! We see in John 1:1-2 the incredible importance of the Word:

Not only was the Word with God, but the Word WAS God! If God gave so much importance to the spoken word, wouldn't you agree that we should do the same? We live in a society where words are thrown around so casually. We are encouraged to speak our minds and we do in abundance, often without even thinking of the impact our words are having on the other person. I have struggled in this area for a couple of decades (at least). Have you ever found yourself stewing over something for days and then something happens and... BAM! The words leave your lips and as soon as they do you wish you could grab them back. You watch helplessly as the other person reacts to your onslaught; you see the pain in their eyes.

Do your words harm or heal?

Our words pierce or bring healing; they give life or destroy it. Do you speak life over those around you or do you destroy their dreams - even as an attempt to protect them. Yes, we can have the best of intentions yet cause incredible damage - damage that someone could carry with them for years or even their entire life! I cringe whenever I think back to when my son was young and I would say things that I thought were in his best interest, yet I can remember the look of pain in his eyes. I have made amends with him over this, but the words were poured over him and they affected his life.

Uh oh, I have entered the city of guilt again. I already repented before God and made amends with my son. I have been blessed to receive forgiveness from them both. I must receive it and move on, praying for the Holy Spirit to help me guard my tongue so that I don't repeat the offences.

If you are still carrying around guilt over words you have spoken, repent before God and make amends with the person you spoke to**

**only if doing so won't bring harm to you or the other person**

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Dear Lord, I pray that you would help me guard my tongue, that I might become fully cognizant of the power my words carry. Help me to learn restraint so that I don't speak in the heat of the moment. I pray for Your Spirit of love so that I can speak Love over everyone around me. After all, you have commanded me to love my neighbour as myself. 

In Jesus holy name I pray, Amen.

Seeking His Face Always

Matthew 6:33 - But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Worship: My Help Comes from the Lord - The Museum

For the past month or so, God has been urging me to rely on Him completely; to immerse myself in His Word. I know that when I do this, my life will be transformed. How do I know this? Because I have experienced it. Not long ago, I was spending a lot of time listening to Joyce Meyer's podcast, reading Christian books, studying God's Word,  and spending quality time with God. The peace and insights I experienced changed me dramatically... and then I stopped.
  

So Why Stop?

Why does it seem so easy to let life's "stuff" derail us? You know what it's like - it's either the snooze button, or a doctor's appointment, or working overtime, or any number of things that fill up our day. Yes, we are all busy.

We need to always seek God first because without Him we have nothing. We need to give Him the very first few minutes of our day so that we spend the day with a God consciousness. This will help us to do things God's way rather than our own. How does this look in real life? When I get up in the morning, instead of checking emails and doing other computer things, I will choose to do my bible study and spend quiet time with God first. If I find myself running to another doctor out of fear, I will run to God first. When I find myself turning to food for comfort, I will turn to God first.


WARNING - Don't beat yourself when you don't do this perfectly. Satan uses guilt and condemnation to come between us and God. Thankfully God sees our heart. As long as you are earnestly seeking a relationship with Him, He will transform your heart. When that happens, everything changes.

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Dear God, thank You for your many blessings. You have taught me so much. I confess that I still fall back in to old patterns and let things come before You. Thank You for loving me anyway. I pray for the wisdom to promptly obey You instead of ignoring You. I pray that You would grant me the wisdom to recognize Your voice through all the clutter that runs through my thoughts. I pray these things in Jesus name, Amen.

A Higher Standard - Romans 2:21

This posting by Howard Trill goes in to the higher standard expected from those who teach God's Word. I grew up in a religion where I saw man made laws that had nothing to do with God's laws. I saw double standards and hypocrisy. As I looked through history, I saw manipulation and corruption. All these things served as a barrier between me and my relationship with God. It wasn't until I truly began studying the bible and learning more about Jesus that my relationship with God changed - and I changed.

The religious elite, spiritual con artists, or anyone else who sets up a barrier between people and the Truth are doing far more than bilking people out of their money. As Howard so aptly points out, they are robbing them of their inheritance in Christ.

Romans 2:21-1 "you, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one shall not steal, do you steal?"

 Thankfully, we do know that those who teach God's Word will be judged by a higher standard. 

Have you experienced this? Have you ever felt that a "religious" person was setting up barriers between you and Jesus through either their actions or their words? What did that do to your faith? How did you learn the Truth?

Kristina

When God Answers Prayers

Unanswered Prayers - This posting by Pastor Sherry highlights the fact that as long we we trust God and truly believe that He has our best interests at heart, He will work miracles. But Sherry makes a crucial point - He will often wait until the benefit far exceeds just our own personal want to need. When God answers our prayers, many are often impacted in ways we never could have foreseen. Those are God moments.

I prayed for years for God to take my pain away. I am on countless prayer lines, yet my pain continued. In fact it got worse! But now as I look back, God has been using my pain to change me in to the person He needs me to be to have a much bigger impact than I could have possibly imagined. If it were just about taking my physical pain away, that would be the end of the story. But God is leading me down a path that I know will impact many others. I can't wait to see where He leads me!

Do you have moments in your life when God answered your prayers in an amazing way which you never even anticipated? Instead of just impacting your life, how many lives were touched as a result of God's plan?

Kristina

Psalm 51:8-10

Worship: Let the Waters Rise - Mikeschair

I wanted to do a study on guilt because a while back I noticed that I actually felt guilty when I had a couple of decent days pain wise. I actually felt guilty for not trying to go to work just because I was functioning at some level, even though I was still in a great deal of pain and was still on all my pain meds.

Guilt is what has kept me pushing myself to be back at work. Guilt is what has caused me to completely disregard my boundaries. Guilt over not being able to earn a salary; guilt over not being able to do what is needed around the house; guilt over having to sell the home I bought when my dad passed away...

guilt, guilt, and more guilt!

Guilt does not come from God, it is an emotion and a lie that comes from Satan. He knows that when we are stuck in guilt, we cannot serve the Kingdom of God. Jesus died so that I could live without guilt. That  doesn't mean that I am oblivious about the things I do wrong. It does mean that Jesus died so that my sins could be washed away. He was the ultimate sacrifice for my sins. By staying in guilt I am disregarding His great sacrifice for me. Jesus suffered and died so that I didn't have to live with guilt and condemnation! By staying stuck in condemnation, I am saying that Jesus' death meant nothing!

Now, before I go and feel guilty for feeling guilty ;0) this is where daily bible study is so important. By immersing ourselves in God's Word and learning the Truth, we will be better equipped to stand firm against Satan's lies. Satan wants us to stay in the bondage of guilt BUT we have the power of Jesus on our side and because of that we can live in His Truth!

Feeling guilty doesn't make you a better person. Living in guilt doesn't mean that you care more about things. I used to truly believe that by feeling guilty, I was a more caring person. After all, if I didn't feel guilty that meant I didn't care - right? WRONG! We live in a fallen world. Living on earth means living in sin; however, by staying in God's Word, by learning from Jesus' great example, by repenting the moment we sin and RECEIVING God's forgiveness, we are then RELEASED from condemnation, our sins are washed clean through the blood of Jesus, and we are again holy and righteous through Christ. LIVING WITH GUILT IS TO BOW DOWN TO GUILT WHICH IS BOWING DOWN TO SATAN! Satan is the great deceiver. He wants to keep us in bondage through lies and through our feelings. IT IS TIME TO BELIEVE THE TRUTH OF GOD'S WORD INSTEAD OF BELIEVING SATAN'S LIES!!!

It is time for us to ask God to cleanse our hearts, and renew a right persevering and steadfast spirit within us. It is time to leave the city of guilt and live in God's Promised Land.

How has guilt affected your life and your faith? Are you ready to leave the city of guilt?

Kristina

Peace in the Storm

This blog post by Florence really hit me personally. I have come to know Florence well and feel she is a friend. I love her spirit and her faith. She also lives with chronic pain so when she talks about finding peace in the storm, I can absolutely relate. She is right, it is in the storm where we become stronger. If I'm going through an awful time and I am able to find peace through my faith in Jesus, then I will be that much stronger the next time I face trials.

But would God consider me good ground? When I hear the Word, do I understand it? Does my life bear good fruit? Am I being obedient and following God's plan for my life? There are days when I feel so completely in sync with God and being obedient, then there are other days when... well, I'm just not. I guess it's part of the human condition to swing in and out of obedience. But thankfully, the more I study God's Word, the more I learn His amazing Truth, the less time I spend being disobedient. Then, and only then, do I get to experience the awesomeness of being right where He wants me and watching His plan for my life play out with absolute perfection. WOW!

Kristina

Embracing Seasons

I just finished reading Amy Litzelman's blog post on Embracing the Season. First I must say that when I went to her blog I was struck with how beautiful it was. The colors are vibrant and rich. I knew at once this was someone who appreciated beauty and had the talent to bring it to her blog. Secondly, it is very apparent she loves gardening. Her analogy of comparing the seasons in our lives with seasons in nature was very interesting. Evan and I were actually talking a bit about this today; how God talks about the length of certain seasons and how we see them play out through out history.

I then stopped to think about what season I was in. Certainly I am getting older. Being over 50 has some comical and some annoying issues that crop up, i.e. Why do they make the print on bottles so darn small?!? Then there is the season of my health, which continues to cause problems. Am I hanging on to memories of healthier times at the expense of moving forward in life? This is certainly worth taking a closer look at.

What season are you in? Do you like it or are you stuck trying to stay in better times?

Kristina