Uh-Mazing

Sometimes when I read my Bible, I get blown off my feet on some of the passages of scripture I read and I want to tell everyone about it. This is one of those moments.

I'm reading the book of Daniel. I was reading chapter 3 where King Nebuchadnezzar had issued a decree that everyone should bow and worship the golden statue he had built when music played. The decree also stated that if anyone did not bow when instructed, they would be put to death by burning in the furnace. Well, word gets our that 3 men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were not bowing and worshiping as they were instructed to. So the king summons the men to confront them on the issue. Here's where my mind was blown! The king ask the men if they have not been follow orders and they confess they have not. The king then offers them one more chance to bow or they will put placed into the blazing fire. Here is their respond, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” (Daniel 3:16-18 NLT). 

WOOOOOAH! Did you get what I got?

If not here's another translation of the same verse. "Your threat means nothing to us. If you throw us in the fire, the God we serve can rescue us from your roaring furnace and anything else you might cook up, O king. But even if he doesn't, it wouldn't make a bit of difference, O king. We still wouldn't serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up." (MSG)

These men were facing death and their response is, God will save us. But not only that, they say that even if God doesn't save them from the fire, they still believe and worship him alone! These guys have more faith than I've ever had! I mean really, who says that nowadays? Who says, God will get me out, but if he doesn't I'm going to serve and worship him anyways. I don't know about you but I LOVE THIS! I love the intimacy and faith that these guys had with Christ. They didn't have to witness God pulling through (the way they would expect) they knew no matter what happened God was capable of saving them, He still existed, and God is still worthy of their worship and their sacrifice.

In this case, God did get them out (Daniel 3:19-30). But my question to you is...... in situations where your faced with a circumstance that possibly does not have a pleasant ending, are you willing to stand up and say, 'No matter what, I will serve my God.' Trust me, it's a question I'm going to be pondering on for a while.....

Who is God?

The title to my blog seems to be the best way to generalize the conversations I've had with multiple people lately. It's a question that we assume would come from someone who has never stepped into a church but I'm finding that this is not the case lately. The question seems to arise mostly from people who were raised in church or have spent a large sum of their life claiming to be a christian. Yet, after years of being in the church, people seem to be finding themselves walking out with the question, "Who is God?". 


It's almost like living in a home your whole life with someone who you call Dad, you have conversations with him, you tell him you love him, and yet you wake up one day going "Who is my Dad?".


Let me try to clarify my intention behind this question. I'm not asking the question as if you don't know who the person is (as if you couldn't identify them) but I'm stating the question in a more broad term such as who the person is in aspect of their character, their personality, etc. I would say the majority of the people who identify themselves as Christians could identify God, but couldn't give you a description of his character. It's really sad if you think about it. Not really knowing someone who you would identify as one of the most important aspects in your life. It's like being married to someone for years and finding out that when your spouse is asked questions about you all they can say is "Well, I've been married to them for a very long time and all I can tell you is that they are a good spouse." 


So who are we to blame? Who are we to point fingers at? Or do we blame someone else? Do we hold some else accountable for our lack of knowledge? I don't have the answers, all I know is these tend to be most people's typical reactions when they realize they are not as knowledgeable of something as they had originally thought they were. 


I can't speak for others but I can speak from my own personal experience. Who God truly is has been hidden and distorted in so many ways. It isn't God hiding it, it's me, you, others, the church, etc. Who God REALLY is gets buried by theology, pride, judgement, and anything else that is human. Then when you put a group of people together who are willing/ longing/ needing to see who God REALLY is, you begin to see His real power, His love, and it's INTENSE. And to be honest, it's terrifying. It's terrifying to realize the reality of how much power God has.You're never the same afterwards. But, you also find His love is ridiculous. Just from the amount I have experienced there are no words to describe the intensity. All I know, is that it's something that is not comfortable to experience at first because it almost seems unreal. 


I have truly loved a few people in my life. I loved them so much that it didn't matter what they did that hurt me I was still willing to take them back and I was willing (and still am willing) to go out of my way for them if I knew it would help them. Just to know that I am willing to experience this type of love blows my mind because I know that is an example of God's love. And in reality, that love is only a speck of an example of the love Christ has to give. 


I don't know if any of this makes sense to anyone but it's something that has really been on my mind lately. 


I guess what I'm trying to say is, if the God you have in your mind is hateful and judgmental you've been misled. Though he will judge us in the end, I have come to experience that judgement is his last resort and is therefore not WHO he is. He chooses to love first and he wants to love in an extravagant way. I challenge anyone and everyone to look for this loving God because scripture states that "If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me." Jeremiah 29:13. This will be my prayer for anyone who seeks to find this loving God. I pray that you will find Him and see the God I'm talking about. But also know "If you search for good, you will find favor; but if you search for evil, it will find you!" Proverbs 11:27. If you set your focus on the bad, you'll find it but I promise it won't be God. The bad you will find will be the lies of Satan because there is nothing evil or bad in my God.


I want so badly for everyone to experience and know that God I'm coming to know and love SO MUCH! The process of changing your mindset is difficult but it's worth it. If you go back to my very first blog posting, you can read through and see the struggles that I've dealt with over the past 6 months. Has it gotten easier? No. But I'm finally seeing and coming to terms the struggles I have and there's a small comfort in knowing that despite the ugly truth I'm having to see, it's helping me and my relationship with the Lord and I wouldn't change it for anything in the world.

To judge or not to judge......

If you read my last blog, you know that I wrote on a picture that had been posted onto Facebook.  You can go back and read what I discussed if you didn't. There was a post made by the man who posted the picture and this is his response to all the chaos that has been stirred up by the picture, "Ok results are in for the Flip The Bird Social Experiment .
After the posting of a mildly offensive yet nothing compared to some , pic of Jesus flipping the bird and a we'll kill him again text . These are the results 16500 comments 3800. Likes 400. Friend Requests ... Over 3000 death threats . At least 10,000 Burn In Hell threats . Which brings us to the conclusion that Fundamental Christians are no different then Radical Islamics . Both will threaten death and promote violence and hatred to anyone that jokes about their imaginary friend .

Hang your heads Christians . You deserve to feel ashamed "

Whether his research is valid or not, I think the point is made clear here. The amount of hate and judgment that this guy received is ridiculous. But, Christians are human too and I believe many of the death threats and comments were a knee jerk, human, response. Peter did the same thing John 18:1-10 "After saying these things, Jesus crossed the Kidron Valley with his disciples and entered a grove of olive trees.  Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples.  The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.

 Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” he asked.
 “Jesus the Nazarene,” they replied.
   “I Am he,” Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.)  As Jesus said “I Am he,” they all drew back and fell to the ground!  Once more he asked them,“Who are you looking for?”
   And again they replied, “Jesus the Nazarene.”
  “I told you that I Am he,” Jesus said. “And since I am the one you want, let these others go.”  He did this to fulfill his own statement: “I did not lose a single one of those you have given me.”

  Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave."

Peter's first reaction to stand up for Jesus was with slashing off the right ear of the high priest's slave. Even though his intentions were to show his love and compassion for Jesus, Jesus gracefully responded with “Put your sword back into its sheath. Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has given me?” Jesus knew what was to follow and I believe he didn't want violence to be the answer. 

As Christians, we have no right and ZERO responsibility to judge non believers. In 1 Cor. 5:9-13, Paul writes, "When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.

It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, 'You must remove the evil person from among you.'"

Instead we are called to love, Romans 12:9-10 "Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other."

This whole thing has reminded me that we need to be careful in how we react to offensive behaviors, words, or actions of those of non-believers. Our knee jerk reaction is to fight because we want to stand up for Christ, but he's telling us to make our knee jerk reaction to be love, because that's what he's all about.

Also, we need not take offense when people don't understand what we believe. It says in 2 Corinthian 3:12-15 "Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold.  We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so the people of Israel would not see the glory, even though it was destined to fade away.But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. Yes, even today when they read Moses’ writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand."

Therefore, I believe it's our responsibility to love and wait patiently for the Lord.

I Will Carry Your Name

It's near the end of the semester, I'm up to my neck in assignments, and I cannot find the motivation to get everything done. I don't know why I do this to myself. I always put it all off until the last minute and then I'm stressed out due to the amount of work I have to complete. 


This month has flown by. I feel like I blink and a month is gone. Is this what it's like to grow up?


Earlier on Facebook, a Facebook friend had commented on a picture. Therefore, since Facebook likes to let you know EVERYTHING someone does it showed the picture on my news feed (some of you might have seen this same picture). The picture was of Jesus holding his middle finger in the air and it had two captions to it. 1st caption: "HE IS COMING And if he's doing this we're in trouble" Then the second caption read "LET HIM COME, we'll just kill him again." Yeah, my eyes about popped out of my head when I read this too. So me being me, I clicked on the the picture to read the comments below (at the time it had about 600 comments, but that number is growing as I type). The person who posted the picture made a comment below that says, "This photo was posted yesterday and due to the fact that im getting christians telling me to kill myself , this proves that it deserves to be posted again ." This comment made me more sad than the picture itself. 


As I was reading my bible before bed, I know it was not an accident that I read Ezekiel 36:16-24. My Bible has little side captions to go with some verses and there was one for this one that read " Why did God want to protect his holy name- his reputation? To allow his people to be destroyed by their enemies would lead other nations to believe their nonexistent gods were victorious (Isaiah 48:11). Yet the people of Israel had the responsibility to represent God properly to the rest of the world. Believers today have that same responsibility. What would people learn about God by watching you?"


People are going to slander christianity, it's been predicted (John 16:33, 1 Peter 4:12-19). The real trial is how we handle it. When you decided to carry the name of Jesus, you're representing Christ. How you behave and what you do in troubling situations such as this is so important. It breaks my heart that this person, whoever they may be was told to go kill himself for posting that picture. If God wanted him dead for that, well I'm pretty sure he would have taken care of that for him. But that's not who God is. He is a merciful God, he, "isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent." (2 Peter 3:9) And as christians (including myself) we must not forget what God says about us! In Ezekiel he promises to “...sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations."(36:25-27) but he also says, "But remember, says the Sovereign Lord, I am not doing this because you deserve it. O my people of Israel, you should be utterly ashamed of all you have done!" (36:32). We are no better than the person who posted or created that picture, the only difference is that God has cleaned us and that cleansing was done through mercy not because we did anything to deserve it.

"My Soul Longs For You"

I've been reading this book that my stepmom gave me that has been so wonderful! It's called The Bondage Breaker by Neal T. Anderson. For those seeking a deeper more free relationship with Christ, I highly recommend it. There is a statement/ prayer that he wrote that I wanted to share. For me, when I read it I wanted to jump up and down because it's EXACTLY what I long for from Christ and it just made me so happy. I hope it will do that same for others. :-)

" I recognize that there is only one true and living God (Exodus 20:2,3), who exist as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and that He is worthy of all honor, praise, and worship as the Creator, Sustainer, and Beginning and End of all things (Revelation 4:11; 5:9,10; Isaiah 43:1,7,21).

I recognize Jesus Christ as the Messiah, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:1,14). I believe that He came to destroy the works of Satan (1 John 3:8), that He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public display of them, having triumphed over them (Colossians 2:15).

I believe that God has proven His love for me, because when I was still a sinner Christ died for me (Romans 5:8). I believe that He delivered me from the domain of darkness and transferred me to His kingdom, and in Him I have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (Colossians 1:13:14).

I believe that I am now a child of God (1John 3:1-3), and that I am seated with Christ in the heavenlies (Ephesians 2:6). I believe that I was saved by grace of God through faith, that it was a gift and not the result of any works on my part (Ephesians 2:8).

I choose to be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might (Ephesians 6:10). I put no confidence in the flesh (Philippians 3:3), for the weapons of my warfare are not of the flesh (2 Corinthians 10:4). I put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-17), and I resolve to stand firm in my faith and resist the evil one.

I believe that Jesus has all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18), and that He is the head over all rule and authority (Colossians 2:10). I believe that Satan and his demons are subject to me in Christ because I am a member of Christ's body (Ephesians 1:19-23). I therefore obey the command to resist the devil (James 4:7), and I command him in the name of Christ to leave my presence.

I believe that apart from Christ I can do nothing (John 15:5), so I declare my dependence on Him. I choose to abide in Christ in order to bear much fruit and glorify the Lord (John 15:8). I announce to Satan that Jesus is my Lord (1 Corinthians 12:3), and I reject any counterfeit gifts or works of Satan in my life.

I believe that the truth will set me free (John 8:32), and that walking in the light is the only path of fellowship (1 John 1:7). Therefore, I stand against Satan's deception by taking every thought captive in obedience to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). I declare that the Bible is the only authoritative standard (2 Timothy 3:15-17). I choose to speak the truth in love ( Ephesians 4:15).

I choose to present my body as an instrument of righteousness, a living and holy sacrifice, and I renew my mind by the living Word of God in order that I may prove that the will of God is good, acceptable, and perfect (Romans 6:13; 12:1,2). 

I ask my heavenly Father to fill me with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), to lead me into all truth (John 16:13), and to empower my life so that I may live above sin and not carry out the desires of the flesh (Galatians 5:16). I crucify the flesh (Galatians 5:24) and choose to walk by the Spirit.

I renounce all selfish goals and choose the ultimate goal of love (1 Timothy 1:5). I choose to obey the greatest commandment, to love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul, and mind, and to love my neighbor as myself (Matthew 22:37-39)."

May the Lord bless you  even more abundantly than He has done for me :-)

I need your help

Oh life is happening! Each minute is being put to good use in my life. Tonight I stayed home to reboot emotionally and physically.


One of the most difficult gifts to have is the gift of empathy. To be able to take on the emotions of other people is exhausting and draining. I've been working diligently with a family to hopefully help them get back on the right track. The mother is emotionally and physically unstable with 4 kids living in her home. The home is a mess and they are always under constant stress and in constant conflict. Why would I keep trying to help? Because the Lord has called me to. I have no doubt that I will spend the rest of my life helping families like this one. It's exhausting dealing with families that are in constant crisis but someone needs to help, we can't just turn a shoulder because it's hard.But I'm again reminded of Romans 15:1-2 that says, "Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, 'How can I help?'"


So I'm asking those who are strong to help me if you can. This family's home is being foreclosed. They have to be out of the home by the end of November and have not found a place for them to move into. The mother is on a fixed income of about $1200 a month and has 4 kids. If anyone knows of a place in Hamilton County or North GA that establishes rent based on income, your information would be of GREAT help. I know the Lord has a home for this   family and I pray He brings it to them soon. He's already provided help when they move, so I have no doubt he's going to provide a home! Right now the family is struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel and things seem to continue to get worse for them. If you don't know of anything that is fine, please just keep this family in your prayers and pray the Lord gives them their home soon.


I easily become overwhelmed because I try to do a lot on my own without asking for help. But as a Christian, we're suppose to work as a body and not take on every task by ourselves. That  is why I'm asking for your help. In 1 Corinthians 12:18-26 its says, "But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it.  How strange a body would be if it had only one part!  Yes, there are many parts, but only one body.  The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.”
 In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary. And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, while the more honorable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad."


Even if your job is to pray, I want you to know that you are HONORED in that task. The Lord is going to bless this family and he will honor all those involved, whether it's through prayer or actions. 


Thanks you all for your prayers and help :-)

Unity.

 "Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders. You were called “uncircumcised heathens” by the Jews, who were proud of their circumcision, even though it affected only their bodies and not their hearts. In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.  But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ. For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.  He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death. He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near. Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us."
Ephesians 2:11-18


When I read this passage it made me sad. Here's Paul, writing about how Jesus was crucified and tortured so that everyone may have peace. Jesus suffered so that we could all work as one body together to serve him. The part that makes me sad is I don't see this happen very often in the christian community. We're too busy trying to convince people to come to this one particular church or this one particular denomination instead of helping one another as we discover who Christ has made us to be and how he's created us to serve him in a unique and marvelous way. Why don't different denominations unite with one another? Is it just me or does this passage state that Christ died so that we could have unity. Unity must be extremely important if Christ was willing to do what he did so that we may have it. It's just easy to let pride and interpretation to create barriers that do not benefit in furthering the kingdom of God. Success comes with unity. Jesus was right, it is important. Too bad we take advantage of our freedom and choose not to unite. Just imagine, if we all worked as one body like God intended us to. The results would be epic.