O Isn't Grace Wonderful

It had been a long week.  My daily schedule was an absolute mess. I was tired, irritable, cranky, and I missed my time alone with Jesus.  When I finally did get a chance to sit down and speak with Him for more than a few minutes, I found myself unable to focus on my requests.  I finally just said, "Jesus, I just don't feel like I deserve to ask for these things."  His sweet Spirit whispered to my heart some very comforting words: "Belinda, you have never deserved to ask for them."  

I smiled to myself.  I think He was smiling, as well.  He was right. I have never "deserved" anything from Him.  All of my struggles...all of my good intentions...all of my time spent in prayer...all of my deeds done for Him...nothing would ever cause me to DESERVE anything from Him.  

How cool is that?!  Hang on...it really is cool.  Stay with me a little longer.    

If it stopped right there - if I never deserved to request anything from the Lord, then all would be lost and hopeless. Yet, because of the powerful grace of Jesus, because of His endless mercy, because He gave me His Spirit...His life...His righteousness...because of these things, I can "draw near with confidence to the throne of GRACE, so that "I" may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16).

My standing before the Father has nothing to do with MY standing. Instead, it has everything to do with Jesus' standing before His Father.  He took my righteousness that was as filthy, nasty, putrid rags upon Himself and replaced my dirtiness with His own purity (Is. 64:6).  

Thank You, Jesus.  Thank You that I am free to come before my Father in heaven, because of You.  Thank You that You don't require perfection.  You require submission.   I praise You for Your grace today.  I praise You.    

The Science of a "Good" Fight

I watched intensely as the trickle increased in volume. Soon, what had started out as a small, steady stream of water became a quickly descending torrent in our side yard. Don't get me wrong...that's what I WANTED to happen. I had spent hours actually trying to make it happen. I had purposefully “released” the barriers upstream. Before I knew it, the water came pouring down the drainage ditch and out into the pond.

As I stood there watching how the water was moving, I couldn't help but think about the science behind it all – how water molecules LOVE each other. They are highly attracted to one another - so much so, that as soon as one H2O molecule screams “PARTY,” thousands of others climb aboard for the ride. It's the same process that causes water to pool in parking lots when it's raining and dance on your windows as you drive through a storm.

It's just plain science. Dam leaks become breaks; streams become rivers; and trickles become torrents. Water simply “pulls itself” along because of the attraction.

That is, unless it's stopped.

In a similar way, arguments “pull themselves” along. The words get louder, and the stances become more demonstrative. Tempers that were flared in the beginning, become incensed and inflamed. Words that were used cautiously at first, become darts shooting straight for the heart.

Proverbs 17:14 says, “The beginning of strife is like releasing water; Therefore, stop contention before a quarrel starts.” Did you see that? Read it again...I'll wait.

Just like water molecules are attracted to one another and love to bond, strife (hurt feelings, angry emotions, fearful expectations) loves more strife. We, as humans, love a good fight. Sad, isn't it? After all, there's really no such a thing as a “good fight.”

But God says, we don't have to fight. We can stop strife, before it “gets ugly.” Pretty wise WORDS, don't you think?

One way our family is practicing this is to ask ourselves an important question: “Is it worth it?” Is the quarrel you are engaging in, or about to engage in, worth it? Is it worth the damage that it will cause the relationship? Is it worth the destruction when the torrent begins? Will good come out of this?

If not, then the altercation must stop. The best way to accomplish this, I've found, is to seal the dam before it breaks. In other words, I bite my tongue (figuratively or literally, if need be) and surrender the situation to Jesus. I don't know about you, but I can't afford, nor do I need a river running through my den or anywhere else for that matter.

So the next time you feel anger welling inside you, remember my ditch. Remember the science behind the flow of water. Remember God saying that the beginning of strife...the very beginning of the argument...is the place where it needs to stop before it gets totally out of control. Remember, and then respond with determination.

Thank You, Father. Thank You that You have given me pictures of life throughout nature. Just like the releasing of water, help me to recognize problems before they start and respond accordingly. Thank You that You will do this for me. I praise You, Father.

Rain, Rain Go Away!

“Rain, Rain go away. Come again another day.” I used to sing this little verse when I was small, stuck inside gazing out the window like the two kids on the first page of the Cat in the Hat book. Yet sometimes, I find myself singing it even now...not about the “wet stuff,” but about the “hard stuff.”

I don't know why I don't expect trouble in my life. You would think that I would know that it was just part of living. Scripture tells me so. Believers in the Early Church experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground (Hebrews 11:36-38).

And we're not exempt either. James 1:2 says, Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds...

So it's not a question of “if” we will experience difficulties as Believers. It's just a matter of “when.”

How do we cope with this? How can we stand strong during these times and not falter in our faith?

The answer is pretty straightforward: We must KNOW Him. We must know the mind of Christ, and in order to know the mind of Christ – what He desires from us and for us – we must know His Word.

A great place to start is Matthew, chapters 5-7 (the Sermon on the Mount). This section of Scripture explains kingdom-life for the Believer. It tells us how to respond to God, to each other, to our enemies. It covers just about every attitude and situation that will arise.

As a matter of fact, before you go any further, it would be great for you (and me) to read all three chapters right now. Okay, go ahead. Get your Bible and read. I'll see you back in a minute.

So are you done? Boy, that was fast!

Did you see the last few verses of chapter 7? Those verses contain the answer to our questions and concerns. They give us hope that even though we WILL face trials and troubles, problems and persecutions, rain and even ice, we still have the ability to stand strong in our faith.

Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash (Matthew 7:24-27).

The rains will come. The streams will rise. The winds will blow and beat against you. Yet, if you have heard the words of Christ and put those things into practice, your faith will remain strong. You won't falter. You won't fall. You will stand and stand strong.

On the other hand, if you hear His Words and don't choose to put them into practice, then when the rains come and the streams rise and the wind beats against your life, then sadly, you won't stand strong. Your foundation will give way, and “great” will be your crash.

Study the Word. Put His sayings and teachings into practice. Search for Him desperately in the pages of your Bible. Then smile at the storms when they come. Stand confidently in the midst of rain, and look forward with hope to what comes after the wind.

I praise You, Jesus. I praise You that You didn't just leave me here on this earth without any help...without any instructions on how to live. Instead, You have provided me with everything I need to glorify You in my life through my struggles. Thank You, Father.  

Mama and Papa Bear Behind Bars

It happens to us all.  We are minding our own business, and then all of the sudden, WHAM!  It's like a flip is switched somewhere down deep in our beings, and it's a difficult thing to handle what comes next.

I'm talking about the emotional surging of anger that threatens to take us over when we, or someone we love, feels violated.  It's a natural reaction - human nature, right?  Right.  Yet, if we are Believers in Christ, that "natural" reaction must be contained, or else the "Mama and Papa Bear" in us all might appear.  And woe to the receiver of his or her bite!

Know what I mean?

Scripture speaks about anger frequently.  For instance, Colossians 3:8 says, But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.  James 1:20 explains further that man's anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

"Well, that's great, Belinda.  But how in the world am I supposed to deal with this beast that lies within me?"  I'm glad you asked.  The answer lies in the latter part of II Corinthians 10:3-5: For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.  The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.  On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.  We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 

Did you catch that?  We become "Jailers" of our thought life.
We take captive or "grab hold" of EVERY thought and make it obedient to Christ.

Thoughts of aggression when someone breaks line in front of us - whether in a car or in line at the store, become prisoners of war. We choose to remove the poisonous angry thoughts and replace them with the thoughts of Christ, making them obedient to Him. Instead of spurting out words of disgust and anger, we choose to hold those not-so-nice thoughts behind the prison bars of our pearly whites. We choose to think, "Yes, you broke in front of me. Yes, you took my spot and disrespected my time.  Yet, I will choose to forgive you, because I have been forgiven freely by Christ of sooo many wrongs myself.  I will choose to love you, as Christ loved me.  You are not my enemy. I will even pray for you.  I pray that the Spirit will convict you of your wrongs and drive you to Jesus."  

Talk about a life-changer!  When we choose to do that - when we choose to change our thoughts and take them captive to make them obedient to Christ - our attitudes and our actions become those things which DO bring about the righteousness of Christ.  We change.  We become the example of Christ we so desperately desire.

The by-product of this type of life is spiritual fruit.  People begin to take note of our patience when wronged.  They wonder why we don't respond in the "natural way" - the way THEY would have.

Yes, we are human.  Yes, we have sinful natures.  Yes, we will become angry. Next time, though, let's choose to change things around a bit.  The world is tired of seeing Mama and Papa Bear. They want to see something different...something unlike anything they've ever seen.  They want to see someone different..SOMEONE like no one they've ever met.  They want to see Christ, so let's keep our thoughts in check and show Him to them.  Deal?  Deal.

Father, it's so hard to control my anger.  I pray You will help me. Help me take my thoughts captive before they destroy me and the ones around me.  Thank You that You want this life-change in me, even more than I want it in myself.  I love You, Father.  

Looking Forward

Well...looks like I've been out of the loop for a while, but I am back.  Looking forward to posting a new thought within the next couple of days.   Thanks for being patient!

In Him,
Belinda  

He's Speaking...

Let's be honest, shall we? For a lot of us, reading the Bible isn't something we do a whole lot of. We think about it, but life happens. We get too busy. We don't understand what we read, so instead of searching the Scriptures further to try and figure it out, we simply shake our heads and put it down.

Which leads to a lack of respect for God's Word and its usefulness in our lives...

...UNTIL...

...the unthinkable happens. Something totally unpredictable slams us in the face and knocks the breath right out of us.

Immediately, we search Him out. The Bible that lay on the shelf during our "busy times" finds its way into our hands. Page after page is flipped. Chapter after chapter is read. Finally, the Word of God takes priority over worldly things.

But after a couple of days, it seems our situation is not improving. God seems silent and distant, and so we blame Him for not speaking.

Yet, He's been speaking the whole time.

We just haven't been listening.

Case in point: The other morning while talking with my teenager about spending time with God, our conversation shifted to his future career. Right now, he's wavering between two or three particular fields, and that's fine. He has a long time before any decisions have to be made. However, because he wants to make the right life choice, these thoughts already have a great deal of his attention.

After a couple of minutes, I brought the conversation back around to spending time in the Word. I encouraged him that he didn't have to read a whole chapter a day. Seriously focusing on even a single Bible verse, would be of immeasurable benefit for him.

To show him an example, I pulled up the website, Verse of the Day, and we read this together: "LORD, I know that people's lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps" (Jer. 10:23).

I sat there for a moment, focusing on the verse, myself. And I realized that God was speaking.  I looked at my son with wide eyes and said, "Do your realize that God is speaking to you? Do you realize that He is talking to you through His Word right now?"

We had just finished discussing my son's struggle with what he wanted to do for the rest of his life, and here was God's answer for him.  It's not for Alex to plan his life.  He needs to let God plan his life for him!  God will direct his steps.  How cool is that?   How cool is it that God spoke to my child...immediately?

A moment later, a sobering thought popped into my mind. It was as if God said, "I speak all the time, Belinda. You just don't listen."

You know, He does. He really does speak ALL the time. "How?" you might ask. "How is God speaking all the time?" 

I'll tell you how. Do you remember that Bible that lay on the shelf during our busy times? That's how.  It's sad to think of how many times I have literally missed hearing from the Lord, because I was too consumed with my day to pick up His Word.  

So my encouragement for us today?  Let's go get His book off that shelf. Sit down, take a deep breath, and stop long enough to listen. 

Thank You, Father, for Your Word.  I thank You that You speak continuously through It.  I ask that You help me learn how to listen. I am here, Jesus.  Speak though Your Word.    

You Really Do Reap What You Sow

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked. Whatsoever one sows, that he will also reap, (Gal. 6:7). Those words jumped off of the index card attached to my kitchen wall and struck me like a bolt of lightning. All of the sudden, I found myself thinking, “What did I sow this week? What did I cultivate in the heart of my kids?”

Every year, I plant a garden. And sometimes, in that garden, I plant seeds and then forget what I planted. You would think by now that I would be able to remember to purchase some of those cute little plant identifiers to line my garden rows. And yet, I always seem to forget. It's not until the first few leaves appear that I can actually tell peppers from squash - tomatoes from watermelons!

There's a tremendous spiritual truth threading its way through that last paragraph. What I plant, I sow. The seeds that are sown by my hand, will become what they were intended to become, whether I remember what I planted or not.

Hence, the illustration for Galatians 6:7 is a stark reality in the lives of every Believer. We will reap what we sow. If we “sow” anger into our relationships (into the lives of our children, for example) we will reap anger. If we “sow” unkindness into the lives of those around us, we will reap unkindness. If we “sow” impatience, course jesting, “ugly talk,” we will reap those benefits, as well.

However, on the flip side, if we “sow” love into our relationships, we will reap love. If we “sow” gentleness and patience, we will reap those things – eventually! If we “sow” justice and mercy, faithfulness and humility, those blessings will cover us in abundance.

Now, that doesn't mean that you will see immediate results. Real gardening doesn't work that way. It usually takes a long time before any ripe fruit appears. I think that's why God continues this thought of “sowing things” on into verse 9 of Galatians 6: “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season, we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”

Just because you don't see any fruit in the first few days or sometimes even years after planting, don't get discouraged. Trust that what God has said in His Word will come true. Believe that He does not lie and that your efforts through the Spirit to sow good things will cause you to reap a bountiful harvest of blessings.

For whatsoever you plant, that you shall also reap.

Dearest Jesus, help me today. I need Your strength to speak kindness, live patiently, love heartily and give freely. May I be about the business of “sowing” Life into those around me today. I love You, Jesus.