God gets a bad rap

I want to talk more about being disappointed/let down/angry at God.  I think this is the kind of stuff that brings us to the crossroad of confusion and indecision.  The first step is recognizing that what's going on in our hearts is actually anger/disappointment/unforgiveness toward God.  We often put our anger on people, but it can go way deeper than that. Once we identify what's going on spiritually, we can start dealing with it, dislodging us from being stuck in one place and begin the process of moving on into victory and freedom. 

Okay, next step.  Last week I was praying about this and asking God to reveal truth.  To confirm what I felt like I was hearing from Him, I consulted another prophet and asked for his thoughts.  The first thing he said was what I had been thinking too.....

It's not God's fault.

God gets blamed for so much stuff that He didn't do. God is not the problem, but we have a sneaky adversary who whispers in our ear and tries to convince us that God is hurting us, punishing us, ignoring us, neglecting us, making us sick, taking away people we love, having a party in heaven while we bleed to death on earth. Some pain we can figure out; we sin and there are consequences. Or we love God and desire to obey Him, but sometimes make poor choices out of ignorance or immaturity (think about it....are the choices you make now a lot wiser than the choices you made five, ten, twenty years ago?). Abraham was a mighty man of God, and even having a promise from Him (Genesis 15), still produced an Ishmael that he then had to feed. Other times it's not so obvious. We think we are doing everything right, so when things go wrong, it must be God's doing, right? We assume way too much.  We can't figure out who to blame (that's such an American thing, isn't it?), so we just dump it all on God and then harbor resentment toward the very One that we need to be close to.  We erect walls around our hearts, a monument to our pain, thinking we are protecting ourselves from further pain and heartbreak.  Do we not realize that this wall keeps the pain in, and keeps God's love and healing out?  It becomes a vicious cycle.  We get pissed off at God and avoid Him. We then become more and more miserable because we have cut ourselves off from our Source ....

"A branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine...

apart from Me, you can do nothing. "  John 15

The longer we stay in this place, the worse it gets. Anger leads to resentment and bitterness. We stop trusting God and think we can get on better on our own. Those walls of self-protection remain impenetrable as our heart hardens. Doubt sets in.  The original sin in the Garden of Eden continues. The serpent tempted Eve to doubt God (Genesis 3), and she fell for it.  That deception is still happening. If satan can get us to doubt God, he's got us right where he wants us. The longer we stay in the sin of unbelief, the more time he has to pump our hearts and minds full of negativity.  The 33,000 promises of God mean nothing to us, we're mad at Him. We put ourselves in the position to not receive from Him, and then get more upset that He won't deliver us from the torment that we ourselves are creating and feeding. 

Is this you?  Are these words making you think?  Evaluate?  Are you feeling a little conviction?  You are not alone, that was me too.  Let me help you.  Read the book of James (five chapters) every day until my next post.  Victory is near baby.  We are going to get un-stuck.

Don't Give Up!

I've had two conversations in as many days with dear friends of mine, one a girlfriend, one a guy friend, both of whom are going through an evaluation of their faith.  (I'm thinking, "Do you know what kind of year I've had?  Are you sure you want to be talking to me about this?").  Maybe though, I am a good source for them right now, being a step out of the valley but not yet on the mountain. I understand how they feel.  I know where they are and it's rough.  I've struggled with doubt about God's faithfulness and plan for my own life, too.  As I did, my friends both feel let down by God, ignored, looked over, neglected. They are questioning God's protection, His provision, His purpose, and His care. 

I think it was divine wisdom that Paul compared our walk of faith to a race.  Hebrews 12:1 says,

"Let us run with endurance the race God has set before us."

A race involves sweat, fatigue, pain. It requires faith that after leaving the starting line, you will make it to the finish line.  It includes "runner's highs", where you are doing good, feeling strong, running fast.  It also includes shin splints, knee pain, burning lungs, and the further you make it, exhaustion that makes you want to roll to the ground and collapse.  I think our culture has a lot to do with this, but somehow we convince ourselves that after giving our lives to Christ, the rest of our time on Earth should be a cake walk.  A leisurely stroll down a garden path, seventy degree weather with a cool breeze, refreshment booths along the way should our bodies even begin to think about thirst, and fluffy beds with mosquito nets should fatique get anywhere near.  That comes later, but if you are alive and reading this, you know we are not there yet!

Life is hard and I don't know about you, but to me it seems like life is getting harder.  Everywhere I look, there are challenges, in my own life and in the lives of the people I love.  Babies die.  Twenty-year marriages end.  Loved ones pass before reconciliation takes place.  Husbands lose jobs.  Kids run wild.  Betrayal plaques families over and over.  Mental illness drains faithful caregivers of all their strength. Years of dedication are rewarded by being shown the door.  Three months before your wedding day, your fiance' has a motorcycle accident and never comes out of a coma. Investments go bad. Teenagers commit suicide. Entire families are divided over disagreements. Your kid's college fund is depleted just to keep food on the table.  Cancer strikes and takes tender lives. Hearts are broken into tiny pieces. Again.

"He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good,

and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."

Matt 5:45

Hard times, extreme challenges, and horrible disasters of spiritual, emotional, and physical natures strike even the most godly, faithful, loving, forgiving, praying, fasting, tithing, full of faith people who love God and have surrendered their life to His purpose.  These times make us ask God "where were You?", "why did You let that happen?" and "do You not love me anymore?".  These are very real and honest questions but, this side of heaven, are very hard to answer.  We only see a small part of the big picture, and even that we "see darkly".  We interject our own perceptions, beliefs, and values into our circumstances and may never know the true meaning and purpose until we are able to ask God face to face.  Disappointment and rejection cloud our judgement and there are always plenty of situations anxious to cause us to become jaded and bring hardness to our hearts.  So much happens that we don't understand. God gives us a green salad after we ordered a triple cheeseburger.  It makes us mad, but can we get to the point that we trust that He knows a steady diet of cheeseburgers will kill us, and that salad with spinach and bean sprouts will be the best choice for us?  Can we hold onto the belief that God loves us, promises never to leave us, and, oh yeah, He's made a way for us to go to heaven when we die, saving us from an eternity in hell? The second verse of Hebrews 12 tells us how to keep running the race described in the verse one.....

 "We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus,

the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.

 Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame.

Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne

Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people;

then you won’t become weary and give up." 

If you find yourself at a precarious crossroad of faith, faced with the decision to A) determine it's not working, it's not worth it, it's too hard, you'd rather drop out of the race and join the other team, hey, they've got pizza there, or B) you decide that you have come too *&$@# far to stop now, you've worked too hard to throw away your testimony, things will get better, the prize will be worth it if you keep going, then let me encourage you friend....

Choose B. Stand strong. Don't give up.  Hang in there. If you can't run one more inch, then just stand here.  ("Having done all, stand..." Eph 6).  Ask God to meet You where you are and to bring truckloads of strength and grace until you can resume the race.  If you don't have the strength to stand, then sit.  Hey, at least you're not going backwards and you're not crawling off the track.  Don't lose the ground you have already won.  Surround yourself with people who are full of wisdom.  Find encouragement from those you love.  Put a demand on your reserves and pull out every last ounce of determination that your seeds of faith produced.

That finish line may be a lot closer than you think.

"I stand at the gate...."

Yesterday morning I sat in my Nigerian doctor's swanky, redneck church (I'm serious. The pastor used to be a country-western singer) listening to a man with lots of wisdom and sensitivity to the Spirit preach about the narrow gate in John 10. Yesterday afternoon I was sitting outside watching the sun set when two little long-haired dogs wearing clothes ran into my fence from the opened back gate. I watched them chase birds, run around the trees, play with each other, etc. After a few minutes their owner, my neighbor two houses down, began searching for them and calling for them to return home. I continued to watch as their playful frolicking turned into confusing frustration about how to get out of my back yard. The owner clapped, whistled, hollored. The dogs ran to the side of my fence and just stared through. Seemingly oblivious to go back out the same way they came in, through the narrow gate, they started whimpering and barking for their master. "Come here!" he called. He could see them in my yard, they could see him in their yard, but for whatever reason they couldn't find their way of escape. Realizing that these dumb creatures were going to need an intervention in order to escape my property, the owner came to the gate. Overjoyed, the little pups scampered off to where they needed to be, rescued by one who was willing to come to the gate and direct them out. We have One who leads us too.

Darkness

Are you in a dark place? Meditate on these words.....

"Sometimes Jesus turns out the lights because He wants more intimacy with us." -Jason Upton

"God promises to walk through the dark place with us and shine upon the immediate step we are to take. That's our walk of faith". -R. Barth

"Who walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the Lord and rely upon his God." Isaiah 50:10

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." Psalm 119:105

"I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the darkness." John 12:46

The Secret Place

The words "the secret place" keep rolling around in my spirit. Is God speaking to anyone else about this? Here are my thoughts.

God promises to be a secret place of safety for us. King David understood this well. He sought God. He hid in God. He found peace, healing, and safety there. When challenges came, David didn't blame anyone; he knew right where to go to find refuge.

"He will conceal me there when troubles come;

he will hide me in his sanctuary.

He will place me out of reach on a high rock."

Psalm 27:5

We all need a secret place in God where we can find refuge. A place where we can run when we are hurt. confused. alone. sick. afraid. weak. depressed. nervous. angry. tempted. grieving loss. lacking wisdom. healing from divorce. fighting addictions. without hope. needing peace. If you have created this secret place with God, it's familiar and comfortable to retreat there at any given time. at the drop of a hat. in the middle of the night. when the doctor calls with bad news. when your world turns upside down. If you don't have this place with God, you can. Some folks only turn to God when a crisis hits, but that's okay. If you find yourself in the foxhole, you can ALWAYS CALL ON GOD. He welcomes you. He loves you. He's not mad at you. He wants a relationship with you. He wants to carve out a secret place with you that fits you and Him perfectly.

"I will give you the treasures of darkness and the hidden riches

of secret places, that you may know that it is I,

the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name."

Isaiah 45:3

If we don't run to God for our refuge, we will run somewhere else. It is hard-wired in us to seek relief from pain. Life is hard and we cannot navigate alone without screwing things up. We have two choices; follow our God nature or follow our sin nature. The world offers many options to help us find comfort, but any way we find to soothe ourselves, that isn't pleasing to God, will not provide the satisfaction we long for. God's ways promise to "fully satisfy" (Psalm 17:15). But here's the kicker about finding refuge even in the most holy way.....
It's on us to go there. When God speaks to us about the secret place, He uses verbs: run. pursue. hide. kneel. trust. ask. seek. knock. Just like all relationships, it takes work. time. prayer. faith. scripture. discipline. God is totally available, but it's up to us to pursue Him who is "out there" until He is "in here". God will not force any part of Himself on us. He loves us enough to give us the will to decide just how much of Him we want.

"His confidential communion and secret counsel

are with the righteous. "

Proverbs 3:32

The secret place is where God speaks to us. The wisdom of man cannot compare with the voice of God. In order to hear Him though, we have to be close. When I was working at a church in Dothan, I used to sign to my assistant when we were across the sanctuary from each other, or during a service when the music was loud. We were close enough to see each other, but too far away to hear each other. Communication is much easier when we are face to face with the One that has all the answers.

"You called in distress and I delivered you.

I answered you in the secret place of thunder."

Psalms 81:7

What makes the secret place so "secret"? Part of the definition of the word "secret" is: hidden, private, something kept from the knowledge of others. I think one of the greatest things about our secret place in God is that He has specific, personalized provisions for us there. I see it like a store, kind of like a general store, but smaller. You and God are the only ones allowed in. Not because He's being snobby or exclusive, but because the things in that secret place "store" are only for you. On the shelves, waiting, all packaged up, are things you need for what's going on in your life. God knows everything about you. all your needs. all your desires. all your struggles. all that hurts you. all your fears. In the secret place we receive from Him exactly what we need for our hearts. our circumstances. our purpose.

"He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High

shall remain stable and fixed under the

shadow of the Almighty."

Psalms 91:1

John Waller "While I'm Waiting" feat. scenes from FIREPROOF

Beloved- Tenth Avenue North

Christy Nockels - Healing is in Your hands

Breaking Soul Ties

Sometimes we form attachments to people on a soulish level. The more we let someone into our heart, the more of ourselves we give to them. That's pretty normal, especially in a love relationship. The problem comes when we find that we can't really get away from a person, or more specifically, our thoughts and emotions toward that person. Let's say I am angry at my best friend Penelope for betraying my trust. That anger could fester and grow and form an unhealthy bond to Penelope that I couldn't get rid of without God's help. My soul would be tied to her soul through anger. (It could be any emotion that connects us to others; I'm just using anger because it's our strongest emotion.) Realizing that soul ties are created and praying to break them help keep humans "off the throne of our hearts" which is the place reserved for God. I have to break soul ties all the time. I love easily and as long as there is trust there, let people into my heart easily. I am passionate. I love deep and I hurt deep and I find myself needing this prayer regularly. I break soul ties when I realize I am too close to someone (through good or bad emotions), when forgiving someone becomes a daily struggle, or when I've been under abusive authority. One way to determine my need to break soul ties is if my thoughts continue to replay an offense, a heartbreak, or a wound. When forgiving people, I pray like this, "I forgive you for ________. I release you, I won't hold this against you, I take the loss and I give it to Jesus". Then I break soul ties with that person, using the following prayer. If it is a strong tie, sometimes I have to pray the prayer several times a day. I've been using this prayer for years and it always works. I hope it helps you too. Fill in the blanks with the other person's name.

"I break this unprofitable soul tie of ________ (anger, rage, jealousy, unforgiveness, abuse, etc....any sin that is keeping you bound to the person; try to identify it) between myself and _________(person's name). I sever the cord that attaches me to _________. I command the fragments of my soul in _______ to return to me. I claim the fragments of _________'s soul in me to return to them and to integrated into the rightful places. I claim the scripture that says "He restores my soul". Holy Spirit, heal the damage that this ungodly soul tie has done in _______ and me. Please uproot all the tentacles of bondage, emotional longings and dependencies, and all enslaving thoughts. I bind, renounce, and resist all evil spirits that have reinforced this soul tie or have been transferred to me through this association. Please cleanse my soul and help me to forget all ungodly unions so that I am free to give my soul totally to You, Lord."

God will judge.

A friend of mine is experiencing painful rejection from someone she loved. She is dealing with anger, deception, and the loss of a relationship. The whole situation was unfair and unjust. While her feelings were real, the other person was just playing a game with her. I can relate to what she is experiencing, having been taken advantage of when my heart was vulnerable several times myself. Forgiving folks for hurting us isn't easy. Here are my thoughts about releasing people from offense, from a former post. More to come.....