Religion is a Hot House

I’ve seen articles lately with concern about the statistics that say religion, Christianity in particular, has declining numbers. I’ve also heard much about “deconstruction” and people walking away from the faith. 

Good for them. 

What? 

No, you didn’t misread what I said. 

Good for them. If religion is defined as that system of man made rules or ideas, doctrines that separate, “turn or burn” ideologies, and people who say they love you, but use shame, guilt, or pressure to get you to conform. 

Good for them. And good for me. 

I walked away. 

Not from God. Even if I had tried, it wouldn’t have worked. He will never leave me. Nothing can separate us. 

I walked away from the system. And I thought I had already done that. My husband and I served on the pastoral staff of a non-denominational church. I thought we would be there forever. We didn’t walk because of any issues with people, despite some of the nonsense that I’ve heard. God said go, and we went. It was hard. That was my family. I loved them, and still do. Amazing people. 

My husband and I are the crazies that said wherever you lead us God. Which led us to the wilderness. We live in the country in an area that the name literally means “in the woods.” Ha. 

Such freedom. Yet hardship. We asked for it, and we got it. Trust God for everything? Okay then. Not easy to do at first, but I wouldn’t have it any other way now. I could go on with a long list of issues faced, including life and death situations, but maybe another time. 

God is so smart. 

Have I arrived? Ha. Where to? 

I keep saying that the more I know about God, the less I know. Exactly where I want to be. 

No more “hot house” for me. That’s what religion does. Focuses on the outside. Behavior modification. Like these beautiful red strawberries. But cut into them and the inside is unchanged. 

I believe the stats aren’t lying. But, I also believe people are finding Jesus. The real Jesus. The Master Gardener. The One that works from the inside out. And we are gathering. Some will be in those same places of worship we’ve always turned to. Some will be in homes. Some will be on street corners and in bars. Some will be in campgrounds, or at beaches. When we’re following Him, He’ll lead us to each other. It’s essential. 

Behind The Scenes

I’m sure most of us can appreciate a beautiful house. We ooh and aah at the subway tile, ship lap, intriguing light fixtures, beautiful colors and wallpaper. (Can you believe that’s a thing again?) How many of us really appreciate a good non-leaking foundation? Do we ask what’s behind the walls? Are the vitals, like plumbing and electrical even on our list of things to take note of?

What about the fixer upper? Good bones are essential. But, like the saying goes, you can put a dress on a pig, but it’s still a pig. So before the pretty stuff comes into play, the dirty stuff happens. 

And that’s where I was today. Right in the middle of the mess. Old termite damage, dirt, nasty insulation, and dust everywhere. 

That’s when God gently nudged me and reminded me that’s where my life has been the last couple of years. I have a good foundation. But I had some wrong belief systems. I had some heart work to do. He showed me a little glimpse of the beautiful dream house, but I had to get messy first. 

In this house, that was old termite damage. Hadn’t been active in years. But until someone was ready to go into the dark under the house, and to tear things apart in the walls, the damage was still there. It wasn’t safe to rebuild yet. 

Sometimes we wonder why we’re going around the same mountain again. Maybe it’s just because we’re strong enough for the next level of rebuilding to take place. Maybe we’re not afraid of the dark anymore. 

From what I’ve seen and heard from many of my friends, I’m not alone. Just mention 2019 and for various reasons we all sigh a little knowing the difficulties it brought. Yet, in the middle of it all, the light still shone through. The little reminders from God came, when we were least expecting it and really needed it. 

So, by all means, let’s dream about the beautiful, but not be afraid to get messy. We don’t have to do it alone. He reminds us He’s with us if we’ll just take a moment to notice. 

Wise Owl

I was asked a few days ago if I was still blogging. Yeah. Kinda. It's been a while. So today I asked God what He wanted to say if I sat down to write. I was reminded that a friend of mine calls me a wise owl. I've always kinda chuckled about it, but thanked her for the compliment. Okay, God, so that doesn't answer my question. Then I was reminded of a scripture that I've been thinking about and the old Tootsie Pop commercial. Some of you may be too young to know what I'm talking about, but the kid wants to know how many licks it takes to get to the tootsie roll center of the tootsie pop. He asks around and finally ends up asking the owl. The owl has the "hands on" approach to the answer. How many of us ask this person and that person and check what our favorite celebrity or preacher thinks about it? I'm not saying those things are wrong, but in the end, what do I say about it? Maybe this is why my friend sees me as the owl. I don't rely on everyone else's opinions, but dig in and find the answers. So, do I think I'm the all knowing, I've got the answers, and everyone else is wrong girl? Quite the contrary. But my answer for me is not necessarily your answer for you. In my opinion, scripture is the final deciding factor. But scripture can't be interpreted correctly without relationship with the author. Philippians 2:12 tells us to "work out our own plan of salvation," as I learned it in KJV, "with fear and trembling." But that never settled right with me. Why fear? God tells me not to fear. Then I read it recently in TPT, "...Now you must continue to make this new life fully manifested as you live in the holy awe of God—which brings you trembling into his presence. God will continually revitalize you, implanting within you the passion to do what pleases him." It's in His presence, or relationship with Him, where you develop that trust with Him in His awesomeness. We work it out together. Yes, we can be blinded by life experiences. We all are.  The more time you spend with Him the more that stuff falls away and the more clearly you see. We cannot put the expectations and parameters of our relationship with Him on someone else. Each of us must figure it out for ourselves. Do you know someone that you think is "doing it wrong?" Do they have a relationship with God? If so, trust Him. He knows what He's doing and they will work it out together. I'm not saying we can't have defined lines of what we believe is right and wrong, especially if the Word is clear about it. But let's not forget that what Jesus said to sum up the law and the prophets in Matthew 22:37-40 TPT, "Love the Lord your God with every passion of your heart, with all the energy of your being, and with every thought that is within you.’ This is the great and supreme commandment. And the second is like it in importance: ‘You must love your friend in the same way you love yourself.’ Contained within these commandments to love you will find all the meaning of the Law and the Prophets.” When we are doing that and trusting God that He is working the relationship from His end, we are able to love like He loves.

Thanks Lori and Kim for the friendship and inspiration.

Here's the commercial in case you're still wondering what the answer is... 

Do You Recognize Him?

If you know me, you know that I love nature! I've spent hours gazing at the night sky...sunrises and sunsets...camping in the middle of the woods taking in every sight and smell that surrounds me. I love it so much that I want to try to capture what I can and share it with others. Yesterday it was an unusually warm day for January in Missouri and I was sitting on the front porch with my book. I noticed what sounded like someone walking around the corner, through the leaves. I was surprised to find that it was birds. Several of them. So I sat, and watched, and listened. Then, of course, I got out my phone to try to get it on video. They weren't really cooperating and as soon as I turned my camera off, in one swift motion they all flew, together, to the other side of the yard. God reminded me of something He's told me before when I've tried to capture a sunset or sunrise and the colors just don't show up the same. He told me then, "I painted that just for you." Wow! .

Sunday morning before church it was about half a dozen cardinals in the tree at the same time. I had never seen more than one "red bird" at a time. I was fascinated! Then this afternoon... It was time to do one of my favorite chores. Wash dishes. I look out the window as I'm making dish water and what do I see? There's a woodpecker on the tree outside the window. Right in my view. So what do I do? (You think I would have learned by now.) I get out my phone to try to capture a video. He goes behind the tree. I hear God chuckle. So, I put my phone away and just watch. The whole time I'm standing at the sink there he is. He's pecking and pooping. No kidding! Four times while watching him I saw the wind carry what he let loose of across the yard. Ha ha!

Back story... I've been in this season of rest. Or trying. Learning how. It's not always easy. I've always known this, but it is becoming more real to me every day, that He is right there to be found, we just have to recognize all the many ways He speaks to us. And these are some of the most intimate moments. In all of the infinite universe He's choosing to connect with me right now. Like a lover's tenderness. That can't be shared with others. That's meant only for you. I'll never stop taking photos or videos, nor admiring those that others take, but I will recognize that sometimes I just need to be still and let Him love me. Stop the busyness. Be present. Allow my soul to be filled in a way that is incomparable. That's how I really get to know the Creator of the universe.

By the way, here's a simple picture of the woodpecker. You can't really tell it's him on the side of the tree, but believe me, I couldn't make that story up.

Imagination

Imagination is a gift from God, but how many of us have been scolded for using it? You know… we’ve been told to live in the real world and not to let our imaginations run away with us. Have you ever wondered what the real world really is? I know I’ve always found myself thinking, “there has to be more than this.” There is.

I love things that spur my imagination. Wendy Alec wrote the Chronicles of Brothers Series of books. The way she described heaven and the way she described Jesus expanded my vision. I believe C.S. Lewis had a huge gift of imagination and shared it with his readers. His writings have been very key in my life. I’m reading Perelandra right now. It’s the second in The Space Trilogy that he wrote. He describes encountering what he called a floating island on a different planet:

“The thing had looked, in that first glance, so like a real country that he had forgotten it was floating – an island if you like, with hills and valleys, but hills and valleys which changed places every minute so that only a cinematograph could make a contour map of it. And that is the nature of the floating islands of Perelandra. A photograph, omitting the colours and the perpetual variation of shape, would make them look deceptively like landscapes in our own world, but the reality is very different; for they are dry and fruitful like land but their only shape is the inconstant shape of the water beneath them.”

            He goes on to describe learning to walk on them…

“It was much harder than getting your sea-legs on a ship, for whatever the sea is doing the deck of the ship remains a plane. But this was like learning to walk on water itself… And then, too, it was so strange, after rolling head over heels down into some little dell, to open his eyes and find himself seated on the central mountain peak of the whole island looking down like Robinson Crusoe on field and forest to the shores in every direction, that a man could hardly help sitting there a few minutes longer – and then being detained again because, even as he made to rise, mountain and valley alike had been obliterated and the whole island had become a level plain.”

Wow! Can you close your eyes and imagine that experience?

Dimensionally different. I wrote a little about that back in 2012 when I was really beginning to see things in a new way. My friend, Daryl Boucher, calls it “higher thoughts and higher ways,” or limitless.  I love when I get to sit and visit with him and talk about things that seem far out there to some people. We hear phrases like kingdom, new covenant, heaven on earth, but are we really open to what that is?  

“This is why the scriptures say: Things never discovered or heard of before, things beyond our ability to imagine – these are the many things God has in store for all his lovers.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 TPT.

The season I’m in is continually asking Holy Spirit in every subject matter, “is this the lower way, and if so, what’s the higher way.” There are things that aren’t “wrong,” yet there is so much more! You see, we’re seated with Christ in heavenly places according to Ephesians 2:6. Outside of time. Outside of this earth system. With all supply. With the mind of Christ. That’s what we’re bringing to earth. We’re aliens.

It’s time to work that imagination. Ask to see the unseen. Be who the universe is waiting for you to be.

“The entire universe is standing on tiptoe, yearning to see the unveiling of God’s glorious sons and daughters! For against its will the universe itself has had to endure the empty futility resulting from the consequences of human sin. But now, with eager expectation, all creation longs for freedom from its slavery to decay and to experience with us the wonderful freedom coming to God’s children.” Romans 8:20, 21 TPT.

Taste and See

"O taste and see that the Lord is good..." Psalm 34:8
If you've been around church very much, you've probably heard this scripture. It's always been one of those that I've heard so many times that I didn't think about it much. About a year ago it really got my attention. How do you "taste" God? Let's think about our senses. The long distance sense, if you will, is sight. As you move a little closer you can hear and smell. You've got to be pretty close to touch. And then there is taste. It's the most intimate of our senses. In fact, it's probably the most guarded of them all. For the most part, you are in complete control of what you choose to taste, and you usually choose what is pleasant to your palette.
So God is suggesting that we bring Him up close and personal and choose to ingest Him. Romans 10:8 says, "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart...” Psalm 119:11 says, "Your word I have hidden in my heart..." John 1:1 says "...and the Word was God." We are meant to be changed from the inside out by inviting Jesus into our heart just like we were told when we were kids.  We must choose to taste before we can truly see that He is good. We "become" and it's who we are, not what we do. Our identity changes.
Kris Vallotton says, "If it's not good yet, it's not the end." If you feel like your vision is lacking, or you're not seeing enough good, you may need to adjust your palette.

I Am Light

Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. (Genesis 1:3)

A couple of years ago I was listening to a friend of mine, one of my favorite teachers, Pastor Daryl Boucher. In the middle of message on a different topic he pointed out the fact that God said "let there be light" on day one of creation, but didn't create the sun, moon, and stars until day four. Pretty interesting, huh? It has always stuck with me. And Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." Now we're representing Him on this earth. 1 John 1:5 says, "God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all." So, if I'm created in His image, being Jesus on this earth, then I'm light, too, right? I like to look at it this way... If every source of light is cut off then in the midst of all the darkness we should be the source of light. Like literally. The Divine DNA in me will light the world.

 

Influence. You've got it. How are you using it?

What an interesting time to be alive. Seems like we're surrounded by craziness everywhere we look. Everyone has a voice nowadays due to social media. You have influence whether you realize it or not. Some of us have just a few we reach, or a particular niche. Others of us have the ability to reach masses. No matter which dynamic it is, your voice is important. So, how are you choosing to use it? Many of us have areas that we are extremely passionate about and whether we realize it or not, our influence is not being effective because we're using it wrong. How it that possible? Pressure. No matter how right, true, or noble our cause is, if we have to pressure people to influence them, we're doing it wrong. For example, I'm a "born again" believer who loves God with everything in me, but I absolutely detest "religion." I live the way I do from love and if I put those same expectations on others who aren't "in love" yet, it's just a matter of pressure and rules. It doesn't work. Just a few days ago there was a big uproar about the Super Bowl halftime show. There was a tremendous amount of pressure from both sides. The liberals want to use every platform to voice their opinion while the conservatives want to boycott anything they don't agree with. I want to decide for myself. I was in a group setting where we had the game on, but chose to turn it off during the halftime show. Come to find out, there was no reason for concern. Besides God, I have a love and passion for family and patriotism. I want to stir that in others. Putting pressure on people and forcing them to do things just uses the same tactics as the enemy. Even if we're putting pressure on people to "serve God," the devil loves it cuz he knows it's not productive. If you truly have a love for God, and country, and family, then just live out loud. Don't get in a hurry. Build relationships. Don't pressure people. Be contagious. That's my desire. When you truly love something you'll do anything to lay your life down for it. No pressure needed.

Bungee

My childhood memories are few and far between. One thing that stands out to me now is the fact that when asked in elementary school what I wanted to be when I grow up I said I wanted to be an author and an illustrator. Funny how I hated writing in high school and even though artistic ability runs in my genetics, I always thought my doodles didn't amount to much. Now I'm always trying to figure out how to paint a picture with words and telling myself I need to speed more time "doodling." So, here it goes.
I was reading "God is Good" by Bill Johnson a few days ago. He really speaks my language. He was talking about how God wants us to be on this journey with Him. He said, "The greatest gift we could ever give ourselves is to anchor our intellect and will into the strongest foundation possible - the goodness of God." And he goes on to say, "The voyage is one of faith...Faith is the result of surrender, not self-will...So faith then anchors us into the substance of eternity...His goodness then becomes the real estate that I live on and explore freely." Yes! That's it! I've been saying for years that I feel like I'm connected to a bungee cord that's connected to eternity. Bill's words described that perfectly! So, I doodled for you. Beautiful artwork, huh?

 I live on planet earth, inside linear time, yet I'm anchored in eternity. I've never specifically related it to "faith" before, but I do know that I settled on the fact that God is good a long time ago. It's foundational. I like how he says it's real estate that I live on! My grandson, Xavier, was being silly the other day and said, "Grandma, you scared me, I thought you were an alien!" And of course, I said, "I really am an alien!" His reply was "What?!?" I explained to him how I'm really from heaven, just hanging out on the earth for a while. Told him that he was, too. I wonder how that's going to go over when the story is retold.

Hearing. Listening. Understanding. Knowing.

Hearing.

Perceiving sound. Our ears work. If there’s a noise, music, a conversation, etc… we have acknowledged that we heard something.

Listening.

Now that we’ve heard something, we give attention to it. We focus to determine what the sound is, or what is being said.

Understanding.

Now you’ve heard a sound in your ears. You’ve given attention to it to the point that you are comprehending what the sound is communicating.  Whether it’s a sound that causes alarm, a piece of music, or a conversation. Comprehension produces a result, or a reaction. You move out of the way of a falling limb, your emotions are moved by lyrics and melody, or you relay your thoughts on the subject to someone.

Knowing.

This is a level accomplished in relationship with an environment, or a person you are familiar with. You’ve listened to a particular piece of machinery long enough that you know when it doesn’t sound right. You can play or sing a piece of music because you know what note is coming next. You hear someone enter a room and can tell who it is just by their footsteps. Your mother’s voice brings you comfort. And often, even though you know this thing, this sound, this voice, beyond a shadow of a doubt, you can’t fully explain it to someone else. Knowing can’t be transferred. It has to be cultivated within.

I encourage you to evaluate. Your environments. Your relationships. Friends, family, God. Do you get stuck in the hearing or listening stage? How often do you move on to the understanding or knowing? Not every place or person needs to be known by everyone. But you have a specific sphere that you’re called to and you should know it and own it. God designed you to do that.

I Still Believe

My goal this year has been to post on my blog at least once a month. Here it is the last day of July. Even down to the last few hours. As I've been praying and contemplating the last few days on what to write about, it has come down to this. I still believe. If you know me personally, you know this has been a difficult month for me. But I want you to know that my faith, my trust in God, my belief in supernatural miracles has not wavered. On June 16 my dad was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer with only 2-4 months to live. On June 18 my husband, Glen, and I prayed with him. We covered a lot of ground in his soul and in his heart before we addressed the cancer. I felt something shift that day. I left believing the cancer was gone. I stood on that every day, praying for the physical manifestation of that miracle in his body, for almost a month. When there were good signs, I stood. When he was still having symptoms, I stood. When family didn't understand, I stood. Until July 12. God told me I had to let him go. So, I did. My dad chose to leave this earth on July 13. He picked the day and he took his last breath surrounded by family as we called the angels to take him home. I can't explain why it happened the way it did, but here's what I do know. God didn't need him in heaven, He didn't need an angel, cancer wasn't too big for God, and I didn't miss it when I felt healing go into him. Dad was changed after we prayed. His last weeks on earth was from a place of freedom that he had never experienced before. Could he have chosen to stay? Maybe. I know my dad was a prayer warrior. I never knew to what extent until I heard all the stories at the end of his life. I know he would encourage me to keep praying the impossible prayers. He's up there now as part of the great cloud of witnesses. He's meeting Pastor Bill from the other side each morning still interceding for his family. If anything has changed through all of this, it is that my faith has actually grown stronger. I will continue to pray the cancer eradicating, life changing, supernatural healing prayers. Every part of me cries out for heaven on earth. It's what we're made for. Love you, Dad!

Position, Posture,and Freedom

Glen and I love spending time riding our motorcycle. Wind therapy. I spend a lot of time while we're out there in prayer or meditation. While riding the other day I was thinking about the current message coming across to the body of Christ. Do we want just enough of Jesus to look good and have fire insurance, or do we really want Him to be Lord in our lives? Or do we preach that He's Lord and in order to keep everyone safe and in line we keep them boxed in with rules? What does true freedom look like? I'd have to say that until you've tasted it, it looks scary. Dangerous. From a biker perspective, it's like riding in a "cage." That's what we call it when you're in a vehicle other than a bike. All boxed in. You can get down the road, but there's no freedom in it. Now, if you're ready for more freedom, you can't just jump on a bike and go. There are some things you need to understand first. The key word is balance. I want to share my perspective with you. I like the back. I enjoy the ride and the scenery. But, that also means I'm not in control. I've got to trust Glen. That's how I view my relationship with God. I have to invite Him to have control, then I trust Him. I enjoy the ride. I don't kick him off when a storm comes and try to take control again. I have to keep Him in that position in my life. Now, although He's steering, I have a huge part to play. I've got to know how to ride and maintain posture. Now matter how skilled my driver is, if I throw my weight around, especially in a curve, we're going down. No one's fault but my own. I think that's where the church has gotten it wrong for so long. They've been in one of two ditches: legalism or hyper grace. We're either using rules to keep us boxed in and safe, or we're crashing and burning because we don't understand how to posture ourselves in freedom. I love how John Bevere brings out holiness in his book, Good or God. We must have it to bring God's presence and be able to posture ourselves correctly to enjoy true freedom. Riding is my passion, but we've got to take this analogy a little farther because as I like to say over and over, we are meant to fly! In an airplane, your posture comes into play in trusting the instruments. You have to completely re-train your senses to do that. Are you ready to position Jesus as Lord and posture yourself to enjoy freedom?

More Grace

Grace was a recent topic of discussion in our group of leadership. How do we incorporate grace and growth into words that accurately depict our relationship with our Father? Many examples of the parent/child paradigm came into play. When we teach our kids to walk, we don't take them to the edge of a cliff. We put bumpers around them to protect them, we catch them before they fall, etc... But, eventually, we have to let them fall. We may pick them up a few times, but then again, they need to learn to pick themselves up. So, as a good parent, are we taking grace away as they grow? Somehow that wording doesn't seem to fit with our knowledge of our good Father. God told Paul that His grace was sufficient for his circumstance. So, do we just call it sufficient grace? Today a phrase stuck out to me while listening to an interview of John Bevere. He used the phrase "more grace." All of a sudden I had this "duh" moment. I have said it countless times to numerous people, grace is the higher standard. What the law made you accountable for in outward action only, the new covenant, grace, makes us accountable for in our inward thoughts. Grace is the enabling power for God to do through us what we can never accomplish in our own strength. In James 4:6 it says that God gives us more grace and goes on to say that He resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. Doesn't that make sense to say that He gives us more grace? As we encourage our child to walk, we're giving them more grace because we know they can handle it. As we hand our 16 year old the keys to the car, we're giving them more grace with that promotion of responsibility because we trust them to handle it. Promotion carries more responsibility and therefore feels like more pressure, particularly in the beginning. It may cause us to feel lacking and unable. That's where God's grace comes in. As we approach each new level or place with humility, He lavishes us with more grace, enabling us to do through Him what we could never do on our own. Every scripture I read on grace proves that very thing. In 1 Corinthians 15:10 Paul said, "But by the grace of God I am what I am." He also said in 2 Corinthians 1:12 that the confidence in their testimony came through the grace of God, not through human wisdom. According to Hebrews 2:9 it was the grace of God that empowered Jesus to die on the cross. 2 Corinthians 6:1 encourages us not to receive His grace in vain. It is that very grace that empowers us to do what truth demands. We are to live in a way that would never be possible without it. To mature and handle more of His kingdom. Think of it like this, in the video game world it's called leveling up. Each new level you come to you start out with new tools or an extra life because you're going to need it. Just remember, in the real world, He resists the proud, so humility is key. What do I need? More grace!

Forget About Breaking the Rules, You Are Meant to Fly

We've been discussing in our LFMC Life Groups recently how we shouldn't live with a sin consciousness. I shared a couple of illustrations last night and I haven't been able to get it off my mind. If you live focused on sin, like I was taught growing up, you feel like you're always breaking a rule. Then God has to punish you. That's not how He wants us to live. I read an illustration in book a few weeks ago that really put in into perspective for me. If you step off a cliff and fall to the bottom of the canyon, are you breaking the law of gravity? Think about that. You're not breaking a law, but you are illustrating it. So God looks at you at the bottom of the canyon saying, "What are you doing down there? Here, let me help you up." He is not punishing you, you just felt the consequence of your own action. Spiritual laws work the same as natural laws. You will reap what you sow. That's why He encourages us not to sin, because He knows the effect sin has on us. In our immaturity we step off the cliff without understanding what's coming. After we've felt the effects, we learn to put boundaries up and steer away from the edge. In Galatians 3:23-25 it refers to the law as our schoolmaster, or our tutor. As we learn the cause and effect of spiritual laws, it teaches us. But it also refers to a higher way now that "faith has come." It's good to set boundaries and learn to steer away from those things that have the gravity effect on us and pull us down. But if that's where we stop in our growth, we're falling short of the higher potential. Romans 8:1-2 says, "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death." I remember a sermon I heard Pastor Bob Petersen preach a long time ago. He referred to the law of sin as death as the law of gravity and the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus as the law of lift. We can't deny the effects of sin, but we can learn to fly. Let's use addiction for an example. As you are becoming clean and learning the effects of the drugs, alcohol, pornography, etc... you have to draw healthy boundaries so you won't end up at the bottom of the canyon. You may have to choose to not go to the bar, or stay away from certain friends, or stay off of social media. But there comes a time, through the law of lift, or the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, that you can fly right above the canyon without feeling the effects of gravity. You now have complete freedom and can go back to places and friends and reach them through your testimony. Isn't God amazing? Even though His thoughts and ways are higher than ours, we can access them through our perfect born again spirit.  Freedom is calling us! May we all find our wings!

Conspiracy Theory

I’ve always been fascinated by a good conspiracy theory. One definition of conspiracy theory, according to dictionary.com, is the idea that many important political events or economic and social trends are the products of secret plots that are largely unknown to the general public. Now, to have a good working conspiracy, you need to have a fall guy, a patsy, a scapegoat, someone to blame. The most famous that comes to my mind is Lee Harvey Oswald. So, you may ask, where are you going with this? I want you to get a picture in your head of how our enemy works. He’s the father of lies and he uses religion to enforce those lies. If he can keep us, as Christians, satisfied with what we’re told, or the easy stuff we don’t have to dig out, then he keeps us right where he wants us. And we are typically easy targets, because if we know the truth, then we’re responsible for it, and that appears to make life more complicated. If we only knew that it is the truth, and only the truth, that completely sets us free.

I’d like to suggest to you a spiritual conspiracy theory I’ve been pondering for a few years now. It started back in 2012 when I first began reading “Spirit Wars” by Kris Vallotton. I remember lying in bed and having to reread what I had just read because I thought it couldn’t be right. That’s not what I had been taught growing up in church and I didn’t get it. He described how we live in haunted houses, allowing our physical bodies to have influence over us that it shouldn’t have because it’s dead. It died with Christ. I’ve always been taught that we are at war with our own flesh and it’s this huge battle. I was introduced to a new thought pattern that night that I couldn’t get away from.

So, how does that play into a conspiracy theory? The devil, along with his cohort of religion, is fueling the lie that there is a part of us that is not redeemed and is just no good, hiding the truth of redemption that will set us free. Who’s the fall guy? The flesh. If it’s a “bad” part of me, I can blame it for all those things I do wrong… addictions, attitudes, hormonal drives, etc… Gives me an excuse, or an out.

While it may seem the easier road to blame things on my flesh and avoid accountability in my soul, that lie keeps me from the complete peace and healing that was meant for me. I can never attain that if I am guarded against my own self.

The more I understood the nature of God, that the cross paid for everything, I couldn’t imagine that God left this part of us, me, unredeemed.

When I finally came to the conclusion that I believed 100% that my flesh is redeemed and is good, I felt a new level of peace, in spirit, soul, and body, that I have never felt before. I like me. All of me. The way God created me. Take a journey with me through scripture so you can draw your own conclusion.

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12 (NASB). This is a scripture I’ve known since childhood while learning about our spiritual armor. I’ve read it numerous times and quoted it, always with the intent of understanding that our war is spiritual and not against other people, but the forces at work behind the scenes. One day during this contemplation process I looked at it from a new perspective. If I’m not wrestling against the flesh of other people, why in the world am I wrestling against my own flesh?

James 1:8 says, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways”. If we don’t have a firm foundation and know what we believe, it allows instability. That’s where I was for many years, thinking I had a firm foundation, but yet searching for answers.

I know all you Bible scholars are thinking about Paul and all his writings about the flesh and knowing that you still don’t feel “perfect.” In Spirit Wars, by Kris Vallotton, he does an excellent job of addressing this…

"But wait, you might think, didn’t Paul just say that the flesh was hostile toward God? Look again. He said, “the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God.” What does this mean? It will become clearer if you study how the New Testament uses the Greek word sarx, which is usually translated “flesh.” You will find that the word itself does not denote something negative or positive—both the old nature and the new creation are called “the flesh” (sarx) in different contexts. This tells us that our physical body is not the source of good or evil. Our flesh is governed by our spirit and our soul. In particular, our soul is the operating system of the body, the mediator between the spiritual and the physical. The “mind set on the flesh” is a description of the soul that is disconnected from the Holy Spirit and is running a “program” built on lies and false spiritual power, like lust and fear."

Some will argue that this is just semantics, or word play, and it doesn’t matter. But I found personally, it did matter to me. My physical body is good, redeemed, and made new according to 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

So, let’s walk this out for understanding’s sake. We are made in God’s image, spirit, soul, and body. My spirit is made perfect when born again. Has everything I ever need. My physical body is redeemed, it’s not the bad part of me.  My soul, which is my mind, will, and emotions, is where the battle is because that’s where my chooser is and my free will comes into play. For example, if I have an issue with lust, or sexual sin, I can’t blame it on my “flesh,” which I reference as my physical body. It is only working exactly how God created it to work. The issue I have to overcome is in my soul. The “why” of it all. Wrong mindset, demonic intrusion, etc… Same thing if I have an eating disorder, whether it’s I eat too much or too little. It’s not my physical body that is doing it to me. It’s in my soul. Anxiety, fear, wounds. Areas that need to be renewed according to Romans 12:2, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Our renewing process happens from the inside out. Our spirit is our innermost being and is perfect when born again. Our soul surrounds our spirit and our physical body encases it all. Picture a one-way valve between each part of our triune being. The inside out process allows it to only flow one direction. Our spirit feeds our soul, which in turn feeds our physical body. Our body does not flow backwards into our soul. Every deed of the flesh listed in Galatians 5 is a result of our soul, our chooser, our mindset, where all the trauma, wounds, lies, etc… are stored until they are renewed by the Word.

Why does all this matter? I truly believe if a new believer is taught that their physical body is redeemed and the only thing they have to focus on is their soul being transformed, it eliminates the “blame game” and they can find peace, wholeness, and physical healing much faster. They will understand it’s all a matter of choice and renewing their thinking. There’s not this inner struggle that a part of themselves is bad.

I kicked out the “fall guy.” It completely changed my life…41 years after being saved. I finally got it. Peace like I’ve never known. I finally like me. 

Be Careful Little Eyes What You See

"Be careful little eyes what you see
Be careful little ears what you hear
For the Father up above is looking down in love
Oh be careful little eyes what you see..."

How many of us remember that song from our Sunday school days? As I was contemplating my frustration with the enemy this morning this song came to mind. This thing called the internet. So much good potential, yet very tricky. We all know the obvious pitfalls and awful things that we have access to. The obvious is much easier to steer clear of. What about the not so obvious? What about the things that seem so good that they must be true? That's where the tricky part comes in. John Bevere has a book out now called "Good or God?" We, as believers, must take the posture to truly know our Father's heart. For example, there's a story out there making it's rounds again about what an eagle has to do after it ages 40 years to live longer. I first saw it a year or two ago. Very captivating. Seems good. But something just didn't sit right with me. So I started digging for facts. The whole premise of the story is that the eagle basically has to torture itself to get to a place it can live longer. That process would leave it completely exposed and unable to survive. If I believe God's nature is good and perfect, would He make one of his most majestic creations have to go through that process? Now, I understand we have to choose to leave our past behind at some point in life, but we don't do that through self mutilation. Eagles, like all birds, go through a molting process. They lose and replace feathers in a balanced process, the same feather on each wing. That way it can still fly and hunt while in the process. It's talons grow stronger as it ages with new layers. It keeps it's beak in good condition by just living; eating tough prey and cleaning it. You see, those are tools that are built in naturally. If we live how God created us, we have the tools we need to just do life and keep growing. He's a good God. He's given us what we need. Self mutilation falls into the category of religion in my eyes. A trick of the enemy to keep us from our true identity. Bottom line...don't believe everything you read, no matter how good it looks. Is it really God?

Winning

Philippians 4 is my favorite chapter in the Bible. Verse 13 happens to be a verse that is very well known and quoted often, particularly by athletes. I love it when faith intertwines with every aspect of who we are, as it should. To many, this represents "winning." Victory associated with my relationship, or in some cases just knowledge, of Jesus. But what does winning really look like? To understand what Paul was really talking about, you must look at the verses that precede this one... "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need."  That word "instructed" really caught my attention last year at a time that I was facing some difficulties. It comes from the Greek word myeō which means to initiate into the mysteries, to teach fully, instruct, to accustom one to a thing, to give one an intimate acquaintance with a thing. So, when he was saying that he could do all things, that meant no matter what the circumstances... how much money, what the final score was, if anyone else helped him or not, etc... he had the strength to do that because of Jesus. Quoting this scripture isn't a magic pill for victory, but trusting in the one who knows the big picture is a sure key to really winning. Which reminds me of another quote that I'm sure Paul could definitely attest to...

Joy

During our corporate prayer service last night we prayed to release joy. We've done that multiple times. I think it's great. We have to understand that joy and happiness are not the same thing and that we can have joy in any circumstance. My thoughts went to a revelation I got several years ago concerning joy. Everyone quotes that portion of Nehemiah 8:10 where it says, "the joy of the Lord is your strength." Then they think that if I can manage to stir up some joy in myself it will make me strong. My thought was to look at it differently. It's the Lord's joy. Not mine. What brings God joy? It's that connection with us. What He's wanted from the very beginning. You see, earlier in that chapter the people had found the written law as they were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. Ezra stood up where they could all see him and read it. They wept. They knew they had been missing something that was being restored. God told them not to be sorry, but go and have a party. That's what brought Him joy. The connection. It was the same with Jesus. In Hebrews 12:2 it said He endured the cross for the joy that was set before Him. That's us. Our connection. Next time you're looking for strength, don't think that if you can stir up this feeling inside you that you might find it. Look to your creator. It's in the connection.

"Not Responding"

A large majority of my life revolves around computers. As I was sitting in front of my laptop a few days ago, just trying to perform the simplest of tasks, in a quick fashion, I saw the words I see far too often, "not responding." Seriously? This isn't even hard. I'm just trying to save a document. If the program is already open, what's so difficult about saving it? So, I sit there and watch the little blue circle spin around and around, and think. Think about the seconds just ticking away and all the time I'm wasting that I could be using for something much more productive. I then realized that this is what my life feels like right now. I'm tired of seeing the little blue circle. Here's another one...this page is unresponsive...and you have the option to "kill page" or "wait." Of course, at that moment in time, all is want to do is kill the page! Screw it! I've got better things to do! I'm sure someone can relate. 

These thoughts have been rolling around in my head for a few days. Today, while visiting with a friend, God reminded me of a story in my life that represents this very thing. Hits me way too close to home right now. During my 3rd pregnancy I had a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions. I got really tired of them. They weren't accomplishing anything except to remind me that the real thing wasn't happening yet and I was tired of waiting. After being sent home from the hospital on my due date because I wasn't in labor yet, I decided that I was just going to sleep the rest of my pregnancy. I was going to completely ignore anything going on because I was tired of being teased. Tired of waiting. Tired of trying to figure it out. Real labor will wake me up. It wasn't my first time. I wasn't in the nesting mood anymore. Just let me sleep. Thinking back on it now, I wonder if my attitude had anything to do with how the rest of the story played out. Four days later I was back in the hospital. Signs of labor. But it still wasn't progressing very quickly. Then I made a mistake. I let them talk me into inducing labor. It's your 3rd baby...your body will know what to do...let's get it moving along. So, that's what we did. Drugs in the IV, and here came the most painful 40 minutes of my life. Yep...that's all it took. Casey was born 40 minutes later. 2 hours later I was passed out on the bathroom floor because I lost too much blood too fast. I was blessed to not have to have a transfusion, but I was anemic for several months. 

I feel like for several months now I've been staring at that little blue circle. Waiting. I know change is coming. I know seasons are shifting. I'm the positive, optimistic, find the good in everything person. But, seriously? I'm tired of being teased. Can't I just sleep til the real thing happens? As I type these words, it's all coming together in my mind. Do I really want to risk that? Do I really want complications? I know all the scriptures to quote. All the promises to stand on. In the end I have to be content in knowing that joy comes in the morning and I need to just enjoy the honor of being a part of this birthing process. I'm carrying something special. I need to remember the love that planted this seed inside of me. I wanted God to use me to make a difference in this world. And I believe He will. 

Up From the Ashes

"Up from the ashes, your love has brought us..." Lyrics to a song that we sang during our prayer service last night. I've sang them before. Nice lyrics. I know God. All true. But, it wasn't just any day that I was singing them this time. It was the day that Glen and I had been married 25 years. I was in that sentimental state. We had been discussing for a few days all the different places we've lived and things we've gone through. Last night I clearly saw how amazing God really is. According to all the circumstances and the way the world views things, we should have never made it. Our ash pile included a family with a wife who almost died twice in one year and was full of fear, a husband who was a meth addict and who's sense of reality was totally screwed, and 3 boys for whom we couldn't even provide a home for during a season of time. What could be built out of that? If you didn't know us then, but you know us now, you may have a hard time believing our story. Life couldn't be better. What was built? A legacy. A heritage for our children that we can be proud of. All glory to God. As we chose, one step at a time, to give our lives to Him, he did what we could never do. Our boys didn't see perfection, but they saw change, they saw love, they saw truth, they saw that nothing is impossible. Tears are still flowing as I contemplate God's goodness. I'm so amazed and full of gratitude. Let our life be a seed of hope for you...take a step...make a choice...give God access to your ashes... you'll never believe what He can do with them.