Loose Thoughts

Do you know the saying - "the children will lead them?"  Well, this happened to me recently.  My daughter, whose 11 years old, wanted to raise money for a group called "Boys and Girls Missionary Crusade" (BGMC).  She was so "gun ho" about raising money to help missionaries around the world.  I was so pleased and proud that she had "caught a vision."  She began rummaging around the house for loose coins and fumbled around in the couch cushions.  She asked her dad if she could have his loose change in his jar on his dresser.  He encouraged her to get all the coins out of the cars.  She was able to get around $54, just in change.  Wow!  I didn't realize how much money was just hanging around.  It was a week or two later when I informed Elizabeth that we were going to have a big yard sale.  She was so excited!  She asked me if she could raise more money for BGMC by putting things in the garage sale that belonged to her.  I said sure, that she could.  The game was on!!!!  My neighbor got in on the action and put some of her things into the sale as well.  Some of the other neighbors donated more items for the yard sale, too.  Elizabeth thought that only the things she put in the sale would go to BGMC.  Little did she know that everything raised at the sale was going to be turned into BGMC too.  The day of the sale, Elizabeth was so excited!  She even set up a lemonade stand and sold lemonade.  After the sale was over, we added up the money.  The total amount came to over $300.00.  


I didn't think we were going to raise that much money, I was surprised. I thought to myself, "You didn't tell Elizabeth that all of the Yard Sale money was going to go to BGMC; you could still keep that money for yourself." When Satan comes against your mind with wrong thoughts, you don’t have to concede defeat. It says in Eph. 4:20-24 "That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Take those loose thoughts and test them with the belt of truth buckled around your waist and with the breastplate of righteousness in place. (Eph. 6:14) As I began to mull over this idea in my mind, the idea felt OK, at first. I wasn't doing anything wrong - I was still giving money to missions - Elizabeth could say she gave all of the money she raised. Many hours passed and I began to feel the pangs of the Holy Spirit in my gut. The wonderful conviction of the Holy Spirit began to infiltrate my mind with His wonderful truth. Immediately, I conceded and allowed the cleansing oil to pour into my thinking. Soon, I felt excited that all the money was going to missions. God replaced my carnal thoughts with thoughts of cheerfulness and love for God. Only the power of the Holy Spirit can infiltrate the flesh like that. Through practice, we all can allow the work of the Holy Spirit to take over our loose thoughts and let His light shine through!

A Work in Process

¹² Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³ for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.  Philippians 2:12,13

As a teacher, I have often thought of the long laborious struggle teachers go through to prepare new curriculum.  The first year's preparation is very intense and you tend to make many mistakes upon delivery of your instruction.  A good teacher, though, will look over the material the following year and decide what to keep that you did well and what to change.  Through this process, you begin to constantly evolve your thoughts and ideas to develop and enhance your skills and preparation of the curriculum.  New methods form and your delivery is stronger and better the next year.  This process is critical if you want to see growth in your students.  It not only benefits your students but it benefits you as well.  

So it is with our spiritual walk with the Lord.  The Lord is giving us new curriculum to learn and develop in our daily life.  This curriculum He is teaching us to use and to teach others is a laborious struggle.  We work and evolve our thinking so that eventually we will be able to align ourselves with His plan.  The first year and for many ongoing years, we tend to make mistakes, we adjust, we try again, we learn and make the necessary changes.  We are a work in progress.  It is God who works in us to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose.  

Too often I beat myself over the head saying, "I am not good enough."  I think I am my worst enemy.  God is telling me that I must work out my salvation with fear and trembling.  God isn't saying to me, "You are bad, you made a mistake, you will never learn."  God is my greatest cheerleader, He says, as a good teacher would, "Let's evaluate what worked well, what do you need to change, readjust and make this change, great job, keep going, I am so proud of you, I know the intent of your heart."  Let God reveal to you His love for you, allow yourself to reframe your thinking, and let go of your preconceived ideas.  

 ⁶ Seek the LORD while he may be found;
   call on him while he is near.
⁷ Let the wicked forsake their ways
   and the unrighteous their thoughts.
Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them,
   and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
 ⁸ “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
   neither are your ways my ways,”
            declares the LORD.
⁹ “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
   so are my ways higher than your ways
   and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:6-9

Praise Him, Praise Him

Psalms 34:1 says, "I will praise the Lord at all times.  I will constantly speak his praises."  Ponder this psalm for very long time and you will not be able to think of a single negative aspect of life.  Your current circumstances will just melt away.  As you praise the Lord and constantly speak his praises, your focus shifts.  Just try it for a moment, then try it for a minute.  Imagine praising God for just five minutes.  I'm sitting in my kitchen, drinking ice tea, and I begin thinking "God I praise you for being with me always, you are my light in a dark world, you help me when I need help.  I am pausing now, because I want to just thank God for many things, but the verse said to praise God constantly.  I begin again-Lord, you are my king, you are my healer, I praise you because you are my King, my Savior, a living, active God, you wait for me, you live in me, your my teacher, my prayer partner, my intercessor...  I raise my hands up to you in adoration!  I am stopping now - you should get the picture.  Take heart, let yourself indulge in giving God the praise.  No matter your circumstances, praise the Lord.  Praise Him in the morning, praise Him in the afternoon, praise Him in the evening - all day and all night.  The results were very evident for me when I  began praising the Lord. I no longer worried about me, I focused on God.  I sensed His presence and He showed me that greater is He that is in me than He that is in the world.

Wise Training

I have been reading a great book recently and thought this quote was very practical and helped me personally with my crazy, busy, on the go life.  "Our primary task is not to calculate how many verses of Scripture we read or how many minutes we spend in prayer.  Our task is to use these activities to create opportunities for God to work.  Then what happens is up to Him.  We just put up sails:  'The wind blows where it chooses....'  Wise training respects our unique temperament and gifts.  There is good news here:  Whatever your natural temperament may  be, it is not a barrier to your spiritual growth."  Life You've Always Wanted by John Ortberg

New Year Blessings

I recall a passage in Philippians about being content in all situations, whether you are going through trials, of which Paul was in prison during the writing of this book, or whether you are living favorably and comfortable.  If struggles are upon me or I am on a mountain top, I am striving to live a life of contentment in my relationship with Jesus.  My circumstances may not be what I expected or desire, but my relationship with Jesus is solid.  What does this have to do with New Year Blessings, well, anyone can receive blessings from God regardless of their circumstances.  The prophet Isaiah said in chapter 61:1-4 that the Spirit of the Lord is upon me - He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor, bind up the broken hearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, and open the prison to those who are bound - through all of this we are to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor!  No matter what situation you find yourself in, we can be conquerers.   Isaiah also said that when you find those around you who mourn or are sad we are to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes; the oil of gladness instead of mourning; the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit.  When we do this, then we can be called oaks of righteousness- imagine, OAKS that God plants so He can display His glory.  Wow!  This is powerful stuff.

Let me share an experience I had with a very good friend of mine.  She was struggling with some issues in her home and needed someone to, as my sister says, vomit upon.  (This sounds gross, but it illustrates the ugliness we carry inside sometimes and just need a listening year to get it out of our system.)  So, my job that evening was to just listen.  For about two hours, I listened, she talked.  She shared her struggles, her circumstances that she was going through.  She was emotionally and physically drained and I was her outlet for two hours, no kids, just us and God.  When she finished, I simply said, now let's turn this frustration of life and put on a garment of praise.  I told her to find as many things about her situation that she could find good in and then praise God for them.  So, she started with all the good things about her family, job, home life, until it just started to pour out of her.  She was given the oil of gladness and the garment of praise.  God was beginning to plant in her the roots of an almighty oak so He could display His glory.  Ask yourself, what is your perspective on this new year ahead?  Are you ready to allow the burdens of life to be released and live a life that is full of the garment of praise and an oil of gladness.  When you do, God takes root!  I have been thinking about this hymn lately and cannot shake it off - "Showers of Blessing, Showers of Blessing we need, mercy drops around us are falling, but for the showers we plead."

Alike or Different

     Conversing with a colleague at work, the question arose, "Are all religions alike?"  The argument was, "Are you saying that you believe that your religion is the only one that leads to heaven?"  I could see the wheels spinning as I began to explain.  First of all, the answer is no, all religions are not alike.  They are not the same.  Buddhist, Hindus, Islam, etc., to name a few, believe differently about heaven or eternal life, as well as other doctrines.  
Here is a quick overview of just three of the big religious beliefs about eternal life (note: all of them were defined by this web site - Religious Tolerance (http://www.religioustolerance.org/var_rel.htm) 

Buddhism teaches that humans are trapped in a repetitive cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth. Each successive rebirth may be into a better, a worse life, or a similar life, depending upon the person's Karma -- the sins and merits that have accumulated during their present and previous lives. One's goal is to escape from this cycle and reach Nirvana. Once this is attained, the mind experiences complete freedom, liberation and non-attachment. Suffering ends because desire and craving -- the causes of suffering -- are no more. Hindus believe in the repetitious Transmigration of the Soul. This is the transfer of one's soul after death into another body. This produces a continuing cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth through their many lifetimes. It is called samsara. Karma is the accumulated sum of ones good and bad deeds. Karma determines how you will live your next life. Through pure acts, thoughts and devotion, one can be reborn at a higher level. Eventually, one can escape samsara and achieve enlightenment. Bad deeds can cause a person to be reborn as a lower level, or even as an animal. The unequal distribution of wealth, prestige, suffering are thus seen as natural consequences for one's previous acts, both in this life and in previous lives. Islam believes once they reach puberty, his/her account of deeds is opened in Paradise. To attain paradise, at death, their good deeds (helping others, testifying to the truth of God, leading a virtuous life)... must outweigh their evil deeds.      I just have one question about all this:  How are all religions the same and how can we believe the same things?  Can we all live eternally believing in no absolute truth?  There is much fallacy in thinking truth is what you make of it.  How can a person believe in the truth of the Bible and also believe in the truth of Islam or Buddhism or Hinduism if they contradict each other?        A Religious Tolerance website states "they believe that the systems of truth that we have studied on the topics of morals, ethics, and religious belief are often considered absolute within various religions and secular belief systems. However, they are obviously relative because they vary greatly from one culture, religion, and time to another."  Even from their perspective, not all religions believe the same truth. Christians (though that word is used liberally in our society, so I will say people who believe the Bible is truth), cannot make it to heaven by just being good.  It says in Titus 3:5 - "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us..." and in Eph. 2:8 - "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith, and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - 'not by works, so that no one can boast.'"  God gave us the gift of His son, Jesus Christ, to bring salvation to the sinner.  We all have sinned, according to the Bible, so to me, it means everyone can receive God's gift of mercy simply by believing that Jesus is the only way, the only truth, and the only life to receive eternal life.        Now back to our question - Can all religions lead to heaven?  If I believe the truth about the Bible, which I do, then the answer is no.  Does this mean I am intolerant of other people's beliefs?  No, it just means that we do not believe the same things.  Everyone has a choice of beliefs and I believe the only way to heaven is through believing that Jesus is God's son.  Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.  As you can see, this is not the same belief as Islam, Buddhist, or Hindus. Please don't call "Christians" closed minded.  No, we do not believe the same, but one thing we do believe and that is to love each other as Christ loved us and this I will strive to do.

I Love Him!

I was just thinking about my love for God.  The other day I was having a conversation with a friend and we began to talk about Jesus.  We shared the usual, we loved God, how good He is to us, how vast and wonderful His creation is and just "the I love God, He loves me" stuff.  I never really questioned His love for me, but my love for Him, how did I know I really loved Him?  I remember recently talking to a young girl about what Jesus means to me.  The intimate times I had in deep discussions with God.  I would pour out my heart to Him and I knew He heard me.  Praying, praising, weeping, expressing worry and anxiety, sharing my inner most thoughts and frustrations, asking for healing, thanking Him for many things, worshipping, questioning, and the list goes on.  It was not until I shared with this young girl my relationship I have with God, that I began to realize the deep rooted relationship I have built with Him or maybe I should say He has built with me.  God has invested so much in me and  I could not live without Him.  He is my all in all.  I am a woman who is living in God's graces and does not deserve that, but is enjoying his companionship.  Wow!  So amazing!