If Only...I Will

For she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.” Matthew 9:21

Have you ever been so full with something that the Lord has revealed to you that you just have to share it with somebody else?!?!  That is definitely how I feel today.  I can't take all the credit for the impregnation of this thought (Thank you Pastor Gaddis).  It is so awesome to be able to sit at work and listen to the Word.  And the more I sat and meditated on the verse above, the more the Holy Spirit began to reveal things to me.  I couldn't wait to get home from work so I could start writing. I don't know about you but one of the major struggles I have had in this Christian walk was my faith.  It seems that just as soon as I utter the words Amen the devil begins to try to creep into my thoughts telling me that it won't happen.  Relationship woes...I tell myself "nothing will ever change.  Financial difficulties...I tell myself  "I'm just not meant to have more than I have".   Major illness... I tell myself "I'm just going to learn to live with it".  There have been  times when I was at the end of my rope; I knew that I needed to pray so I did.  But my level of faith was no where near where it needed to be.  I may have uttered the same words as this woman with an issue of blood but instead of really trying to get to Jesus I was trying to figure out what I could do in my own strength. Anybody else been there? 

We've all heard this story in sermons for years. I remember reading it as a child in the collection of blue Bible story books my parents had.  Here we have a woman who has been dealing with this issue of blood for twelve long years.  We don't know what her day to day life was like but I like to imagine her just peddling along, going through the motions.  Not complaining, perhaps even comfortable.  Trying to make the best of the cards she had been dealt.  But on this day maybe she heard the chatter that Jesus had just healed a paralytic man and even now was headed through town to go see about the ruler's daughter so she began to move toward Jesus, maybe slowly at first but then as the excitement built in her spirit about who she was about to encounter her steps became more determined. (Sidenote: Our hearts should always be glad and excited at the thought of encountering Jesus.) There she was no longer embarassed by her situation or concerned with the delicate nature of her condition.  She had one goal - to get to Jesus.   Placing myself in her shoes, I'm thinking I probably would have prayed about it initially maybe even for a few years but twelve?  As the years rolled on I would have eventually said, "I'm just going to learn to live with it."  But that's not what she did.  Maybe there were times when her faith waivered.  Life will do that to you sometimes. But even after twelve long years she had enough faith to know that if she could just get to Jesus.  It makes me think about a bad, stressful beginning of the week at work and me thinking to myself if I can just get to Prayer Meeting and Bible Study, I know I will be able to make it through the rest of the week.  Or maybe when I've just gotten some bad news on Saturday and I go to bed thinking, If only I can get to church on Sunday morning, I know God will show up.  Or things not going right at home and I think to myself, If I can just get to my prayer closet and turn it over to Jesus, I know He will work it out!  Ever been there?

You see, I believe that there are just some things after a while you ought to know.  You shouldn't have the same faith you had when you first got saved. Where's your confidence?  The Bible tells us in Psalm 146:3, 'Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save'. No matter what the situation you should be able to say that God is able.  I don't have to see it and no matter how long it takes I know that God is going to do it.  I don't worry about the method because I trust God's motives and that is 'all things are working together for my good' and His glory.  Whatever your situation, no matter how long it has been going on I dare you to say 'If only I can just get to Jesus, I know everything is going to be alright'.  And I challenge you not to stop there.  With an attitude of expecancy, start praising God. 

Most Gracious Heavenly Father,

Almighty God, Holy One, Redeemer, Waymaker. I just can't help but praise You, in spite of my situation You are still worthy.  Please forgive me for those times my faith has waivered. Lord increase my faith.  Help me to be persistent while I'm pressing my way to you. Because I know that once I turn the issue over to you everything is going to be alright.   Help me to encourage others who may be weak in their faith.   In Jesus' Precious Name I pray Amen. 

Life Application:

1.  What situation(s)  in my life right now am I trying to handle in my own strength? 

2.  In what ways can I be more effective in getting to Jesus, i.e. read my Bible more, pray more?

Perfect Peace

One of my favorite songs started playing on satellite radio on my way home today.  It was the remade version by Marvin Sapp but the words were still the same. The lyrics of the song are simple.  "I will keep you in perfect peace.  All whose mind is stayed on thee", taken from Isaiah 26:3, 'You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you'. But what is perfect peace?  My answer is simple - something most people long for but very seldom obtain.  Why?  Because we like to worry too much.  It's hard not to want to be in control of every aspect of our lives.  And when even the slightest thing gets out of sync, any peace you thought you had goes out the window.  At least that is what used to happen to me.  But now I get it.

I believe that there is one very important concept every Christian needs to know and that is 'in this life you will have trouble'. (John 16:33)  And as soon as you embrace that fact and stop trying to avoid it your life we get so much better.  Most of us spend our lives trying to avoid tests and trials.  We don't want to go through anything.  We want our lives to always be coming up roses.  Well I stopped by to tell you today, "It's not going to happen."  And furthermore, you shouldn't want it to.  I know that you may be comfortable with the person you are and may even think that you don't need any changes.  You may think that you have gone through enough and the lesson should be over.  Don't you know that it is through this process that you are made into the person God wants you to be so that He can get the glory out of your life.  Stop whining every time you go through something!  Instead 'Praise God' because He loves you so much that He doesn't want to leave you in that pitiful state.  He desires to mold you and make you into the image of His Son.

What is this 'perfect peace' thing Isaiah was talking about?  It is the confidence that we have in knowing that God has everything under control.  It is not becoming agitated through the process but instead praising your way through to the other side.  The actual definition of the word peace is a state of tranquility or freedom from disturbance.  So how do we get to a state of perfect peace?  We must keep our minds stayed on Jesus.  On His Promise, His Power and His Presence.  I've been spending time just going through the Word and meditating on God's promises to us. I realized for the first time how endless these promises are.  Oh my goodness there are so many and they are all for me (and YOU).  And then I start to think about His Power.  God is Omnipresent (He's everywhere at all times).  He's Omniscient (He knows everything). He's All Sufficient, the God who provides, my Healer, Almighty God.  All of these things pointing back to His power.  But none of these things matter more than to me than His presence.  I know now what the old folks meant when they used to say "I wouldn't want a religion that I couldn't feel sometimes." 

Have you ever just been in a funk and then all of sudden you start to think about Jesus.  Maybe you start humming a song like 'Nobody greater, nobody greater, nobody greater than You'.  Or maybe you're more old school and you start to sing 'Can't nobody do me like Jesus' or even a simple song like Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so'.  Or maybe singing is not your thing so you instead start to remind yourself of the promises of God.  'And we know that ALL THINGS work together for the good of them who love the Lord'. (Rom 8:28)  'The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want'. (Ps. 23:1)   'For I know the plans that I have for you, saith the Lord, plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future'.  (Jer. 29:11) 'But my God shall supply ALL my needs according to His riches in glory'. (Phil. 4:19) And when you start to remind yourself of these promises something comes over you and you start to feel better.  And what is that feeling - Perfect Peace. You cannot keep your mind stayed on Jesus and be stressed out.  You can't worry about tomorrow thinking those thoughts that are pure, lovely, honest and of good report. Betrayal, financial distress, sickness, divorce, death...no matter what the situation you are not shaken.  There is no secret to having perfect peace.  It's available to us all. It's time out for putting your trust in your job, your spouse, or 'who you know'.  You must put your trust in God.  He will never let you down. 

Most Gracious Heavenly Father:

I praise Your Name today because You are holy, righteous, Omnipresent, Omniscient. I thank You because You're a forgiving God.   I ask that You forgive me of my sins...those commited in word, thought, or deed.  Life continues to go on around me.  So many things happening that I have no control over to me and to those I love.  But I thank You for being a God of Peace. When everything is falling apart all around me I can trust in You.  I need not worry about anything because I know You have it under control.  Help me to recognize it in all situations, no matter how big or small.  And help me to show others that they too can have perfect peace in You.  In Jesus' Name Amen. 

Life Application:

1.  Make a list of all the things that are causing you stress right now.  Say a prayer turning all those things over to Jesus.  If you are a visual person, ball the paper up and throw it in the trash, signifying your truly giving it over to God.

2.  Make a list of at least five promises in God's Word.  Make a commitment to memorize these verse this week. 

Walk Worthy of Your Calling, Part III

...to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Ephesian 4:3

So how have you been doing on your self-examination through the eyes of the Word?  Me?  I've been doing okay some days and on other days I have to admit that I have failed horribly.  I have to do a better job with my tongue. (I'll be talking about that on different day.)  There are days when I ask myself what is it all for?  Paul ended these verses by answering that exact question.  Why must we be in the right position, with the right perspective and the right posture?  So that you can work toward the right purpose - 'to preserve the unity of the Spirit of the bond of peace'.  This means doing things not as men pleasers but unto the Lord.

I know that you may be thinking that all this is just too difficult.  Let me clue you in on something.  What Spirit is Paul talking about?  The Holy Spirit, of course.  You see, because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit it's really not that difficult to get along with others as we think, especially our brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. Why not?  Because the Holy Spirit is the divine spiritual ligament that holds us together.  Put aside those petty differences and work at getting along.  He/she may have a different background or come from a different part of town.  You may find yourself irritated at the immaturity of some believers in the body of Christ.  Lest we forget, it took GOD and the Word to bring about a change in your life.  It's not about being the best of friends, when it comes to the cause of Christ we all must work together.  We must get past showing the qualities that Paul talked about in verse 2 to those we like only and move to showing them to those who we don't like or those who might not like us. 

True unity in the body of believers already exists through the work of the Holy Spirit but we must work hard to preserve it.  Be diligent - which suggests difficulty and a resolute determination to overcome the difficulty.  Simply put - WORK AT IT!  Take a moment to think about those things that are important to you.  Those relationships you hold near and dear.  The one's that you wouldn't want to end.  I bet you have had to show humility, gentleness, patience, tolerance and unconditional love in order to maintain those relationships.  Now God is challenging us to show those same qualities to everyone we come in contact with.  I know it seems difficult but remember God has provided each of us with the abilities we didn't have and given us every spiritual blessing. 

As children of God we should always be growing, asking God to examine our lives so that we can see those things within us that are not like Him.  It's not the easiest thing to apologize when you don't think you have done anything wrong, but you can.  And how do you handle the person who is smiling in your face while talking behind your back or about someone you love?  Will you still pray for that individual when he/she is going through?  With God you can!  Ask yourself the next time you are faced with a difficult situation - "How can I show humility, gentleness, and patience?  Help me Lord to show forbearance to my brother and my sister in love."  How else are we set apart from the world?  Jesus himself said, 'by this shall all men know that you are my disciples if you have love one for another'. 

Most Gracious Heavenly Father,

Thank You for the revelation through Your Word.  Let it be a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my pathway.  Help me to hide Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against you.  Help me to bring every ambition, thought, reaction to situations under the control of the Holy Spirit. I want to be conformed to the image of Your Son.  Give me the spirit of discernment in my relationships to always respond in love.  Continue to expose the sin in my life.  Thank You for another chance to do it right. Let my life be an example so that others may see You in me.  In Jesus' Name Amen.

Life Application:

1.  To walk worthy means being aware of all of our relationships. Identify those people who are  hindering your walk.  Things?  Pray and turn them over to God. 

2.  What immediate changes can I make to work at preserving unity in the body of Christ - in my church?  In my home?  On my job?  

Walk Worthy of Your Calling, Part II

...with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love. Ephesians 4:2

As we continue on our journey of self-examination, let me continue encouraging you to 'Walk Worthy of Your Calling'.  How do we do this? We must be deliberate to put away bad attitudes and actions, allowing the Word of God to have its pruning effect in our lives.  With that being said, there are some qualities that God will give us in order to this. First of all we need HUMILITY.  What is humility - pride's #1 enemy. It comes from the Greek word - tapeinophrosune (root word tapeinos meaning humble).  This word means you get down as flat as you possibly can get so nobody can see you at all.  To preserve unity, we must first get in the right position.  You know like the BIBLE says, not thinking of ourselves more highly than we ought to think.  I said it before, there is not one of us who does not stand in need of God's grace.  For everything that you are excited about that you don't do, let God be your reflection and each and every time you will see that you don't measure up.  That is why we need humility.  As soon as we start to get too high or begin to think of ourselves as better than someone else - read the Word.  It has a way of knocking you right back down, allowing you to see yourself as you truly are...far from perfect but being perfected.

One more thing about humility - when you're humble, you're Christ-sufficient instead of self-efficient.  I know the world teaches us that we must be self-sufficient and not depend on any one or anything because people will let you down.  Ain't that the truth?  So since we know this shouldn't it mean that Christians especially should be more apt to depend on God for everything.  If we are depending on God for everything then we won't put some much stake in that job, that house, or that car.  Everything we have comes from Him.  When you exhibit humility and truly are Christ-sufficient you don't lean on your own understanding, you acknowledge God in everything and allow Him to direct your path.  When disagreements occur you ask God to help you to see your fault in the situation instead of just pointing the finger and you even take it one step further by asking God to give you the strength to apologize. 

Now along with being in the right position, we also need the right perspective.  We have all been faced with times when someone rubs us the wrong way, says something that irritates us - and what is our first response - to lash out at them.  But does that reaction promote unity in the body of Christ?  Probably not and that is why in addition to humility we need to have gentleness. What is gentleness - in one word meekness.  More often than not we look at the world's definition of meekness and equate it with weakness.  But I want to give you another definition for meekness - STRENGTH UNDER CONTROL.  It's like a wild horse that has been tamed and is now comfortable int he reins of the on who has tamed it.  It is that calm spirit you are able to have in the midst of chaos.  It keeps you from being anxious.  It is the attitude of being broken in our wills, being submissive to whatever God is up to in our lives.  It shows when someone is talking about you or hurting you.  You don't have to respond in negativity because that inner calmness reminds you that God is in control and that He is going to use all that hurt and pain to continue to conform you into the image of His Son.  One who exhibits gentleness controls his/her temper and does not retaliate or seek revenge.  There is a true acceptance that the battle is not yours but God's.  The secret is that you must KNOW YOUR ENEMY!  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood and the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God.  That is why we must always be suited for battle.  How long will be bench warmers in church every Sunday and still not recognize Satan and be able to stand up boldly against him? 

The truth of the matter is most of us don't want to change.  We are comfortable in who we are and even feel justified in most of our actions.  We have surrounded ourselves with our own personal "Amen" corners.  You know those people who can't wait to hear the latest gossip and will never challenge us when we are wrong or encourage us to do better.  How many of you reading this have a true prayer partner?  I thank God for mine.  Which leads me to the last quality putting us in the right posture - forbearance in love.  This person doesn't  have short fuse but is long-tempered.  Forbearance literally means - you don't fold.  It is the ability to stand up and not let it knock you down not just when you are being provoked but until the whole provocation is over.  Forbearance is not a matter of maintaining a facade of courtesy while inwardly seething with resentment but it is a spirit empowered with positive love to those who irritate, disturb, or embarrass you.  It's a supernatural response.  Now I know you may be thinking how in the world am I supposed to do all this?  It's actually quite easy.  "I can do all things thru Christ who strengthens me". (Phil 4:13)  "For it is God who worketh in me both to will and to do of His good pleasure". (Phil. 2:13)  " For when I am weak, then I am strong".  (2 Corinthians 12:10) Stop trying to do it by yourself, you can't.  But the God I serve, can help you to do what seems to be impossible.  You must first submit to Him. With God 's help you will be able to do it in love.  Love is, after all, what knits and cements all of the other qualities together. 

Most Gracious Heavenly Father,

Humbly I bow before You today exposed in need of a makeover.  Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  Forgive me for behaving like less than your child, ungrateful for the overwhelming overflow of your grace and new mercies every morning.  The bottom line is that I want to do better.  Search me and know my heart, try me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any hurtful way within me and lead me along the path everlasting.  Help me to be a steward of the Word and to seek Your face for guidance and wisdom.  I am thanking You in advance for answering this prayer.  Lord I submit to You. In Jesus' Name I pray Amen. 

Life Application:

1.  In what relationships can I exhibit more humility?  More gentleness?  More forbearance in love? 

2. What relationships have I damaged by not showing these qualities?  Ask God for forgiveness and strength to mend those relationships.

Walk Worthy of Your Calling, Part 1

A few weeks ago I was honored to share at the Women's Conference at the Bethlehem Star Baptist Church in Oklahoma City.  The theme for the event was 'Coming Together in Unity'.  This conference was not for those Christians who desired to stay on milk.  It was for the believer who desired to move from milk to meat or from ground beef to steak.  So today with my continuing theme of 'self-examination' I want to share some of those points with you over the next few days.

Ephesians 4:1-3 in the Message Bible says,  ^'In light of all this, here's what I want you to do. While I'm locked up here, a prisoner for the Master, I want you to get out there and walk—better yet, run!—on the road God called you to travel. I don't want any of you sitting around on your hands. I don't want anyone strolling off, down some path that goes nowhere. And mark that you do this with humility and discipline—not in fits and starts, but steadily, pouring yourselves out for each other in acts of love, alert at noticing differences and quick at mending fences'.

Do you know how important unity is to the body of Christ?  Very important...so much so that Jesus prayed for it just before He went to the cross in John 17:11.  You see, God is not concerned with your social status, where you work, or what car you drive but He is concerned  with us getting along, coming together for the cause of Christ.  Look at how Jesus lived when He was here on earth.  He had dinner with the tax collector, talked to the woman at the well. all the people with issues that so many of us stand in judgment of.  The people who tend to be the topic of our evening phone call or our workday text messages or dare I say our conversation during 11AM morning worship when our time should be focused on God.  Just think about the mixed message that unbelievers and babes in Christ are receiving from watching us.  We sit in church Sunday after Sunday listening to dynamic preaching and teaching, yet we continue to be some of the most judgmental individuals.

In these verses Paul is telling us that we have got to learn how to work together through our differences.  It's not about being the best of friends.  It's about joining together in unity and love for the edifying of the body of Christ.  How valuable is your salvation to you? I firmly believe that the way you live your life depicts your view of your salvation. In Ephesians 2:2-4 Paul says, 'you used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil...all of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our own sinful nature.  BUT GOD, so rich in mercy and he loved us so much that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised up Christ from the dead'.  Key words in these verses -ALL OF US....BUT GOD.  All of us stand in need of God's mercy and His grace. That is why Paul spent so much time in the first three chapters talking about our identity in Christ. (When you get a moment read those chapters - but for now I'll give you the Cleft Notes - we are Blessed, Chosen, Predestined, Adopted, Accepted, Redeemed, Forgiven and Filled with the Holy Spirit!)  And with that it seems only right that Paul moves from our identity to our responsibility...from doctrine to duty.  What is our responsibility?  Walk Worthy of Our Calling.  Why did Paul use the work 'walk'  - to indicate progress and purpose.  This is a lifelong process.  There are going to be setbacks but overall there should be a pattern of growth.  And furthermore, when you take a look at the word 'worthy', picture a weighted scale - on the one side your have the glorious gospel of God's grace towards us and on the other side our Godly conduct that should match our high calling.  When we walk worthy it becomes our lifestyle.  It's not that show face we put on Sunday morning but the way we live every single day of the week.  In our homes, on our jobs, and especially at church.  The calling Paul is referring to is found in 2 Timothy 2:9, one that is not according to works, but according to His own purpose and grace.  It's in these verses that we should learn that it's not what we look like but how we live.  It's not a matter of presentation but of perspective.  It's not an issue of appearance but of attitudes.  As a member of the body of Christ we should be proud to be Christians.  It should mean something.  It should show in the way we walk, in the way we talk, in the way we live.  My question for you today is "What's different about your life?  Are you walking worthy of your calling?"

Most Gracious Heavenly Father,

It's once more again that I come before you, realizing that I am unworthy.  I thank You that I can come boldly before you, asking anything according to Your will and it shall be done.  Lord today I want to ask forgiveness for the times I have let You down.  Those times when I haven't represented You well in my daily life.  Help me to dig deeper into Your Word to become the person that you want me to be in order to bring glory to Your Name.  In Jesus' Precious Name Amen.

Life Application:

1.  What changes have I noticed in my life since the day I was saved?
2.  What disciplines have I incorporated into my daily routine to continue to grow in my relationship with God?
3.  In what ways have I been guilty of judging others because of their mistakes?  Ask God to forgive you for these things.
4.  What disciplines can I implement going forward that will help me to walk worthy of my calling?  Make a commitment today.