Welcome Readers!


"Hello" to all my regular readers and those who are here for the first time!
I hope that this blog enlightens and encourages those who read it but I also hope that it will wake up those who have been asleep to the clock that is ticking within our beautiful nation and within the body of Christ. It is my goal to glorify our Lord and share the Truth with anyone who will listen!
I pray that the Lord will give you strength and courage each day to do His will and to glorify Him. It seems to be getting harder and harder these days to keep our heads above water, but He does promise us that He will not allow the waters to overtake us! Praise Him for that promise!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

What IS the Root of Evil?

So many times we hear that money is the root of all evil. Unfortunately, that is a common miss-quote of God's Word. He tells us in First Timothy 6:10, "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil" (italics added). It does seem to ring true doesn't it? Money is a source of trouble for many people. If you have too little and even sometimes if you have too much it becomes something that is quarreled over, cried over and coveted. But is money really the major source of evil? God tells us that it is a root of all kinds of evil, not the root. If there were a "top ten" list for sources of evil, love of money would be on it for sure, but what other things would make that list? I believe pride would be pretty close to the top. 

What was the first sin of all time? A quick response to this may be disobedience to God in the "Garden" but the first sin ever was when Lucifer, a beautiful and worthy angel desired to be equal to God Himself. That was the first sin and it was PRIDE (see Isaiah 14:10-14). As I was considering an area of my life that has an ongoing unresolved issue I realized that pride was at the root. This started me thinking about sin in general.

What is the cause of most sin? When we lie to protect our reputation; isn't that pride? What about when we speed or run a red light; aren't we saying that our agenda is more important than the law or even the lives of those around us as we do these things? If I cheat on my taxes because I don't think that it is fair that the government gets as much as it does; isn't that an indication that I know better than those God put in authority over me? Complaining or grumbling about our stressful life situations, like work or relationships is also pride because we are not considering that God, who is Almighty, has control over these situations and He could change them in a flash if He chose to. Complaining and grumbling indicates discontentment and discontentment indicates ungratefulness which indicates pride because where we are in life isn't good enough for us!

If you do a word search on "pride" in your Bible, you will find that God talks about it quite a bit! I found over 100 verses (using the words; pride, proud and haughty) that refer to pride in a negative sense. Most verses either refer to the destruction that comes from pride or teach that it is a sin. Pride is what caused God to allow the Israelites to be exiled by the Assyrians and the Babylonians. They would not turn to God because they had their own plans and ideas. A walk through the Old Testament will paint a clear picture of what disobedience through pride will do. It isn't a pretty picture at that! 

So what sins or struggles do you have that are rooted in pride? If you don't know if pride is the root, start with prayer and then do a word search of your own. You may be very surprised at what you find! Pride isn't a worse sin than any other, but it is an indication that we view ourselves higher than we ought. Many times, once we determine the cause of our sin it is easier to break free from it! I pray that the Lord will show you exactly what you need to see and then give you the strength and wisdom to confront it.

Read Isaiah 14:10-14 to learn about the "fall" of Lucifer.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Aretha Franklin sang these words: "R E S P E C T find out what it means to me". They have been quoted repeatedly over the past few decades. You may have even stated them yourself; I have! The topic of respect is something that my friend and I were recently discussing. The question was posed: "How do you respect someone?" I have considered this question for the past week and this is what I have concluded.

The Biblical ideas and truths regarding respect start with our respect for God. The phrase, "to fear God" is used in His Word too many times for me to count. Many times this phrase is viewed as a negative term. Thoughts of being fearful and afraid come to mind and therefore can cause us to picture God as an angry and scary God. While there is truth to the fact that His wrath is something to fear and to tremble at, the term actually refers to having a healthy respect for Him. I don't "fear" the highway patrolman that is behind me (unless I am disobeying the law), but I have a healthy respect for his authority to give me a ticket if I stray from the roadway rules. God is not only worthy of our respect, but He tells us in Malachi 1:6 that it is "due Him". So from God's own Words, we are instructed to respect Him.

What about respecting those around us? Do people have to earn it or are we also required to respect them by God's law? Let's take a look and see!

As I was searching the Scriptures for verses that give us direction regarding respect, I found much more than I had expected. In Leviticus 19:3 we learn that we are to respect our parents and in 19:32 the elderly. Paul teaches the Thessalonians’ to "respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord". First Peter 3:7 tells us to "...be considerate to your wives and treat them with respect..." but here is the kicker; Peter also instructs in 2:17 "Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God and honor the king." Evidently, respect is something that we are to do because we "fear God" and want to abide in Him. Not because they have earned it or it is "due" them, but because it is "due" God.

During my research of "respect", I did find a few verses that refer to earning respect. Proverbs 11:16 tells us that a kindhearted woman gains respect; First Thessalonians 4:11-12 instructs us how to live so that our daily lives may win the respect of outsiders. These verses however, don't tell us that it is only by doing these things we will be respected but that by doing these things we will allow others to respect us more easily.

I have come to the conclusion that we are instructed by God to respect others because we respect Him. There truly isn't anyone, other than Jesus, who throughout their whole life has lived worthy of complete and total respect from everyone they have encountered. Respect is a gift that we offer to those around us so they may glimpse the grace and mercy God has offered us, even if, in our eyes, they don't deserve it. God answered Aretha's query by telling us that R E S P E C T means L O V E. Amen? Who do you need to respect today?

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

The Event Horizon

My husband loves learning about astronomy. The ideas of the space-time continuum, dark-matter and distant galaxies intrigue him. As he has shared with me the things that he has learned I too, have become interested in them. One of the concepts that has caught my attention is the black hole. I find it hard to imagine such an event but it seems to be something that science is proving to exist. The "event horizon" of a black hole is the point in which its gravity has captured an object and that particular object is lost to the black hole forever. There is no hope for escape from the crushing grip of the black hole's power. As I was considering a certain area of my life recently, I realized that the lies of Satan can be just like this "event horizon".

Ever since I can remember, insecurity has been a common struggle in my life. I tend to question peoples' motives and actions in my life which in turn generally lead to suspicion. All of this is completely because of insecurity of who I am. As I am growing in my relationship with the Lord, I am learning that I am a person worthy of love and that even if no other person out there feels that way towards me, God does! He truly IS sufficient for me! God doesn't make mistakes and therefore, I am perfectly and wonderfully made. However, Satan would love for me to deny this truth. I still find from time to time that thoughts of insecurities invade my mind but I now recognize them as lies from the enemy: Hence, the "event horizon". It is when they enter my mind that I have a choice; to allow them to be captured and sink into my spirit or to kick them out before they reach a point of no return. Lies usually don't travel alone, either! Where there is one there are usually far more and if one is allowed into the black hole of your mind many more will follow!

Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, we have the power to reject these lies and replace them with God's truth. The lies that Satan is trying to push beyond your "event horizon" may be about relationships in your life, a situation at work, the future of your children's lives, the future of the world and the list goes on. Does he tell you that you aren't good enough for God to love you? Maybe he tells you that you are just fine without God and that you don't truly need Him. Many people struggle with just being "good enough" for society; having a good job, being physically attractive, fitting into the trends of today and being technologically "hip". Whatever area(s) in your life may be prone to the lies of the world, be aware that the minute one crosses the line, it is almost impossible to reject.

The good news is that unlike a black hole's "event horizon", the "event horizon" of our mind can be over-powered...by God. It is through prayer and knowledge of God's Word that will give you the power to kick those thoughts out of your mind. Negativity is not of the Lord, but of Satan. Depend on the Holy Spirit to bring to your mind the truths that you have read and to bring the comfort of God's love.

Read about the armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-18

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Unequally Yolked?

Over the years, I have heard this phrase being used to describe a relationship or business venture that involves people who are not like-minded in regards to spiritual things. It never really dawned on me why the word "yolked" would be used. I pictured in my head an egg, of course and thought "Well, I guess like the egg, you have the yolk and the white and they are not the same. One is healthier for you than the other"...and the list continues of their differences. OK, get a good laugh; go ahead, I'll wait here until you are done! I can't believe that it has taken me this long to "get it", but of course the word used is "YOKED" not yolked! Now this makes perfect sense!

As we read in God's Word, the image of oxen being yoked together is given many times. With the proper word in place, being yoked to someone who is not on the same page spiritually would be a problem. Can you envision two oxen yoked together with one wanting to go to the right and one to the left or worse yet, wanting to go in reverse? This just would not work! When we are engaged in relationships, either marital or business, being unequally-yoked IS a burden. For those of you who are in an unequally-yoked situation, you probably know the strain that can develop. If you are submitted to the Lord's will for your life, yet you are also committed to another person who isn't submitted to Christ, there is a serious conflict in the choices that you may make and the way that you come to your decisions. It is no wonder why God would instruct us to be certain that in those committed types of relationships, we be yoked to someone who is being led by the same Spirit.

Jesus says in Matthew that we are to "take His yoke upon us...for His yoke is easy and His burden is light". Even if we are submitted to the Lord, being yoked to a non-believer will lend to a heavy burden at times. God knew this and instructed us accordingly so that we wouldn't experience this conflict. Yes, equally-yoked relationships have their moments of stress and frustration, but that is because our flesh gets in the way from time to time. However, if we are submitted Christians, the yoke of our Lord will lead us to resolution. If you are considering an unequally-yoked relationship, study God's Word and allow Him to reveal to you the dangers and warnings. Usually we move forward in these relationships because we get impatient. We "love them and think that they will change" or we "know that this deal will set us up financially". If love or security is where God is leading you, He will do it according to His Word and His timing. Don't get in a hurry and bind yourself to someone that will become a burden God never intended for you to carry.

In 2nd Corinthians 6:14-18 Paul teaches the new Christians about the dangers of being yoked to non-believers. These verses speak the truth about the dangers involved, but I do want to point out that we are supposed to mingle with non-believers so that God may use us to show them His love and glory. It is in tight personal relationships that we are to steer clear of commitment with them.

Read Matthew 11:28-30 and 2nd Corinthians to see what God’s Word says.