A Quarrelsome Wife

I came across these two verses in Proverbs about a quarrelsome wife and it got me thinking. I wanted to share with you my thoughts and a little bit about some things I have discovered along the way.

 “A foolish child is a father’s ruin, and a quarrelsome wife is like the constant dripping of a leaky roof.” Proverbs 19:13

“ A quarrelsome wife is like the dripping of a leaky roof in a rainstorm; restraining her is like restraining the wind or grasping oil with the hand. ” Proverbs 27:15-16

Quarrelsome means to be argumentative, contentious,the tendency to cause disagreement or strife. Someone who is quarrelsome likes to be right, and feels the need to get the last word in or come out with the upper hand in a situation of tension. At first glance of this definition, I would be pretty quick to say I am nowhere near a quarrelsome wife. However, as I look at these phrases like… “likes to be right”, “come out with the upper hand.” Yeah, I can see that there is a tendency for me to be quarrelsome, especially in the moments when I’m feeling weak and vulnerable already.

Have you ever seen the reaction of a hurt wild animal when someone tries to help them? Their natural tendency is to fight. Why? Because in their minds they don’t want to get hurt worse than they already are. It’s their defense mechanism kicking in. They are trying to protect themselves, but what they fail to understand is that in reality, they are pushing away the very hand that is trying to help them heal. I am wired much like that wild animal, especially in those moments when I am already hurting from something else. My defense mechanism kicks in and I become the quarrelsome wife that scripture talks about. My insecurities get the upper hand and I fight back. Can anyone relate, or is it just me? I’m guessing there are probably a few of you who become quarrelsome when your husband puts a finger on your already hurting wound. Here is what I fail to remember in those moments. My husband is not my enemy. He is the hand that is trying to help bring healing and I am pushing him away by being quarrelsome. 

If we take a look at Proverbs 19:13 and Proverbs 27:15 closer, they both say that a quarrelsome wife becomes like a constant dripping. Have you ever had a dripping sink? How about the sound of a toilet that just keeps running and does not shut off? Does it irritate you? It drives my husband insane! He absolutely hates those continuous sounds that don’t let up. And yet the word of God says I am that type of irritant to my husband when I am quarrelsome. Proverbs 27:16 says restraining a quarrelsome wife is as difficult as catching the wind or holding oil in the hands. Both of these things are about impossible to contain. Thank goodness we serve a God of the impossible!   

Our Heavenly Father is so gracious with us. Not only has He sent us husbands to help us learn, but He is so patient with us in this process of learning. Even though our husbands may grow impatient with us, we serve a God who has a detailed roadmap for us to follow and is patiently helping us navigate our way through the wounds and scars of life. How do we combat the mindset of a quarrelsome wife, especially in those moments we think we are right and our husbands are in the wrong?

Admit and Lay it down
We must be willing to admit when we are being quarrelsome before we can ever hope to overcome the constant dripping in our husband’s ears. The very moment we notice this creeping in we need to run to the feet of Jesus and ask for His help and wisdom. We can not cut the bonds of being quarrelsome without Him!

Be quick to listen and slow to speak
James 1:19-12 says... “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” We are never going to solve our problems by arguing them away, all this will bring is destruction. If we truly desire to see our situations transformed, then that transformation must happen in us first. From the overflow of a changed heart, will flow a desire in others to change will inevitably become contagious.

Select our words carefully
Part of being slow to speak means that we take the time to think about how our words will affect the heart and mind of the one we are speaking them to. Will our words bring life or destruction, joy or pain, peace or turmoil? Scripture tells us to... “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11. If it is not encouraging, it should probably not be said.

Choose the appropriate tone of voice
It’s not just the words we say that speak volumes, it is the tone in which we say them, our body language as they roll off our lips and our and our overall demeanor as we speak that will penetrate the heart. We can say all the right words and still come across as a quarrelsome wife with our tone, body language, and demeanor. Yep, I can definitely relate to this one! There have been many moments I have shared things with my husband and they were not received well, all because I shared them in the wrong tone and demeanor. Scripture tells us that… “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Proverbs 15:1 

Pick the ideal time
Not every moment is the right moment to discuss challenging situations with our husbands. When he walks in the door from a long day at work, it is not the right time! We as wives need to be sensitive to his needs as well. “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” Philippians 2:3-4. When we are able to decipher when it is a good time and when it is not a good time to discuss challenges we will be able to keep ourselves from becoming a quarrelsome wife. 

“The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.” Proverbs 14:1. I believe we become a wise woman when we communicate with the proper tone, body language, and demeanor. I also think that a wise woman is able to discern the proper timing to discuss difficult situations. By doing these things we build our house and in turn it keeps us from being a quarrelsome woman who tears down their house.

Approach with a heart of love, compassion, and humility 
“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2
 “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8
In order for us to even begin to communicate with the proper tone, body language and demeanor, and to discern the best time to share, we must first operate from a place of love, compassion, and humility. That’s the bottom line here, when we keep ourselves humble, compassionate and overflowing with love, then it will be much easier to guard ourselves against being a quarrelsome wife. I don’t know about you, but this is challenging at times. My selfish nature wants its way something fierce at times and I’m ashamed to admit it, but my husband ends up with the quarrelsome wife when he should be getting the one filled with love, compassion, and humility.

Heavenly Father, you know the struggles we face at times. Our selfish nature crops in on us and our poor husbands get the complete opposite of what they should be getting. I pray that you help us to recognize when we are being quarrelsome and run to your feet immediately. Help us to hold our tongues, to be quick to listen and slow to speak. Guide our tongues to the right words to say, the proper tone, body language and demeanor in which we convey them. Give us wisdom in when to share and above all else fill us with your love, compassion, and humility. We ask all these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ. 

References used: Crosswalk.com, gotquestions.org 

Conflicts Of Christmas

In light of the Christmas season, my mind has been mulling over the conflicts that we as Christians face in this age with the whole concept of Santa Clause. Yes, I am going there. What triggered this thought process was a post on Facebook by a Christian seeking advice about whether or not to do the whole Santa Clause thing. We are constantly bombarded with all kinds of things that are contrary to Christ. “But Santa is not against Christ. You can do Santa and Jesus both at Christmas.” Says the well-meaning, unsold-out Sunday Christian. Please excuse the sarcasm here as I promise to justify myself.

Breaking down Christmas

Santa, while seemingly innocent enough, does not convey the true meaning of Christmas. As Christians, we know that the true meaning of Christmas is Christ and if you take that away all you have is “mas.” If you look up that word “mas” you will find its meaning to be “a carnival.” (dictionary.com) So without Christ, we have a meaningless, empty celebration. When you add Christ to it (Christmas) you have a celebration of Christ. Christmas is the celebration of Christ and nothing else.

Foreigners

Looking at this concept of Santa from a parenting perspective brings yet another angle to this conflict. I have heard parents say that if they didn’t do the Santa thing, their kids would be missing out. As a family, we chose not to do Santa with our kids. This led me to ask them if they felt as if they were missing out, felt left out or jipped in any way at Christmas because of not doing the Santa thing and their response without hesitation was “No way!” My concern with this excuse really comes from two schools of thought. The first is that we are called to be in this world and not of it (John 17:16). In other words, we are called to live here, but not act like those around us. We are foreigners in this world and therefore, we should not act like we are natives. 1 Peter 2:11 says, “Dear friends, I warn you as temporary residents and foreigners to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls.” (NLT). I know you're thinking that Santa does not wage war against our souls. He gives gifts at Christmas just like the ultimate gift was Jesus. That type of thinking should send off alarms because it is taking a very sacred biblical concept and weaving fictitious nonsense into it so that we feel justified. This is exactly the type of thing satan did in the garden with Eve. He wove enough truth into his lie to make it palatable. Therefore, Eve swallowed it, literally and figuratively speaking. That was the first and deadliest method of manipulation satan has used on the human race and obviously is still using it today.

Lying

The second school of thought is, that as Christians we are called to obey the entire word of God. We should not be picking and choosing the parts of scripture that we “feel like” obeying. The word is not meant to be pigeonholed for our comfort. It is also not meant to be applied to some situations and not others. That being said, scripture is clear on the topic of lying. “The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful.” (NIV 1989 version). This verse is one of many in scripture that talks about lying and it states that God detests lying. He hates and abhors it. When we tell our children that a fictitious person is going to bring them gifts for Christmas. We are lying. When we tell them that he will come with his reindeer and sleigh with their gifts, we are lying. When we tell them to write a letter to Santa telling him what they want for Christmas because he will bring them something they want off that list, we are lying. When we tell them he is watching their every move to find out if they have been naughty or nice, we ARE lying. So, help me understand how lying to our children is setting a Godly example for them. How can we possibly tell our children not to lie when we have spent years and years lying to them? God’s standard does not change. He expects us to be truthful despite the fact that it might not be the most popular route to take.

Narrow way

“...For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Matthew 7:13-14

Not many Christians are willing to walk the path of unpopularity. Most would much rather take the path of least resistance. They would much rather take the broad road. In our many travels, we have found that many American Christians would rather compromise their faith to make life easier then sacrifice and face potential persecution for walking the narrow road. Our human flesh does not want to be the odd ball out. We want to fit in with the crowd. (To read more about this concept read my previous post entitled "Sold Out.")

Persecution

“In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,” 2 Timothy 3:12 (emphasis mine).

May I suggest, those of us who are not facing any type of persecution or push back from this world are not living a godly life. Ouch, a painful thought isn't it. We should not only expect people to be offended by our decisions, but we should embrace the fact that this is who God has called us to be. We are foreigners in this world, not natives. We were never meant to fit in here. Our residence is in heaven. Deep breath!

Father God, help us to lean deep into you this Christmas season. Help us to lean not on our own understandings but in all of our ways acknowledge you so you can make our paths straight. Help us to demolish strongholds that set themselves up against the knowledge of you. We realize that the attack against your Son is real and in full force. Give us the strength not to be intimidated by the crowd who is going one way when your word tells us to go another way. Lord, lead us not into the temptations of this life but deliver us from them. Give us the backbone that we need to stand up for righteousness. Give us a heart to embraces the persecution that is going to come when we live a godly life. We ask all this in the precious name of your one and only Son, Jesus Christ.

Seeking Counsel

Have you ever made a decision only to regret it within moments after you made it? How about a major life decision only to have things fall apart? Have you made a decision and wished you had spent more time researching and asking questions before you made the decision that you made? I think we have all been through these situations a time or two. God’s word has a built-in prevention for us in order to keep us from making decisions we will inevitably regret, it’s called seeking counsel.  

Seeking counsel

I feel like we as Americans often times do not utilize the concept of seeking counsel, and when we do, we approach it with a skewed understanding of what “seeking counsel” is in the Biblical sense. Seeking counsel is not us making our minds up about something and then convincing a whole bunch of our best friends why we should do that thing. Getting people to agree with our decision is not counsel, that is manipulation! Seeking counsel is not going to others who will only tell us the things we want to hear. You will never get sound Biblical direction from a “yes” man or woman! Doing what we want and reaping the consequences of our decision before seeking counsel is not really seeking counsel either. When we have a decision that we are facing, it is always better to seek counsel before we act. Often times, by seeking counsel we will see the situation we are facing in an entirely different light then we would have just left to our own perspective.

When we seek counsel, it should always be based on scripture. If Jesus would not tell you to do that thing, then it is not Biblical counsel! Seek out those who will “speak the truth in love,” (Ephesians 4:15) even if the truth hurts. It is always better to be cut open by the loving sword of the spirit, then by the cutting words of human flesh. And yes, there is a difference! When Godly counsel is speaking the truth in love, it will still hurt, but it will bring healing to the heart. It will bring clarity and peace. When the council is bringing you cutting words of human flesh, it will leave a wound that not only hurts, but it keeps bleeding. There will be no healing that comes, only continued bleeding. The peace of God will not accompany these words because God’s spirit of peace will not rest in something that did not originate with Him. We will often time be left with feelings of confusion and condemnation in these types of situations. The Bible clearly states that “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). If we find ourselves in a situation where counsel is condemning us, it’s not Godly counsel!  “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:17). Godly counsel should approach us with meekness and humility, with love and compassion, not a pointing finger and condemnation.

Why does God’s word tell us to surround ourselves with a multitude of counselors?

“Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.” Proverbs 11:14 (KJV)

First and foremost, seeking counsel is a safety net for us. Christ does not want to see us in situations where we are getting hurt. He desires to keep us from harm. “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11) He longs to keep us in the protection of his wings. This is why seeking counsel is so very important. It can protect us from unforeseen harm. This is just the way we need to look at the concept of “seeking counsel,” through the lens of safety. When we view it this way we are more apt to seek counsel because we all have blind spots.

“The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice” Proverbs 12:15

As I just mentioned we all have blind spots. We all have things in our lives we just can’t see until we get someone else’s perspective on the situation and then we can see more clearly what we have been missing. We like to think we are right until we see it from a different angle and realize we were wrong the whole time.

“Arrogant know-it-alls stir up discord, but wise men and women listen to each other’s counsel.” Proverbs 13:10 (The Message)

I don’t usually refer to The Message, but for this particular scripture, I felt like it was brought out so clearly. So often the reason we don’t seek counsel is that of our pride gets in the way. We think we know better. We think we can handle it on our own without any help. We don’t want to be a bother to anyone. Whatever the excuse, our pride definitely gets in the way of us seeking counsel.

“Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end, you will be counted among the wise.” Proverbs 19:20

We are considered wise when we seek and heed the advice of counsel we are counted as wise. The Lord desires for us to learn and grow. And seeking counsel is one way to grow. Seek counsel so that you can be wise.

Lord, thank you for giving us the safety net of counsel. We know that it is for our own protection that you gave us that safety valve. Help us to lay down our pride and set aside our fears to seek out Godly counsel when difficult situations arise. Help us to be a humble compassionate servant in those moments when others come to us for counsel. We desire to do things with a right spirit. We ask this in your precious name.

A Painful Pruning

As I was reading in John this morning I came across a verse I had read about a thousand times before, but God always seems to have a way of making things jump right off the page in a new way no matter how many times I have read it. This is why reading the word of God never gets old! This is why his mercies are new every morning! This is why we can spend a lifetime devoted to studying God’s word and learn something new each time we open its pages! I absolutely love God’s word for this reason. As I have shared before our family has recently been through some major life changes. (A major move, a change of jobs, and now traveling around the country.) So, when I read John 15:1-2, I finally began to understand the reason behind all of the painful pruning I have been experiencing lately.

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” John 15:1-2

I always looked at this section of scripture as if it was only talking about cutting out sin. Never did I look at this passage as the possibility of not having sin and still needing a pruning just so you can be more fruitful. We all have things in our lives that could use some tweaking from the Holy Spirit from time to time. It may be an attitude that needs to be adjusted, thoughts that need throwing out, or words that could have been spoken a different way. Whatever the case may be, we all have pruning that must take place in order to make us more like Christ and more fruitful.

In doing some research about the process of pruning fruit trees, I learned that pruning should take place in the late fall and winter months. This exposes the branches and the farmer can see exactly what the branches will be producing in the spring and summer. The tree’s dormant period is a map of what is to come. By strategic pruning, the farmer can actually encourage growth that otherwise would not have come by letting nature take its course. So, let’s take a look at this from the Lord’s perspective. There are going to be seasons in our lives that are winter seasons, our dormant seasons. And much like the tree loses its leaves and is exposed, the Lord wants us to “expose,” or lay open our hearts to Him. When we are willingly do this, He will be able to go in and remove anything that is not fruitful in our lives, as well as prune things back so that we can become a vigorously fruitful person when the winter/pruning season is over.

Another interesting thing I learned was that when a farmer plants a new tree, he will prune that tree back hard for three years straight and not allow it to produce fruit. The reason for this is so that it can put all its energies into putting down a strong root system, getting established and becoming strong. Wow! Isn’t this much like what our Heavenly Father does with us? Think about the importance of our quiet time with the Lord each and every day. Think about the early days of coming to Christ. In those early days, our focus was not on helping others to grow, nor was it on producing fruit. It was on getting our spiritual legs up under us so that we could stand on our own two feet. This is one reason why Paul tells Timothy that leaders within the church “must not be a recent convert” in 1 Timothy 3:6. There is a reason for a season of growth in the kingdom before we are asked to bear much fruit.

The more vigorously a tree is pruned, the more this will encourage exponential new growth. So, when we feel like the Lord is really doing a number on our heart with the pruning shears we need to realize it is only for our betterment in the kingdom. If we want to produce much fruit a painful and heavy pruning is sometimes necessary to get those kinds of results. So, sometimes we just need to open up our hearts close our eyes and say “here I am Lord, do what you must do so that I can be exponentially fruitful.” What is hard is being able to recognize that the pruning is taking place and that it is God’s hand bringing about a pruning in our lives in those moments of pain.   

Lord, we lay our hearts open before you. Help us to remember that your pruning shears are not meant to bring us pain for pain's sake, but for your kingdom’s sake. Help us to remember that in those moments of painful pruning that you have great things in store for us when the winter season is over! Give us eyes to recognize that it’s your hand doing the pruning in our lives so that we know not to fight against it, but to embrace it. Lord, we thank you that you have such wonderful plans and purposes for our lives. Help us to focus on your face and not the pruning process. We ask all these things in the precious name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

The Dangers Of Judging A Book By Its Cover

Have you ever looked at someone and thought you had them completely figured out, then later find out you could not have been more wrong? I think our human nature has a tendency to do this from time to time. I wanted to share with you a story I read on Facebook a while ago that touched my heart and truly drove the point home of why we should not judge a book by its cover.

Original Post by Susan Beecher on December 25, 2015:

“A pastor transformed himself into a homeless person and went to the church that he was to be introduced as the head pastor at that morning. He walked around his soon to be church for 30 minutes while it was filling with people for service. Only 3 people said hello to him, most looked the other way. He asked people for change to buy food because he was hungry. Not one gave him anything.

He went into the sanctuary to sit down in the front of the church and was told by the ushers that he would need to get up and go sit n the back of the church. He said hello to people as they walked in but was greeted with cold stares and dirty looks from people looking down on him and judging him.

He sat in the back of the church and listened to the church announcements for the week. He listened as new visitors were welcomed into the church that morning but no one acknowledged that he was new. He watched people around him continue to look his way with stares that said you are not welcome here.

Then the elders of the church went to the podium to make the announcement. They said they were excited to introduce the new pastor of the church to the congregation. "We would like to introduce you to our new Pastor." The congregation stood up and looked around clapping with joy and anticipation. The homeless man sitting in the back stood up and started walking down the aisle.

That's when all the clapping stopped and the church was silent. With all eyes on him....he walked up the altar and reached for the microphone. He stood there for a moment and then recited so elegantly, a verse from the bible.....

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for the least of my brothers and sisters, you did for me.’

After he recited this, he introduced himself as their new pastor and told the congregation what he had experienced that morning. Many began to cry and bow their heads in shame. "Today I see a gathering of people here but I do not see a church of Jesus. The world has enough people that look the other way. What the world needs are disciples of Jesus that can follow these teachings and live as he did. When will YOU decide to become disciples?

He then dismissed service until the following Sunday as his sermon had been given.”

Isn’t that just like our human nature, to judge by the outward appearance? I am so guilty of this at times it’s not even funny. This is why I am incredibly grateful that we serve a heavenly father who does not judge us based on our outward appearance, but upon the inner workings of our heart! (1 Samuel 16:7)

Dangers

There are some dangers involved when we continue on the path of judging a book by its cover. Much like the people in the congregation of today's story we see that they could not have been more wrong about how they judged this “homeless” man. In their humanness, they did not have the capability of judging the heart. If they had, they would have seen a heart full of love and kindness, a heart longing for them to receive the precious things of God. Besides, how often do we find ourselves in a situation when we judge a person from the outside appearance and their heart does not look at all like their outward appearance?  I believe this happens more times than we care to admit. I know it does for me. Regardless of what the outward appearance looks like, we need to learn to see people through the eyes of Christ.

Heavenly Father, thank you for this story today. It is such a beautiful reminder to us of how we should look at those around us through your eyes. You look at us with eyes of compassion and love not judgment and criticism. Give us your eyes so we can see the hearts of those around us. Lord, we ask these things in the precious name of Christ Jesus.

7 Encouraging Verses

Sometimes it seems like when it rains, it pours! I have been through many of those seasons in my life and still continue to trudge through the flood waters of the overwhelming far more than I care to admit. In the midst of these overwhelming circumstances I find that my only sense of grounding inevitably comes directly from the word of God. Today I would like to share seven verses that have encouraged my heart over the many times of torrential downpours. These are in no particular order, but rather a small and somewhat random selection of encouraging verses. I hope that you may find encouragement in the power behind these precious words.

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9

Oh, how many times I have wanted to throw in the towel and tell the Lord, “That’s it, I can’t take anymore of this.” And then along comes the gentle reminder to simply “hang in there just a bit longer. The harvest is just around the corner. You have almost made it. Don’t give up yet.” This verse has saved me countless times from prematurely throwing in the towel  it’s not even funny!

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7

To cast, to hurl, to throw with all your might because he cares for you! To read more on this particular verse visit my post entitled “Casting Our Cares.”

“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”1 John 4:4

When I feel as if i have been defeated by the enemy this verse has been the one that comes to my  rescue. I don’t have to feel defeated at all because my God has already overcome the enemy. I can stand and remind him of this. My God is greater than my enemy!

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

How wonderful it is to be reminded that I don’t have to live in a place of fear because I am actually being held in the center of the Lord’s hand. That is such an overwhelmingly comforting thought!

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

This verse has helped me through some incredibly painful and trying times. This verse has helped me to see that no matter what the situation I find myself in God is going to use it for His honor and His glory. God can bring beautiful things from some of the ugliest circumstances. This does not mean that things will end up the way we think they should. In fact, most of the time it ends up going in a completely different direction and we could not have imagined it that way even if we tried. I love this because it shows us that God is God and we are not!

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4:19

I have battled with this verse in those moments of financial need. Never once has the Lord let me slip through the cracks. He has always provided! It was not usually the way I thought He would provide. It was almost always much better than I had even dared to ask the Lord for. God gives according to his riches and glory, not according to our narrow minded limitations.

“Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” Luke 18:27

I have watched the Lord perform literal miracles in the lives of those around me. I’m talking about supernatural, miraculous, no other explanation but the power of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself kind of stuff, so yes, NOTHING is impossible with God.

I share these verses with you today to encourage your heart. If you needed something to wage war with then I hope you will find some of these verses helpful. If you needed something to uplift your hurting heart, than I hope you found something in this short list today. These are just a small spattering of the many verses over the years that have brought healing and comfort to my heart.

For more posts like this visit “My Battle Verses,” and “Claiming Philippians 4:13”

Lord, I thank you that your word is filled with so many words to encourage our hearts. I thank you that we can go to your word to fill up our hearts in our moments of need. Help us to write your word on the tablets of our hearts so that when we find ourselves in difficult situations we can remember what your word says. Help us to continue to fight the good fight of faith with the sword of the spirit. We pray this in the precious name of Jesus Christ.

5 Words That Hijack Our Faith

Have you ever had a conversation with the Lord that included words like….

Why?

When?

Who?

But….

If…

I think we have all used these words with the Lord from time to time. I know that I for one am guilty of it! What we really are doing by using these words is hijacking our own faith. When we use these words, we are doing nothing more then implanting seeds of doubt, confusion, frustration and building on our own insecurities. These words do not build us up in our faith. These word rob us from the peace that our Lord desires us to live in each and every day. These are the very words that satan will try to get us to rehearse in our times of struggle in order to win over the battle of our minds. As we all know, these are words that can so easily slip off our tongues, into our minds, and even into our prayers.

God patiently reminds us

God has such an immeasurable amount of patience when it comes to these words. It seems like every time I use them He reminds me oh so lovingly, of the other side of the story that I am not seeing. Let me give you some examples of how this might play out...

When I ask “why?” God says, “because my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways your ways.” Isaiah 55:8

I am left remembering that God is God, and I AM NOT! He obviously knows what He is doing. He has been at this a whole lot longer then I have.

When I ask “when?” God says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” Ecclesiastes 3:1

In other words, “Be patient my child! I am in no hurry, in fact I hold time in my hand. I am not limited by time. So, patience, my child, patience.”

When I ask “who?” God says, “I AM That I AM.” Exodus 3:14

Yes, there have been times when I have asked God, “who in the world?”, and He so gently reminds me “It’s me. It’s always been me, and it always will be me. There is no one else who can meet your every need, so please trust me my child.”

When I say “but…” God says, “I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?” Jeremiah 32:27

Oh yeah, how is it that I can continually forget that I serve a God who made me, and not to mention that He also made the whole universe. So yes, He has got this. I absolutely can just take that “but” and throw it away.

When I say “if…” God says, “be still and know that I am God.” Psalms 46:10

By the time I start inserting the word “if” into my talks with God I have noticed one very scary thing. I have gone over  the cliff and into the deep disillusioning world of doubt. By this point I figure God probably is about fed up with my questions, insecurities, fears and doubts because He basically asks me to simply stop talking.

These words are nothing more than a mere distraction, a ploy used by satan to pull us away from our firm foundation of faith. If we are being honest here, it is a daily battle sometimes to make sure that these words keep from injecting their loud opinions into our faith. In fact, sometimes it can seem downright impossible. Thankfully we serve a God who knows our very weakness. He knows when these hijacking words are coming yet again to try to throw us off kilter. He also knows that though our weakness He can be glorified if we are willing to surrender to His will for our lives.

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness...” 2 Corinthians 12:9

“...For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:10

In those moments of “why, when, who, but, and if,” we can go to the Lord in our weakness, lay it all down at His feet and that is when His strength can truly be seen. It is in these moments of surrender that the Lord can truly begin to do a work in our hearts and minds and to bring us back to a place of faith once again. The Lord does not want to see our faith hijacked by a few seemingly insignificant words. He desires for us to walk in complete confidence that He is God and He knows what He is doing!   

Call to action

I want to challenge you to pay close attention your thoughts and prayers. Are any of these five little words leaching in? Are any of them lurking in the background somewhere? If so, take captive those words and make them obedient to the words of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Do not give the devil a foothold (Ephesians 4:27) into your faith. Work hard at surrendering these words to the feet of Jesus.

Lord, I pray that you help us to take these five little words and surrender them to you. Help our thoughts to line up with your thoughts. Give us the ability to recognize when these words are lurking in the recesses of our spirit and the strength to take them captive as they rear their ugly heads. We want to have a faith that is free from any chances of a hijacking.

Do you have an encouraging story to share? We would love to hear about it. You may share your stories in the comments section below or on the learningirl4life Facebook page. We look forward to hearing from you!

Cat And Mouse Game

I  saw a video on Facebook a while back of a mouse chasing a cat. Yes, it was funny, but it somehow did not settle well with me and later I realized why. It goes against the very nature of how these creatures were created. We all know that the cat should be the one chasing the mouse and the mouse should be the one running for his life. As I pondered this a little more I began to see that there was some very interesting spiritual application to this cat and mouse relationship. God has designed us to have power over the works of the enemy. Satan is a defeated foe. He was defeated by the shedding of Jesus’ blood on Calvary. We really have no reason to be running scared from him. Yet somehow like that video, the enemy seems to have us on the run, scared for our lives at times and this just should not be! We have been given power to destroy the enemy’s attempts in pursuing us. We are created to overcome! That cat just needs to realize a couple things. First of all he is bigger than the mouse. Secondly, and probably the most important reason is that he has been given the power to destroy that mouse! We have been given that same power. We just have to realize that we already possess the ability to control our cat and mouse dilemma. I guarantee when we truly believe that, our enemy will run for his life!

There are some very important things in backwards game of cat and mouse that we need to take note of. When satan is chasing us and we are on the run we have done something very substantial. We have taken the authority that Jesus Christ has over the works of the enemy, the very authority that He proved to be the unmistakable defeating blow and we have placed that authority into the hands of our enemy. We have in essence given satan permission to run us around like a scared cat. Satan does not have the power to or authority to chase us around like that scared cat unless we willingly throw up our hands in defeat and start running.  

Scripture says...  

I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:19

We have been given the power over the works of the enemy. But, if we never tell satan to stop chasing us, he will never stop. Why? Because we have not given him a reason to stop. If we never bind up the authority we have freely handed over to satan and place it back in the hands of Jesus Christ, then God will not step in and do it for us. That’s our job! We first have to bind up on earth so Christ can bind up in the heavenly realms. In other words, we need to stop running like the scared cat and start putting the authority where it belongs. We need to take the authority back from the devil that we have so freely handed over and put that authority back in the hands of the almighty God! There are going to be times in our lives when we just have to turn around and tell satan where he can go and to remind him that his tactics of trying to get us on the run is not a place he is allowed to be! We need to be the cat that God has called us to be, to work as the cat was wired to be. You do not see a lion running from a zebra in the wild. Why? Because they are not wired to run, they are wired to attack. God did not wire us to run from satan. God wired us to be on the defensive end of satan’s attacks, to take a stand against his foot in the door moments.

When I looked this verse up in various bible commentaries, the stance that they take on this verse is completely different than what I am sharing with you  today. Sometimes it is good to balance what we understand from scripture with what others understand from scripture and the history of scripture and culture. It helps us gain a better overall picture of what God might be speaking to our hearts. I wanted to share with you some history that I was unaware of until I did some digging.

Within the Jewish culture there was a protocol for releasing  new priests into the ministry of publicly preaching scripture. Before they could preach the scriptures to the people they would receive a physical key. This key opened the closet in the temple where the sacred books and tablets were kept. Gaining access to this closet signified the release of these priests into full responsibilities of the ministry. (Source: GodVine http://www.godvine.com/bible/matthew/16-19) I found this interesting because we need to place the key or the power in the hands of our priest, Jesus Christ in order to keep satan from running us like a scared cat.

Lord, forgive us for placing the power in the wrong hands, for allowing satan access into our lives through fear and intimidation. Help us to recognize when satan is trying to put his foot in the door of our hearts and get us on the run. Help us to remember that he is a defeated foe and we do not have to run from him. Give us the strength and courage to tell satan to back off and to remind him of his future. Help us to walk in the confidence of your defeating blow from the cross and resurrection.