Honest Reflections

“He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, because he was fully convinced that what God had promised, He was also able to do.”  Romans 4:20-21 CSB

The signing of the Declaration of Independence was an act of faith by 56 delegates from 13 colonies.  They were like Abraham, who is described in the verse above. He is “the father of many nations” (Romans 4:17 CSB), including ours.  The signers of the Declaration had this belief in common: there is no law above God’s law. The motto of the Revolutionary war, “No king, but King Jesus!”  These men had incredible faith. They knew they were committing an act of treason in the eyes of the British Parliament.

John Hancock, well known for his flowery signature, was President of Congress at this time.  He supposedly said about Congress, after signing, that they “must all hang together.” Benjamin Franklin responded, “Yes, we must indeed all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.”  It truly was a matter of life or death for them. They believed in the power of God and His ability to lead them to freedom.  So much so, they put their lives on the line when they signed what has become the foundation for our country.

From their bravery, one of the most well known sentences in the English language evolved:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Our country was founded by men who believed.  Men who overcame their unbelief and literally changed the world.  When we believe there is “No king, but King Jesus” we can do anything, even start a new country.  A country that has been nicknamed the Land of the Free; a Land of Opportunity, a Melting Pot for the world. A Christian nation, founded by Christian men who were honoring their true King, Jesus.  On this day of Independence for our country, let’s thank them for what they did for us. Let’s thank them for giving us a land where all men (and women) are created equal, free to pursue “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Morning Prayer:

“Lord, I’m grateful Abraham didn’t waver in his faith, nor did the men who signed the Declaration of Independence.  I pray we can be strengthened in our faith like they were, let us always give the glory to You. We know, Lord, you can do whatever you say You will do.  In You we place our faith and hope for a future (Romans 4:20-21 CSB). In Jesus name we pray. Amen

UNBELIEF BECAUSE OF FAMILIARITY

“And they were offended by Him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his household.” And He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.” Matthew 13:57-58 CSB

Have you ever heard the saying, “They missed heaven by 18 inches”?  It means they knew who Jesus was in their head, but not in their heart. They had knowledge of Him, but they didn’t BELIEVE in Him.  There are a lot of people who fall into this category. They know of Jesus, but they don’t believe in Jesus. That is what is happening here in this verse.  These are the people who knew Jesus. It’s the brothers he grew up with, it’s the neighbors who saw him become a carpenter. For us, it would be our family and friends who we share our lives daily.  They know the best AND the worst about us simply because they have lived it with us.

Here’s another way of looking at it.  In my case, I have four brothers I’ve known my entire life.  If one of them came to me and told me they were the Messiah, sent here to save the world, I’d have a hard time believing him.  Because I know them so well, it would be hard for me to believe in them. People in Jesus’s neighborhood didn’t believe in Him. As a result, He couldn’t perform as many miracles.  What would you think if your sibling came to you this way? You probably would think they were crazy. So did the people in Jesus’ world.

Miracles require belief.

If you need a miracle in your life, you first have to BELIEVE that God can do it.  We can suffer the exact same fate the people of Jesus’ neighborhood did. We know Jesus well.  Many of us have heard of Jesus our entire lives. If we haven’t read the Bible we know Bible stories.  Scriptures are rampant in our vocabulary as sayings, or adages. We know Jesus, but do we truly BELIEVE in Jesus?  Do we truly believe He can heal the sick, feed the hungry, bandage the brokenhearted? If we don’t believe it, we’re not paving the way for a miracle.

Let’s pave the way for miracles in our lives today with this prayer:

Lord, don’t let us be offended by Jesus.  Don’t let us make the same mistake those He grew up with did.  Help us to see His truth. Let us honor Him in our homes. Let our belief pave the way for His miracles in our lives.  Help us Lord overcome our unbelief. (Matthew 13:57-58 CSB). In Jesus name We pray. Amen

“Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that there won’t be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.”  Hebrews 3:12 CSB

Unbelief, in its original Greek is apistia.  It derives from apistos which means “untrustworthy, faithlessness or uncertainty, distrust.”  Heart in this verse is kardia. It means “the seat and center of circulation, and therefore of human life.”  It is used figuratively in this verse, but the bottom line is we have to be careful of the condition of our heart.  It is easy to have unbelief, when we do if affects our entire life. There isn’t an aspect of it that isn’t affected.  But when we have our heart full of belief, full of the knowledge God can do anything, then we have life. Not only do we have life, we have it to the fullest (John 10:10 NIV).

We recently watched “The Upside” with Bryan Cranston and Kevin Hart.  It’s a true story about an ex-convict and millionaire that form a wonderful friendship.  Kevin Hart, who plays Dell, has just been released from prison. He has followed his evil heart and it led him to places he never wanted  to go. He inadvertently ends up at a job interview for a caretaker position for Bryan Cranston’s character, Phil. Phil is a paraplegic, having become paralyzed from the neck down in a hang gliding accident.  He’s depressed, tired of life. He hires Dell because he’s the least qualified candidate, he just wants to die. Both of these men are in hopeless situations, both have given up on life. Together they find hope again.  Together they find belief again. Belief that life can be good. Belief that God does have a plan. Belief that if you search for it, you will find hope.

Unbelief can be equated to losing hope.  Hope is having expectations that something good is just around the corner.  When our hearts get focused on what we see, instead of what we don’t see, hope can be difficult to find.  Unbelief begins to set in, without realizing it, evil starts to creep into our hearts. We start to doubt, we lose trust, we lose faith, we’re uncertain of what is to come.  Our center of circulation that gives us life becomes dark and negative. But when we stop looking inward and start looking outward, we begin to soar with the eagles (Isaiah 40:31 NIV).

Because of Dell, Phil learned to soar again.  He learned to have hope. In one of the most pivotal moments in the movie, Dell takes Phil hang gliding.  In his wheelchair, strapped in tight, he soars once more in the sky. His faith has been restored, his hope flourishes.  His heart center has found belief once again. And we can too, by turning our hearts back to God. By seeking His presence in our lives, by keeping our heart centered on Him, we’ll find belief.  We’ll know, He truly can do all things, and all things work to the good for those who believe (Romans 8:28 NIV).

Morning Prayer:

Lord, help rid our hearts of evil and unbelief, let nothing turn our hearts away from You (Hebrews 3:12 CSB).  When we struggle with unbelief, give us hope. Help us keep centered on You, on Your word, on Your hope. Give us faith for the day ahead.  Let us go boldly into it, knowing You are always with us. In Jesus Name We pray. Amen

“The prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.” James 5:16b CSB

This month, we’re focusing on learning how to pray Scripture.  Don’t panic, I’m going to help you. We’re all going to do this together.  Starting tomorrow, for the next 30 days there will be a different Scripture you can pray over your life, over the lives of family and friends, over anyone or anything.  Praying Scripture is powerful for a couple of reasons. First off, it’s God’s word, His promises to us. We’re just reminding Him of what He already said. More than that, we’re reminding ourselves of what God has already said to us.  We’re trusting His word that it is true. That He means what He says. The more we actively engage with God’s word, the more it will transform our lives, the more it will transform our hearts.

Here are the specific topics we’re going to attack this month.  They are the ones I think all of us deal with in some way: Unbelief, Strongholds, Pride, Fear, Idolatry, Deception.  Those are some interesting topics to ponder aren’t they? I look at each one of those and have no problem admitting, I struggle with them all.

Recently, we did a poll in the group about what people would like to know about prayer.  In addition, I’ve been polling people randomly when I’m with them. There seems to be an overall consensus of what most people struggle with when it comes to prayer.  Focus, Duration, Content, Consistency are all common struggles. How to know if prayers are answered is another struggle. Originally we had talked about doing a 40 day prayer challenge.  But I don’t think I’m ready to write that yet. Instead we decided to stay with our “different theme” a month strategy.

As I wrestled with God over what He wanted me to do, it finally came down to just doing it.  My hope and prayer is I can help you find answers to your questions as we actively practice a prayer routine together.  There will be a daily prayer page for your journal you’ll be able to download and use at home. We’ll be posting an evening prayer as well, to help with consistency.  We’ll continue our “Pray for Who Wednesday’s.” We’ll let God do the transforming along the way.

Join me on our journey to growing deeper in our prayer life with this Scriptural prayer:

“Lord, Your word says the prayer of a righteous person is powerful in its effect (James 5:16 NIV).  I have been made righteous through Jesus, let my prayers be powerful in their effect. As we begin this journey of prayer together, let it draw us closer to You.  Let us find a new level of intimacy through prayer we’ve never experienced before. Help us see the effect of the prayers we pray. In Jesus Powerful Name I pray. Amen”

“He will again have compassion on us; He will vanquish our iniquities.  You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:20 CSB

A couple of years ago my husband and I visited a church in White Lake, NC.  It’s a small community that sits on a lake. The church was in a community building which sat right by its waters.  It was one of the most beautiful services I have ever attended. The walls of the center actually lifted up, like garage doors.  On beautiful Sundays like this one was when we were there, they were wide open. You sat beside the lake waters with the sun shining, and the breeze blowing as the Pastor spoke.  His message that day was on grace. He gave me a new perspective on it.

Grace is what we receive from God when He casts our sins into the depths of the sea.  As this Pastor put it, if we took our sins and dropped them into the middle of the lake, they would immediately be covered up.  It would be like a drop of water added to the lake, instantaneously gone, never to be seen again. That’s what God’s grace is like, whatever our sins are, they are gone forever, lost in the vastness of His grace.

Another way to imagine it would be to have an eyedropper filled with red dye.  The red dye represents your sins, whatever they are. If you take the dropper and empty it into the sea, it will be gone.  The amount of water is so much greater than the red, the red disappears. It’s all gone. That is how God’s grace works. It’s immediate, it’s permanent, it’s for all of us if we just accept it.

But we don’t truly believe it.  We don’t truly believe God has forgiven us all our sins.  We think He’s forgiven most of them, but there’s always that one niggling sin that we’re positive He can’t possibly forgive.  That’s just not true. There is no where in His word you will find that to be true. He is a God of compassion and mercy. Over and over again we find examples of it in His word.  It’s up to us to believe it. On days when it’s hard to believe it, days when you can’t “seas” the day completely because you think God can’t possibly forgive you, think about this verse.  Think about a drop in the ocean, how quickly it disappears. Think about the red dye being gone forever. Think about that, trust in its truth, “seas” the day!

“You rule the raging sea; when its waves surge, you still them.” Psalm 89:9 CSB

Nothing scares me like a tsunami.  Ever since the 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean I have gained a new respect for the power of the sea.  A tsunami usually is the result of an earthquake in the middle of the ocean. It creates two different types of waves, one that goes further out to sea and one that heads to the closest shoreline.  In the case of the Indian Ocean tsunami, a 900 ft. fault line between where the Indian and Australian tectonic plates meet is where it occurred. It caused several 100 foot waves to hit the Banda Aceh coast just 20 minutes after the earthquake occurred. It happened the day after Christmas, more than a 100,000 people were killed.  It was devastating.

Why God didn’t still those waves in 2004 I don’t know.  It doesn’t stop me from believing He could. Natural disasters are part of life on earth.  They are part of the trouble Jesus talks about when He says, “in this world you will have trouble” (John 16:33 NIV).  When one occurs, it reminds me how precious life is. How we don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but we have today. It helps remind me to live in the moment, be grateful for what I have.  As Job so gracefully put it, the Lord gives and the Lord takes away (Job 1:21 NIV).

Life can act like a tsunami.  An earthquake can happen: illness, job loss, death of a loved one, spiritual doubts.  Something that causes an uncontrollable wave of emotion and pain to start rippling over you.  It sucks up all of the positive energy, replacing it with fear, panic, heartache. It can cause destruction in relationships, in your life.  Often, when we are overcome with pain we can lash out at others unnecessarily, causing the wave of pain to now move from ourselves to those around us.  Its yelling at your husband for something someone else did to you. It’s taking it out on your kids because they happen to be close by when the earthquake happens.  Whoever is closest to you, usually are the ones who reap the effects of the earthquake. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

When the tsunamis in life happen, acknowledge the emotions that come with it.  Take time to let the wave roll off of you before you take action. Give God time to work in your life.  Give Him time to do what only He can do before you respond to it. Remember, just like he can calm the seas, he can calm whatever situation you’re dealing with today.  He can still the waves, smooth the surface and bring you back to the peace you knew before the earthquake. He can calm the seas so you can “seas” the day!

“So God created the large sea creatures and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water, according to their kinds.  He also created every winged creature according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:21 CSB

As a person who loves the ocean, this verse touches my heart.  It says it right here, it is good. God says so. I know it’s true because there is nothing more healing than the breaking of the waves against the seashore. There are times, when I’m at the beach, I am humbled that I get to sit there by this massive body of water.  The sand between my toes, the sun on my face. Life doesn’t get much better than that in my book. But I’m aware, not everyone gets to enjoy it. I’m aware of my sick friend, who as of this writing has now been in the hospital for 47 days. I’m aware there are others who can’t afford a vacation, or even a day off.  I know there are people who would love to be at the beach, but for whatever reason can’t be. It makes me more grateful I can be.

I also know there are people who prefer the mountains to the beach.  I can’t understand it, but I know its a true statement. God said those were good too (Genesis 1:10 NIV).  Whether you’re a beach person or a mountain person, whether rich or poor, sick or healthy, there is always something to be grateful for in your life.  I saw this post from my friend Mary the other day on Facebook. It was a picture of a precious little boy from a Third World Country. He had his hands up in a prayer position right in the middle of his face.  You could see on either side of those tiny hands, sparkling eyes. His cheeks puffed out in a smile, sheer delight on his face. This starving orphan from another country looked happier than people I see walking down the street every day.  People who drive nice cars, wear nice clothes, eat at nice places look more miserable than this starving child. Why is that? The answer to the question was in the anonymous caption:

“It is not happy people who are grateful.  It is grateful people who are happy.”

Isn’t that truth?  The key to happiness isn’t places, people or things.  The key to happiness is gratefulness. This starving child knows this truth because he’s grateful for everything he has.  He’s grateful for another day, because depending on where this picture was taken, his life could be in danger. He’s grateful for the food he has to eat, the water he has to drink.  He’s grateful because it isn’t a commodity to him. We have so much of it we forget to be grateful for it. But go one day in 100 degree weather without water, you’ll be thankful when you get some.

And when you’re grateful you are happy.  When you are happy, no matter what you’re doing, you are much more likely to “seas” the day.  If you truly want to “seas” the day, “seas” life, it starts with gratitude. Start the day with gratitude. Thank God for the coffee you’re drinking.  Then go take on the world. See if doesn’t make a difference.

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24 CSB

Did you know we, as humans, have “negativity bias.” Our brains are hardwired to remember the negative, letting the positive roll off. This is called Velcro vs. Teflon thinking. Velcro, negativity, sticks to us; Teflon, positivity, rolls off of us. For instance, if you have a negative experience with someone, it will take five positive experiences to overcome it and let it go (Hansen, 2018).

Realistically, life isn’t all one or the other.  Your day isn’t all one or the other, good or bad.  It’s a blend of both. The problem is, the negative events stick to us and the positive ones roll off of us.  In order to focus on the positive, we have to be intentional about capturing it. In a typical day you could very well have more positive things happen than negative.  Just for argument, say everything went right in your day today, except for that one thing. That one email, text, phone call or conversation that was bad. At the end of the day, what do you think about?  All the good that happened or that one bad thing? Typically, we focus on the bad because that is what our brain is hardwired to do. We have to train our brain to focus on the good. And we can. Here’s three tips Dr. Rick Hansen in his article, “Take in the Good” suggests:

Turn good facts into good experiences.  Recognize when something good is happening and be intentional about focusing on it, enjoying it and experiencing it fully.  If you are having a delicious cup of coffee make it an experience. Savor its taste, let it roll around in your mouth for a moment, enjoy the aroma while sitting in a comfy chair that you love.  Turn the fact of a good cup of coffee into a good experience by relishing it.

Really enjoy the experience.  In order to truly “seas the day” you have to be intentional with time. If you take 20-30 seconds of intentionally focusing and enjoying the moment, you are creating a positive experience that has velcro on it.  A positive experience that will stick. Because we let positive experiences roll off of us so easily, we don’t savor them as we should. The more we learn to focus and savor the good, the more it will stick with us at the end of the day.

Expect the good experience to sink into you.  Let it fill you completely. Choose to focus on the good, not the bad.  Search for it on those days that are more bad than good. You will find it, there is always some good, somewhere if you look hard enough to find it.  When you do, focus on it and let it sink into your entire being. Like the first sip of coffee in the morning, enjoy it in its full glory. Don’t rush it, give it time to stick.

Today is the day the Lord has made, rejoice and be glad in it.  Right there is a good fact you can turn into a good experience.  Look for it, savor it, enjoy it. Seas the Day!

“Watch your tongue and keep your mouth shut, and you will stay out of trouble.” Proverbs 21:23 NLT

There is no better opportunity than the opportunity to keep your mouth shut.  Everytime this verse comes up in my Bible reading plan, it always makes me smile.  I can hear my mother yelling at me, “If you’d just learn to keep your d*** mouth shut you wouldn’t get into trouble.”  I had no idea she was quoting scripture, well except for that little cuss word in the middle. Sin is always around, even when quoting scripture.  Both Solomon and my mother are correct. If you keep your mouth shut, you stay out of trouble.

There is another message that is being taught here.  It isn’t that we are never to open our mouths, that isn’t the point.  The point is, know when to open your mouth. Obviously, you can’t go through life never saying a word.  That would be ludicrous. But you also don’t have to say everything, all the time. That is the lesson these two have been trying to teach me all of my life, and I’m still learning it.  It’s a tough one.

It’s tough because we don’t have all the facts.  When we’re dealing with situations, we only know what we see from our perspective.  We don’t know the entire story, we only know part of the story. Since I’ve started working on my Masters, it has really opened my eyes up to how self-absorbed I have been.  I’m forced to read people I would never read any other way, and they are crazy. Some of these philosophers, just plain nuts. But they were people, looking at life from their perspective.  A perspective completely different than mine. It’s amazing how God created us each so differently. We can never know the whole story, unless we have all the facts.  We can’t have all the facts because we can’t truly know what others are thinking. Only God knows people’s thoughts, devil doesn’t. Just God.

Therefore, it can be hard to know when to speak because we don’t know the whole story.  But we can ask God to lead us in our words. We can ask Him to help us know when to speak and when not to speak.  We can ask Him for the words we should speak. Sometimes, I’m in a conversation with someone, just begging God for what I’m supposed to say next.  He always gives me something. I’m always amazed at what it is.

Yes, keeping your mouth shut will keep you out of trouble.  But so will letting God lead your words.

“Trust in Him at all times you people; pour out your hearts before Him.  God is our refuge.” Psalm 62:8 CSB

There is only so much room inside of our hearts.  We can fill it up with whatever we want. Positive or negative.  If we want to soak up the positive energy, we need to get rid of the negative energy that might be weighing us down.  Things like worry, heart break, anger have a way of taking over our emotions. It’s like 100 SPF Sunscreen, they won’t let any of the positive energy from the Son into our hearts.  They can block it all out if we let them. But this verse is pivotal in getting rid of the negative and making room for the positive.

We have to pour it all out to Him.  All the bad, negative emotions we may be feeling, we need to release them to Him.  Honestly, don’t hold back. Let Him have it. He absolutely can take it. There seems to be this misconception that we can hide things from God.  We can’t. He already knows it, whether you want Him to or not. You’re not hiding anything from Him, so don’t even try. Instead, enjoy the freedom of being able to pour it all out to Him, knowing there is nothing you could ever do or have done that will stop Him from loving you.  There is nothing more freeing than letting it all go. I use a journal to help me do this. I write it all out. It’s a physical way I’m able to get it out of me. God help the person who reads them when I’m dead and gone (said with a smile). I’ve dealt with a lot of anger in my life this way.

The beauty of pouring it all out, it truly does allow you to then soak up the positive energy God has for you.   Think of it like cleaning out your junk drawer. All the random things that have been collected in it over time get dumped out.  The duck tape you used once, the screwdriver that fixed the fridge, the hair tie you forgot you had, countless scraps of paper and pens.  How in the world did that piece of jewelry end up in there? Once you have dumped it all out, thrown away the junk, put everything back in its proper place, you have room to fill it back up again.

It’s the same with our hearts.  We collect things over time we don’t even realize are there.  It’s only with a good cleansing we can get it all out. Once we do, we have room to receive the good God has for us.  We’re able to truly soak up the positive energy only God can give us.