Play Date With Jesus, Having a Child Like Faith

“For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light,” Psalms 36:9.

© Diane D. Ramirez

I love this picture of my grandson, (who is ten now) he’s taking such delight in the simple pleasures of life. Water pouring over him like a fountain. The joy of the water splashing on his face. The pleasure of being drenched. The pure joy expression and excitement, as he takes in this moment, is priceless.

There’s several spiritual lessons, we can learn as adults from this picture.

1. Experiencing life from a child’s viewpoint

2. Enjoying the moment, being in the now

3. Exhilarated pleasure from Abba’s world

 Experiencing Life From a Child’s Viewpoint

Children see life through the lens of purity and curiosity. Their world is to be explored, and are, with bright eyes. Children touch, and are fascinated with how things work. Why is a question they ask often. Why is the sky blue or why is the giraffe’s neck so long?

Life, for them, is to be pondered. Within their soul is an innate inquisitiveness to learn, experience, and take hold of their surroundings.

I believe this is one of the very reasons, parents and grandparents adore their offspring, as they too can re-experience life through the point-of-view of the child. Everything is new again. And that is a wonderful feeling.

© Diane D. Ramirez

Jesus’s disciples, when parents brought their children for him to bless, felt it was an intrusion . . . but Jesus did not.

He said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” Luke 18:16, 17 (NIV).

Jesus has an important message for us: Children possess the Kingdom of God. What a powerful and profound statement Jesus made about children—and we are to be like them in simple faith, accepting, receiving, experiencing God’s world, both in the natural and supernatural.

The kingdom of God, as outlined in the Strong’s concordance is basileia, and means:

1) royal power, kingship, dominion, rule.

The third definition is: of the royal power and dignity conferred on Christians in the Messiah’s kingdom.

How do we hold on to that child like faith, yet be mature Christians?  The goal, I submit, is to rekindle wonderment into our moments, being present in our now. Realizing that within the child’s spirit resides the Kingdom of God.

When we face our adult life—the struggles, conflicts, worry, fear, uncertainty, and pain, we need to close our eyes and find our inner child like faith, which perceives Jesus as our ever present, protecting, interceding, and loving Father. The Abba Father, who will embrace us as we run into his arms like a child.

Enjoying The Moment, Being in The Now

Living life distracts us from the simplicity of our moments. As a parent, how many of us have said to our children, “Not now, I’m busy?” But now is all we have. What if God told us, not now. I’m busy? It would fill us with rejection and crush us. The moment, the now, is extremely important. Why? Because that is all we have and are certain of.

There is so much, which can steal our “play-time.” We need to make a play-date with Jesus. By this I mean, experiencing the present of our now . . . good or bad, inviting Jesus into that space.

© Diane D. Ramirez

As within that time, we can learn, we don’t rush and try to push aside what is happening, what we’re feeling or not. We need to contemplate, what this “now” is telling us or expecting of us.

I’m learning that gratitude in the now, helps lessen sorrow, worry, and fills any emptiness when I allow my thoughts to linger in the past, which only robs me of the present and overwhelms me with sadness.

Retraining our thought patterns, to stop the rewind button of the past, is essential to staying and appreciating our now. To do this we can be aware of:

1.     Sounds
   1.         Hearing laughter
   2.         Listening to every note of the music and the different instruments
   3.         Hearing the birds singing, the ocean waves, the cars passing by
2.     Sight
   1.         People’s faces, are they happy, sad
   2.         Your surroundings (ignore the unfolded clothes and dirty dishes)
   3.          Admire that rose before you walk into that building
3.     Touch
   1.          The feel of food as you prepare it
   2.         The feel of your clothes as you put them on
   3.         The the breeze as it brushes against your face
4.     Smell
   1.         The neighbor’s BBQ
   2.         The freshly laundered clothes
   3.         Your soap as you shower
5.      Taste
   1.         Enjoy that double fudge ice cream cone
   2.         Savor the taste of the medium rare rib eye (or well done)
   3.         Fill the cool liquid pass over your taste buds

All these senses can keep us in our moment when we are tempted to fly back into the past, or leap ahead of what ifs in the future. Gratefulness in the now, allows us to be present.

Exhilarated Pleasure From Abba’s World

© Diane D. Ramirez

Here’s another awesome picture, of one of my grand kids, who is eight now. She’s swinging for the first time. She is exhilarated by the feel. The expression on her face, is one, I believe, God would love to see on us, as we become abundantly satisfied in him, with a child’s faith.

The NASB says, “They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house; And you give them to drink of the river of Your delights,” Psalm. 36: 8.

Abundance in the KJV strong concordance means “fatness.” This is the fatness, I wouldn’t mind having! Wouldn’t have to worry about losing those extra pounds.

Abundance also means: a. Plentiful; in great quantity; fully sufficient; as an abundant supply. In scripture, abounding; having in great quantity; overflowing with.

Also, KJV and the HNV use the word “make” instead of “give.” I like how it reads in the KJV, “They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of your house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures.”

Imagine what it would be like if we actually experienced God’s river of delights or pleasures, daily. The word picture I get, is a dog when he’s scratched on his tummy. His leg moves uncontrollably. He’s delighted, satisfied, and exhilarated with pleasure, as his master loves on him.

Would you mind if God made you drink from his river of delights? Or another word we could use is “cause” you to drink. I know, I wouldn’t. I think it would be absolutely exhilarating to understand, feel, know, accept, relish in God’s abundance and drink of his pleasures. Think about it!

© Diane D. Ramirez

The verse before this is: “How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings,” Psalm. 36:7 (NASB).

What does a child do when they are afraid? They run to their parent for safety. It’s when we take refuge under the shadow of his wings, where our Father’s lovingkindness greets us. Then we’re to drink our fill in the house of the LORD. And to experience his river of delights.

We too, should practice running under our Father’s wings, hiding under his shadow, when life or the enemy tries to rob us of being exhilarated from the simple pleasures of life and growing in grace. It’s so easy as adults to fret, become dissatisfied, and frustrated.

The dictionary defines a feeling of exhilaration as: elation, euphoria, exultation, exaltation, joy, happiness, delight, joyousness, jubilation, rapture, ecstasy, bliss.

My prayer is, we can learn to experience, enjoy, and be exhilarated—like a child, as we embrace the fatness of Abba’s house and drink from the pleasures of his river, in our daily moments. And when those moments are rough, we will run to our daddy, like a frighten child, for our refuge and peace.

 Please tell me, below how this article ministered to you. Or leave me a message on my author FaceBook page. I’d love to hear from you.

Be well my friend!

 

Our Infinite God . . .

The Attributes of God, Chapter One, God’s Infinitude,
by A.W. Tozer, published by Christian Publications, Inc., 1997

Tozer wrote, “Christianity is a gateway into God. And then when you get into God, “with Christ in God,” then you’re on a journey into infinity, into infinitude. There is no limit and no place to stop . . . God is infinite.” (Scripture Colossians 3:3).

When meditating on this word, “infinite,” it literally boggles my mind. The thought that God is vast, he is endless, boundless, and he is immeasurable, makes my head spin. Neither you nor I can calculate God. There is no finish to him—he is forever and is never ending. Our finite mind is unable to fathom the totality of God’s infinitude. He is an all-knowing, all wise, and all-loving God. He is perfect in all his ways. If he were not, then he could not be God.

To enter into as well as to gain some understanding of the never-ending God, one must comprehend the Trinity—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. This, through the ages, is difficult for some people to embrace—how can God be three people in One? Well, the simple side of it is, HE is God!

I like the metaphor of the Trinity being H2O, which can have three different forms:

* Water
* Ice
* Steam

H2O is what it is, H2O in any shape it forms. I think of what God said to Moses, when he questioned God about who he should say sent him to free the Hebrews from the Egyptian Pharaoh, “ . . . God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. (Exodus 3:14; KJV).

Unless a person comes to a place of faith that, “ . . . The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!” (Deuteronomy 6:4). The truth of the gospel will seem as foolishness to them. They will not understand the meaning of “ . . . your life is hid with Christ in God,” (Colossians 3:3; KJV).

Tozer quotes Lady Julian of Norwich who said, “Suddenly the Trinity filled my heart with joy. And I understood that so it shall be in heaven without end.” Lady Julian wrote this six hundred years ago. Without the understanding that God is Jesus incarnate, and he is the Spirit—there is no understanding, no faith to capture it, no mind to perceive that the Father, the Son and the Spirit are One and the same (See 1 John 4:12-15). That takes faith, and that faith is the pillar and foundation of our Christian belief that God does exist and he is who he says he is—THE GREAT I AM.

This very claim, that God and Jesus are one, is what led Jesus to being labeled a heretic and eventually crucified.

What does it mean to know a God who is infinite? A God who is boundless and knows no limits?

I like how Tozer defined God has being infinite, “What God is, and He is without boundaries. All that God is, He is without bounds or limits.” Is your head hurting? Mine is.

God cannot be measured . . . “God is self-existent and absolute; everything else is contingent and relative.” Tozer goes on to say, “There is nothing very big and nothing very wise and nothing very wonderful. It’s all relatively so. It is only God who knows no degrees.”

Tozer quoted an poet who penned, “One God, one Majesty. There is no God but Thee. Unbounded, unextended unity,” in this phrase Tozer came to interpret the writer meant that, “God doesn’t extend into space; God contains space,” (Italics mine for emphasis).

Is that not awesome or what? When I read that my spirit energizes. I get the sense, the true sense of being part of someone much more elaborate and intriguing then my faith and my feeble mind allows me to know and understand.

In this chapter Tozer gives an illustration, which C.S. Lewis gave in helping us to grasp the idea that God contains space. Lewis’s illustration was to take a piece of paper and draw a one-inch line on it—that would be the representation of time. When you begin your line on the sheet of paper that is the beginning of time and when you stop your pencil that is the end of time and so Tozer wrote, “And all around, infinitely extended in all directions, is God.” Wow! Is all I have to say about that illustration. God encompasses everything.

The image is that the God who encompasses everything, the God who contains space, as sent us an invitation through his Son to have fellowship with him, to take part in his divine nature. Tozer wrote so well, “The infinite Godhead invited us into Himself to share in all the intimacies of the Trinity. And Christ is the way in.”

Think about that for a moment, “invited us . . . to share in all the intimacies of the Trinity.” God wants us to know him and to know him is to know his Son. There is no way around that.

Jesus said, “My prayer is not for them alone, I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me,” (John 17: 20-21).

Tozer uses the analogy of the earth and moon and relates to the reader that we never see both sides of the moon—that would be an impossible task. I’d never thought about that before. So it is with God, we can’t know all there is to know about him, nor see every aspect of him—even with daily reading of our Bible—God’s expansion of who he is, is beyond our limited understanding. Yet, he provided his Son, Jesus Christ, to be the catalyse for our knowing of his love and care for mankind.

Tozer says, “God has a manward side, just as the moon has an earthward side. Just as the moon always keeps that smiling yellow face turned earthward, so God has a side He always keeps turned manward, and that side is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is God’s manward face . . . Jesus, is the way God sees us.”

When I share the gospel, to a ready heart, I love sharing the idea that the God who created all things—who made the earth and all that is in it, and made the heavens and all that is in it—has come to earth to live in our spirit, just by placing faith in Christ his Son—who then imparts to us his Holy Spirit who is a deposit guaranteeing our salvation. This means we are no long under the burden of our sin. The fact that the Almighty God wants to inhabit our spirit should overwhelm us (See John 3 on being born again).

Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me,” (Revelations 3:20).

The Godhead: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit each have a role in the salvation of mankind. God is our Creator, Jesus is our Redeemer, and the Spirit is our Teacher. Every believer contains the trinity—who is without measure.

Our Father,
Give us the ability to allow Your Deity to live strong within us so that our faith will expand and our strength will be renewed so that the world will know You. May we be filled with joy! What an honor that You have chosen mankind, in all his faults, to be Your object of love, which abounds in Your grace. We rejoice that Your desire is for us to be one with You, just as You and Your Son are One. We are grateful.
In Jesus name, Amen!

Q4U: What does it mean to you to be on “a journey of infinity” with God?

Do As the Atheist say, . . . Celebrate Reason

The American Atheists Society put up a billboard recently, which pictures the three wise men and the manger scene, it reads,” You Know it’s a Myth—This Season, Celebrate Reason.”

I wonder if their thought is We want believers to stop believing their silly notions of a God who created the earth and supposedly sent his son to save the world—be logical and rational for god’s sake—there was this big bang and we evolved from a tadpole and became intelligent beings.

Bill Maher, in his movie “Religulous, stated, “ . . . it has not been proven there is a Jesus.” Through Bill’s reasoning it seems there is not enough proof to assert that Christ existed, which is interesting as other religions—which do not accept Christ as the Son of God—recognize Jesus as a good prophet.

Individuals like Bill Maher, seem to struggle with the birth of Christ because logically they cannot fathom:
• How God could impregnate Mary, a virgin
• How a virgin could give birth to a baby and still be a virgin
• How God could make himself into a man

Bill Maher said, “It’s surprising something as important as the virgin birth, is not in all the four of them [gospels] . . . No one who ever wrote about Jesus, never met him” (Brackets mine for clarity).

Obviously, because the four gospels do not mention Christ’s birth, Jesus is non-existent. Bill Maher obviously has not heard about the disciples who walked with Christ, who also authored a few of those books in the Bible. The theology of the Christian faith seems irrational to people like Bill Maher. More so, because according to science, God’s existence cannot be proved. This means to them that the authenticity of Christ’s birth is degraded as a myth like the Greek god, Zeus.

I respect Bill’s truthfulness in which he says, “I preach the gospel of I don’t know.” He says he is not “ . . . questioning God,” he just does not understand “why believing in something, without evidence, is good?” The Bible says, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing . . .” (1 Corinthians 1:18).

Without the birth of Christ there would be no cross of redemption. It is through reason that Christians celebrate the birth of Christ. With our reasonable mind, we’ve discovered (led by God’s Spirit) to the truth of the gospel, “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ,” (Romans 10:17).

When we heard the gospel message, we reasoned the facts through our mind—as we heard, we responded, and our faith ignited into belief. The evidence is our changed lives. The birth of Christ put in motion God’s deliverance of sinful man. For Christians, the nativity gives us a new spiritual birth into a living hope, which is Christ Jesus. We celebrate through reason, as we know God said, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God,” (Ephesians 2:8). Christmas is about the gift God gave us.

Bill asks, “Why is faith good?” How would you answer his question? The writer of Hebrews says, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see,” (Hebrews 11:1). We did not witness the birth of Christ but our spirit confirms its truth. Faith is good because faith is beyond our own capability to comprehend the totality of what God has done for us in sending His Son—we realize we cannot save ourselves.

We understand there is someone greater than ourselves and we call him God, Yahweh, Almighty God, The Great I AM, who came to earth as the Prince of Peace. Faith is good because it allows us to reach beyond our human “reason” with certainty that the hope we have in the birth, death, and resurrection of Christ is our salvation from the wrath of a Holy and Just God—who will one day separate the non-believers and the believers come judgment day.

Faith is good because we are blessed by believing without seeing. “Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed,” (John 20:29).

Through reason we celebrate the birth of Christ, as we know through him we have experienced God’s grace; we know that God’s abounding love beckons all sinners to come to know Him through His Son (See John 4:42). Our reasoning leads us to the knowledge of God’s love, which does a greater work beyond our comprehension.

His Spirit infiltrates our soul and spirit so that it’s not just “head knowledge” but a deeper awareness that we can approach a Holy God and relate to Him as Father, Friend, Savior, Helper, Provider, Peace-maker, and Overseer of our soul because God came in the flesh and walked among men, through Jesus

Reasoning allows us to identify the Spirit of Truth and the spirit of falsehood. “This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world,” (1 John 4:2-3).

Mr. Maher says, “ . . . I’m here promoting doubt—that’s my product. The other guys [Christians, preachers, religions] are selling certainty. Not me. I’m on the corner of doubt,” (Brackets mine for clarity). Bill Maher, Agnostics, and Atheist, in my humble opinion, are doubters. The book of James states that the man who doubts in like the “ . . . waves of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind . . . he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does,” (James 1:5-8). Those who say there is no Goad, cannot wrap their mind around the mystery, majesty and generosity of God.

This Season, and those to come, Celebrate The Reason for the Season. As we know Christ Jesus is the Truth, the Way and the Life (John 14:6).
He is Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23). This season, and every season after, Christians will continue to celebrate Jesus as the reason behind the Christmas season,” whether he was born December 25 or not

Fairy tales have happy endings. Jesus was beaten and nailed to a tree for claiming to be the Son of God, for declaring to be God in the flesh. He did not ride off into the sunset; after, that is, after his resurrection and ascension into Heaven, where he now sits at the right hand of God, waiting his return to earth

Jesus left the splendor of Heaven to come to earth to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10).

Christmas and Easter remind us of a God who “reasoned” that His love was greater then His wrath and chose to reconcile mankind through the birth of Himself as a man. “For nothing is impossible with God,” (Luke 1:37

Every day we should Celebrate The Truth—The Word became flesh and lived for a while among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son who came from the Father, full of grace and truth,” (John 1:14).

*All quotes by Bill Maher are from his movie, Religulous.

Falling from the Spiritual Mountain Top . . . a lesson from the apostle Peter

 

Have you ever had a mountain top experience, a moment in time, where you felt God’s presence? One in which you sensed you’d never be the same. But no sooner did you roll off the mountain of euphoria; your God moment became swallowed by life and the new revised you slowly disappeared. Maybe disappointment or confusion set in. Don’t lose hope—you might find connection with a disciple named, Simon Peter.

THE MOUNTAIN TOP

Peter, an acclaimed apostle of Jesus Christ, had a mountain top experience. He, and two other disciples, accompanied Jesus up a mountain not knowing what was going to happen (Matthew 17:11).

On that mountain Jesus’ face, “ . . . shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light,” (Matthew 17:2). Can you imagine witnessing Christ’s transfiguration but also the sudden appearance of two great patriarchs—Moses and Elijah? Moses, the man called by God to deliver Israel from the hand of Pharaoh (Exodus 3-4), and beside him, Elijah, the prophet who was whisked up by “a chariot of fire and horses . . . in a whirlwind,” to heaven—without experiencing death, (2 Kings 2:11).

Imagine being an eyewitness that moment heaven and earth converged, like a science fiction movie, where a portal opens into a different dimension? Not only that but in the middle of Peter speaking, (he wanted to erect three shelters for them), the audible voice of God interrupts, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17: 5). This experience would revolutionize a person? An electric charge from holy paradise deepening one’s belief—don’t you think?

PETER IN THE HUB OF KINGDOM EXPLOITS

Previous to Peter’s encounter, Jesus asked his disciples who people thought he was. The disciples answered, some say you’re a prophet, John the Baptist, or Elijah (Matthew 16:14). I can see Jesus pausing as he gazes intently into their eyes, “But what about you? Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter soars right in, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” (Matthew 16:15-16).

Another interesting fact about Peter is Jesus told him and the other disciples “ . . . at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel,” (Matthew 19:28).

Peter is in the hub of great kingdom exploits. He walks, sees, touches, and converses with the Son of Man, who is God in the flesh. However, soon after Peter’s declaration, affirmation of eternal life, and his mountain top experience, he denies he’s associated with Jesus—not once but three times. Let me say that again . . .  he denies his association with Jesus THREE TIMES! Jesus predicted Peter would do this (Mark 14:30). Isn’t Peter a lot like us walking closely with Jesus and then making blunders we regret? Or are we a lot like Peter making declarations, like we have the power within ourselves to see them through? Jesus, I’d never deny you!

  

THE POTENTIAL REASON FOR PETER’S DENIAL

I love that God recorded the lives of these men, the good, bad, and ugly, in the Bible. I don’t feel so alone. Just as Jesus knew Peter’s denial, he knows our frailty too. We can declare our faith is fervent; therefore, the denial of Jesus, who purchased our freedom with his life, is out of question. But would we? Do we?

What caused Peter to deny he was a disciple of Christ in the first place? Here are my suggestions: Fear and self-centeredness. Both of these have to do with “What’s going to happen to me? How will my life change? What will people think?”

Fear translates punishment, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The man who fears is not made perfect in love,” (1 John 4:18). Perhaps Peter feared punishment or death from the same authorities that questioned Jesus. Or maybe he feared his reputation because Jesus was being charged as a hieratic. He forgot the audible voice of God declaring “This is my Son, whom I love . . .”

IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY

Here’s a sobering verse, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted . . .” (2 Timothy 3:12-13). Hey wait, I didn’t sign up for that? Did you?

What will we do in that kind of adversity? Will we cower and deny? Or will we stand firm and unmovable? If Peter was in the “know,” and denied Jesus, how will we respond when the very core of our faith is interrogated? Or our moral convictions ridiculed? How are we responding today?

Jesus said, “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge . . . But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in Heaven,” (Matthew 10:32-33). Yet Jesus gives Peter opportunity to redeem himself, three times (John 21:15-19). Jesus knew what Peter was made of—he knew Peter’s heart up close and personal. And he knows ours. Believers today are gifted with the Holy Spirit, which means Christ is living in us and through us.

Jesus did not alter Peter’s standing in him neither did he change his love toward him. When we are faithless, God remains faithful. The most important aspect to the Christian faith is always seeking to know God—that strengthens our inner man as we grasp the depth of his grace.

2 Timothy provides some answers; when we are faced with adversity, which I think is helpful when our mountaintop experience fades. We should:

• Continue in what we’ve learned and have been convinced of
• Be prepared in season and out of season to give an answer to why we believe
• Keep our head in all situations—don’t become quarrelsome
• Endure hardship because we know in whom we believe

“You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near,” (James 5:8).

The Secret to Mountain Moving . . . a mustard seed of faith

We all experience dark days of the soul. The unpromising storms of life, which bellow at us externally and internally, create unrest. We pray and pray some more, yet at times, it seems as though those prayers hit the ceiling with a thud. We might even scold our self, saying, we don’t have enough faith.

Uncertainty and defeat climb on us like clinging vines oppressing any faith and hope we think we might own. At least that is the way dark days feel.
For some, the struggle to get out of bed takes more energy and faith then they can muster. Have you been there? I have. I’ve been in dark days in which I felt there would be no end to the sorrow. Days where the clinging vines wrapped around me so hard, I felt my breath escape.

Jesus told his disciples, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you,” (Matthew 17:20).

A mustard seed is only 1 or 2 mm in diameter. That’s a little seed. One day, when upheaval kept blowing my way, I thought about this fact and this promise. Our son, Jason, had been arrested and pleaded his innocence. “Mom, really I didn’t do this. I’m being set-up.” My heart-of-hearts wanted to believe he was telling the truth. But here my son was in jail, again. What and who was I to believe. The detective, in a conversation said, “You ought to forget about your son.” Those words hit like a flaming arrow. Forget about my son—those were fighting words to this mother. My intuitive radar kicked in and I knew something unethical was lurking behind the blinds.

Anxiety crushed my soul like a zillion ton of bricks. I was helpless. Jason’s fate was out of my control (as I know it never was in my control!). Even though, l began to think about a little verse tucked away in the crevices of my heart, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed.” And suddenly, like an ocean wave that surprises you, I thought Hey faith as small as a mustard seed! I have faith as small as a mustard seed, so I began to pray, “I’ve been a Christian for over thirty years Lord, not that I need to remind you, and I know you are the Almighty God, I know you can do mighty things. I’m positive I have faith as small as a mustard seed. And you say if I have that much faith, I can move mountains. Lord, there is a mountain bigger than life staring my son in the face. I know, Lord he is probably guilty of other actions, aren’t we all guilty of something; however, I believe God he is telling the truth. So God, I invoke my mustard seed faith in the truth of your promise and I say to this mountain be gone. Let truth triumph over falsehood.” And that was that, I waited with the patients of a hungry lion.

Several months, after praying my mustard seed prayer, Jason was released from County Jail with all charges dropped. He said, “You know mom, it’s okay I was in jail—there’s lots of things I’ve done that I’ve never gotten caught for, and God wanted me there. I started a bible study and led someone to the Lord. For that, it was all worth it.”

Is there a mountain shadowing your days of joy? Then I encourage you to cry, scream, and yell and when you’ve exhausted yourself and there is no more left of you, then pull on your combat boots and prepare to fight. Invoke your faith, small as it is, knowing that Jesus is not a liar, “I tell you the truth,” he says, “if you have faith as small as a mustard seed,” and I’m sure you do, “you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you,” (Matthew 17:20).

The apostle Paul said, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen,” (Ephesians 3:20-21).
When you put into motion your mustard seed faith, remember it is “his **[God’s] power that is at work within us [you].” I’m neither into formulas nor putting faith in faith, or believing we have to muster mounds of faith to move God to action. Honest, childlike faith, even as small as a mustard seed, will move God on your behalf—he is our burden bearer, “Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you,” (1 Peter 5:7 NKJV).

What are you waiting for—go plant that mustard seed of faith in the soil of prayer and watch the Can Do God come to your aid in his perfect time.

*I used my son’s story with his permission, in case you were wondering. **Brackets inserted for clarity.

Have a reply about faith, a story to share, please don’t be shy!

The Secret to Mountain Moving . . .

We all experience dark days of the soul. The unpromising storms of life, which bellow at us externally and internally, create unrest. We pray and pray some more, yet at times, it seems as though those prayers hit the ceiling with a thud. We might even scold our self, saying, we don’t have enough faith. Uncertainty and defeat climb on us like clinging vines oppressing any faith and hope we think we might own. At least that is the way dark days feel.

For some, the struggle to get out of bed takes more energy and faith then they can muster. Have you been there? I have. I’ve been in dark days in which I felt there would be no end to the sorrow. Days where the clinging vines wrapped around me so hard, I felt my breath escape.

Jesus told his disciples, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you,” (Matthew 17:20).

A mustard seed is only 1 or 2 mm in diameter. That’s a little seed. One day, when upheaval kept blowing my way, I thought about this fact and this promise. Our son, Jason, had been arrested and pleaded his innocence. “Mom, really I didn’t do this. I’m being set-up.” My heart-of-hearts wanted to believe he was telling the truth. But here my son was in jail, again. What and who was I to believe. The detective, in a conversation said, “You ought to forget about your son.” Those words hit like a flaming arrow. Forget about my son—those were fighting words to this mother. My intuitive radar kicked in and I knew something unethical was lurking behind the blinds.

Anxiety crushed my soul like a zillion ton of bricks. I was helpless. Jason’s fate was out of my control (as I know it never was in my control!). Even though, l began to think about a little verse tucked away in the crevices of my heart, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed.” And suddenly, like an ocean wave that surprises you, I thought Hey faith as small as a mustard seed! I have faith as small as a mustard seed, so I began to pray, “I’ve been a Christian for over thirty years Lord, not that I need to remind you, and I know you are the Almighty God, I know you can do mighty things. I’m positive I have faith as small as a mustard seed. And you say if I have that much faith, I can move mountains. Lord, there is a mountain bigger than life staring my son in the face. I know, Lord he is probably guilty of other actions, aren’t we all guilty of something; however, I believe God he is telling the truth. So God, I invoke my mustard seed faith in the truth of your promise and I say to this mountain be gone. Let truth triumph over falsehood.” And that was that, I waited with the patients of a hungry lion.

Several months, after praying my mustard seed prayer, Jason was released from County Jail with all charges dropped. He said, “You know mom, it’s okay I was in jail—there’s lots of things I’ve done that I’ve never gotten caught for, and God wanted me there. I started a bible study and led someone to the Lord. For that, it was all worth it.”

Is there a mountain shadowing your days of joy? Then I encourage you to cry, scream, and yell and when you’ve exhausted yourself and there is no more left of you, then pull on your combat boots and prepare to fight. Invoke your faith, small as it is, knowing that Jesus is not a liar, “I tell you the truth,” he says, “if you have faith as small as a mustard seed,” and I’m sure you do, “you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you,” (Matthew 17:20).

The apostle Paul said, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen,” (Ephesians 3:20-21).

When you put into motion your mustard seed faith, remember it is “his **[God’s] power that is at work within us [you].” I’m neither into formulas nor putting faith in faith, or believing we have to muster mounds of faith to move God to action. Honest, childlike faith, even as small as a mustard seed, will move God on your behalf—he is our burden bearer, “Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you,” (1 Peter 5:7 NKJV).

What are you waiting for—go plant that mustard seed of faith in the soil of prayer and watch the Can Do God come to your aid in his perfect time.

*I used Jason’s story with his permission, in case you were wondering. **Brackets inserted for clarity.

Have a reply about faith, a story to share, please don’t be shy!

The Good Shepherd wants you to know . . . (Part II Ps. 23)

According to Adventuring through the Bible, by Ray C. Stedman, he writes that the “compilation” of Psalm 1- 41 was “about 1020 B.C to 920 B.C.” It is astonishing that a piece of work, written a thousand years ago, continues to minister to us in the twenty-first century. Many believe that God’s word is silliness or a myth, but for the Christian, God’s word is a living organism, (Read Hebrews 4:12).

Let us continue again with King David’s passionate prayer to Jehovah.

“He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”
The LORD is gracious beyond measure. He is a patient shepherd guiding and rescuing his wondering sheep—you and me. In the Strong’s Hebrew/Aramaic Dictionary, “righteousness,” in verse 3, means, “That which is all together just.” The same meaning for righteousness is also found in Hosea. Read with me, “I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion,” (Hosea 33:19). This verse ignites my heart! The LORD will betroth us; marry us—his bride the church—in righteousness. He will take us to the place, “which is all together just.” What a lavished passionate love God has for his people. And all for “his name’s sake.” For who he is, the LORD, Jehovah—a compassionate and gracious God.

The LORD guides his sheep and in that we can find safety and reassurance as we journey in this life. We might not always “feel” like he is guiding us in paths of righteousness, especially when we take inventory of our inner self. Guiding us in paths of righteousness is, to me, more like our sanctification—it’s our character, which the shepherd desires to daily shape, so that we will bear the image of Christ—as he (Jesus) is our Righteousness.

In order to allow God to guide, we must submit in humility. King David makes it clear it’s God who guides him—not himself. We need to submit, in humility, to allow God to guide us in paths of righteousness. In other words, as a believer, we must let go of the reins; otherwise, our path will become burdensome. “Stand firm, then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery,” (Galatians 5:1b). That slavery would be our stubbornness to put off our old nature and walk in the new, which is a challenge, as sheep are known to be stubborn creatures.

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”
Although I don’t fear what awaits me on the other side of death, I worry what would become of those I’d leave behind. Not only that but the way in which I might die—will it be quick or slow and painful.

However, what comfort for those who place their faith in Jesus Christ, God’s Son. We do not need to fear death. We find comfort in verses like, “Death has been swallowed up in victory . . . Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15: 54b-55). We do not have to fear evil, which looms in the shadow of death. The Word says the children of God, “ . . . have overcome . . . because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world,” (1 John 4:4).

All to often, when life is throwing us mayhem, we forget the LORD is with us, at least I do. Jesus said, “And surely I will be with you always, to the very end of the age,” (Matthew 28:20b). We all know what it’s like to be rejected, or abandoned by someone—and it hurts deeply. But we need not fear evil of any kind because God is with us. Nor do we need to fear rejection or abandonment from God our Father because he loves us eternally. Even though it might take us a lifetime to grasp “we need not fear evil because he is with us always,” the truth of it does not change—as God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

God told Joshua, when he was to succeed Moses, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you,” (Deuteronomy 31:6).

Psalm 139, in verses 7 through 12, we find a poetic guarantee that even if we tried, there would be no place or realm were we could go to escape God’s presence. A.W Tozer, in his book The Attributes of God, writes, “ . . . God knows no limits, no bounds and no end. What God is, He is without boundaries. All that God is, He is without bounds or limits.” See how we cannot escape the God who is infinitely infinite and always “with us.”

John and Lori Rainwater lived in Atascadero, CA, and died a horrendous death by the hands of evil in 1987. Lori and John had a new baby and a toddler. The week of their death, I participated in a Bible study with Lori. Our topic was on Heaven. I recall Lori’s biggest worry, if she were to go home to soon, was her two children. I’m certain that when John and Lori walked through the valley of the shadow of death, God was with them. I can’t know their fear or thoughts but I do know they were people of faith, kindness, and generosity. Perhaps this verse, “I will fear no evil, for you are with me,” entered their spirit and soul, giving them comfort during their horrible ordeal.

To walk in the knowledge, in which God is always with us—in the midst of joy, tragedy, or terror—our faith, trust, and hope in God must be alive and alert. Thus knowing that no matter what is going on or where we are, HE is with us.

“Thy rod and they staff comfort me.”
David used the word rod and staff in the same sentence and declared they both provided comfort. To me it sounds like an oxymoron, of course it is not. In my studies of a shepherd, both the rod and staff do provide comfort for the sheep in several ways.

The rod is not only used to correct the sheep, which have wondered, but also serves as protection from predators, thus providing comfort from danger. The rod, as said before, counts the sheep. The staff of the shepherd gently guides them toward the path they are to go, reassuring the sheep they are moving in the direction the shepherd wants them to go. If a sheep finds its self in trouble, the shepherd’s staff is able to rescue them from the snare.

God is with us in sorrow and pain, gladness and joy. And it is so because he is the LORD, Jehovah, our Shepherd, he cannot disown his self (2 Timothy 2: 11-13). His rod corrects us when we wonder away, accounts for our presences, guides us gently, and rescues us from trouble.

“For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness,” (Ezekiel 34:11-12).

What are your thoughts? Please share.

*All scriptures, unless otherwise posted, is used from The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, New International Version.

Do You Grow Impatient in Waiting on God?

Read Psalm 130:5-6

Waiting! Did you know, on an average, you will wait six months at a traffic stop, and a total of 5 years in a line? Yes, waiting is a part of daily life. I wonder sometimes if we are just as restless as children on a road trip, eager to get to their destination by asking every five minutes are we there yet? When we are waiting for an answer to an important prayer–perhaps about a decision we are making–or news, which will change our life forever, waiting creates a sort of nervous twitch in our spirit. Especially if God has promised, “. . . I am doing a new thing,” (Isaiah 43:18). The anticipation can drive us crazy.

Whichever one you are “waiting” for, learning to wait requires faith and trust. Faith in who God is and what he can do. Trusting that he will do what he has promised. We might have a sense of “something new stirring,” however, when we don’t “see” the whole picture we become spiritually restless. Generally because this new thing or answer is not unfolding in our particular timetable. I think of Abraham’s wife, Sarah, in growing impatient for her child, who assisted God in carrying out his promise. Her actions affected a whole nation. Like Sarah we are impatient. We know God does all things well, yet we rush ahead of him because after all God needs us!

In my restless waiting for God to launch me into a new direction, God gave me a dream one night. I had planted daffodils and was impatient to see them sprout. I begged God to let my flowers bloom, so he did. Brilliant yellow daffodils unfolded before my eyes. Delight thrilled my heart–yes, my longing achieved. But delight turned to dread. No sooner did my daffodils flower, they quickly withered. The lesson: God’s timing is perfect and has lasting results. To hurry God’s timing is to forfeit the full blessing of what he is doing in us, through us, and for his glory.

God commands us to be still and KNOW that he is God, (Psalms 46:10). Andrew Murray said, “Waiting on God will depend greatly on our faith of what he is.” As your soul waits on God, think on what and who he is. For example:
He does not grow weary or tired (Isaiah 40:28)
His understanding is unsearchable (Isaiah 40:28)
He is the LORD Almighty who created all things (Isaiah 40:26)
He is strong (Psalms 24:8)
He is the one who says, “I am God” (Isaiah 43: 10-12)
He is faithful (Deuteronomy 32:4)
He is with us (Hebrews 13:5)
He is our help (Psalms 46:1)
He is gracious and full of compassion (Nehemiah 9:17)
He is the God of all comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)

So as you are waiting and waiting and waiting, be still and remember God has a perfect time to fulfill His promises and to answer your prayers. God is never late and his wisdom is perfect–because He IS GOD!

Prayer: Lord as I wait for you to unfold your promises and to do a new thing, keep me from striving. Help me to mirror a soul that waits only upon you in patient expectations. Help me to wait for your perfect will to unfold. Keep my mind from anxious thoughts, which only destroys my peace. Cause me to rest fully in you, for you are my peace.

Jesus, Author and Finisher

Read Hebrews 12:1-3

… for it is God who works in you to will and to act
according to his good purpose.”
— Philippians 2:13 (NIV)

As I consider the work of an author–creating, writing, re-writing, and editing until every word is shaped into a cohesive manuscript, I think about Jesus as author of my life. Jesus, the Living Word, entered in and took residence as the Author and Finisher of my faith. What a remarkable deposit of power; let alone the knowledge that he desires to see me prosper–spiritually that is.

Jesus, as the author of my faith, writes his truth on my heart. In difficult times, he writes it again to encourage me. When I repent, he deletes my sin. He inserts the fellowship of believers, which sharpens my faith. By the power and authority of his Word, he edits out the enemy’s lies and deceptions that try to creep into my mind. Through hardships he expands my faith to understand that ‘. . . nothing is impossible with [him] God,” (Luke 1:37 NIV). With wisdom, he inscribes his words on my heart, line-by-line, until faith is established (finished) in me.

The Apostle Paul wrote, “. . . let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith . . . ,” (Hebrews 12:1-2 NKJV). Today, as you run the race of your Christian faith, contemplate that Jesus is perfecting your faith. Allow this to free you from any striving. You can be “… confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion …,” (Philippians 1:6 NIV).

Prayer:
I’m forever grateful, Jesus, that you are my faith giver. I don’t have to muster faith on my own, for you dwell in me to perfect me to the end. Amen.