Give it up!!!!

God is so good to meet us where we are. He knows our innermost struggles and He wants to encourage us and give us hope. Sometimes we just don't let Him comfort us. Sometimes we are just so busy feeling frustrated, hopeless, negative and bad that we don't turn to the only One who can help us. I think when we don't turn to God for insight, answers, comfort, breakthroughs - we basically are telling Him we don't need Him, we can do it on our own. He isn't going to force Himself on us. He is always there waiting for us to FINALLY lay it all down at His feet. To give up, give it ALL up to Him. Only then can He step in, once we surrender it all at His feet and tell Him to have His way. That is such a scary step to take one that most won't ever do. But without taking that step, we will continue to struggle and be anxious and frustrated fighting in our own strength.

I have been feeling down the last couple of weeks. Having to fight off frustration, despair, hopelessness. I have done battle in my room with Satan and all his minions many days now. I have read and prayed. But the heaviness has still been there. Went at it again tonight, and God showed up!!! God gave me some encouragement. Nothing concrete has changed with our situation, but He gave me promises to claim. Promises in His word. TRUTH!!!! God's Word will not return void, it is life giving. For me tonight, God's promises are in Psalm 16.

Keep me safe, my God,
for in you I take refuge.

I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.”
I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.

LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful[b] one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

This scripture encouraged me in a few areas I have been praying about. Seek the Lord for answers to what is troubling YOU. He desires to reveal Himself to you. Just ask Him.

Protect your Heart

Heart. Lungs. Stomach. Vital organs absolutely needed to sustain life. Parts of our bodies that are critical to protect. Without them we no longer live. While we are in battle it is imperative that we protect our body and the vital organs in it. In ancient times Roman Soldiers wore armour that protected their bodies from neck to thigh. Without this armour a soldier would quickly die from arrow or sword, whichever was quickest at penetrating his body. Likewise, when we are in spiritual battle we are instructed in both the Old and the New Testament to put on our own Breastplate. One made out of Righteousness.

And He (God) saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. Isaiah 59:16-17

In Ephesians 6:14 it says: Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place.

But how does one "put on" a Breastplate of Righteousness? For that matter, what exactly is a breastplate of righteousness and why is righteousness so important.

The Hebrew word for righteousness appears over 500 times in the Old Testament and the Greek word dikaios: appears over 200 times in the New Testament. The Hebrew word for righteousness is tseh'-dek, tzedek, which means righteous, integrity, equity, justice, straightness. The root of tseh'-dek is tsaw-dak', which means: upright, just, straight, innocent, true, sincere.

Righteousness is what allows us to stand up against the evil in the world. The evil attacks from Satan and his cohorts constantly try to prevail against us, righteousness is our protection against those attacks.

In the Old Testament, Job withstood much warfare and numerous attacks from Satan. He lost his family, his home, his health, his reputation and his livelihood all at the hand of the Evil One. And yet, he remained close to God and it did not defeat him. Job was also credited as being blameless and upright. In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. Job 1:1. Job's righteousness helped him stand firm when so many heartbreaking trials came his way. And the Lord returned many times over that which was lost to Job as a result of his faithfulness.

But, what exactly is righteousness in practical terms? How does having a Breastplate of Righteousness actually protect us from Satan. I have been thinking long and hard on this one and this is my thought. When we live a life that is righteous before the Lord, our armour is sound, intact and strong. It is impenetrable from the arrows that fly by night and the sword that comes at day. But the heart is the source of evil as well. We must keep it righteous by guarding it because it controls so much of what we do and who we are:

Keep vigilant watch over your heart;
that's where life starts.
Don't talk out of both sides of your mouth;
avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip.
Keep your eyes straight ahead;
ignore all sideshow distractions.
Watch your step,
and the road will stretch out smooth before you.
Look neither right nor left;
leave evil in the dust. Proverbs 4:23-27 (The Message)

My thought is that when we don't keep a vigilant watch over our heart, the words we speak and the actions we participate in, can very easily cause us to slip into unrighteous living. And it is in those places where small chinks or cracks in our armour start to form and the primary defense for our body is then susceptible to attacks and arrows from Satan. We in essence give him a foothold. A place to hold on and attack us even more. Making it very difficult to stand up and fight, because we are now being wounded by his attacks.

In Ephesians 4:25-32 it states:

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

So with that being said, remain diligent in right living. By faith and love - stand firm - live righteously~

The Truth about Lies

You have no REAL friends. You're not important. You sure are fat and ugly. You haven't done anything of value with your life. You are a complete loser. Did you really think people would actually enjoy spending time with you? Nothing is ever going to work out well for you. You'll never find success. No one really loves you or even likes you for that matter. What a failure I am!

How many of these statements have run through your head? If you're like me, most of them. And that is just in the past week! What is amazing about each of these statements is they are all lies. Completely fabricated statements that beat us to the very core of our being. Lies that debilitate us and cause us to walk in utter defeat. Lies that are orchestrated and reiterated over and over again by the Father of Lies to demoralize us and render us useless.

If we are ever going to walk in victory it is imperative that we battle against the lies. TRUTH is the only way to walk triumphantly. We must daily add another piece of our armour. The Belt of Truth.

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist... Ephesians 6:14.

In Biblical times the belt was used to tie up loose garments so one could run and fight in battle. Belts were also used to hold the weapons used in warfare (as they still are today with our military). So the belt was a necessary garment used to allow nimble and mobile actions as well as having weapons of warfare within easy and quick reach.

We are instructed to have the Belt of TRUTH on daily. The only way to fight the lies that so quickly invade our minds is to come at them with the Truth of God's Word.

Three ways to help keep that TRUTH close at hand:

1) Read scripture and memorize it. You have to know what the truth is to be able to war against the lies.

2) When you are dealing with the lies, recognize them for what they are and start quoting or reading scripture that exposes the lies.

3) Pray - ask the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, to help you. Ask Him to help you recall scriptures and intercede on your behalf.

It is a guaranteed fact that the lies of the enemy will come against you. Lies that will steal your hope, joy and victory. And they can sneak in so quickly and quietly. I have been battling feeling really unloved for a couple of weeks now. And finally, I recognized it for what it is. A lie. For God says - I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness. Jeremiah 31:3.

What lies have you been told? Have you found the TRUTH in God's word to tie up that belt and fight those lies?

Going to Battle - Part 1

How many of you feel like you are fighting a never-ending battle against Satan? Feel like he has the upper hand and is having a field day with your situation, emotions, feelings and very being. I think it is a state that many of us find ourselves in probably way more times than we care to count.

Do not forget your position in Christ. For we are seated in Heavenly places with Christ Jesus. Jesus WON the war already. He is victorious, as are we who have placed our trust in Him. Because it is HE who lives in us, we too have complete victory over Satan and his schemes. It is not Satan who is over you with complete and unabashed authority. You have all power to trample the enemy's attacks through Jesus Christ and by His blood. As it says: The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. Luke 10:17-19

Stand firm in Whose you are and in the full-knowledge of where your power and strength come from. So many fight fear, anxiety and hopelessness as well as a host of other things and don't know that they don't have to fight this battle on their own strength. These emotions are not from God, but you must stand firm in your fight against them.

One way to fight against those attacks is by the Word - the Sword of the Spirit. Find those verses that you can claim and memorize them and each and every time you feel fear or anxiety (or whatever you personally are dealing with), claim those promises in scripture.

A few verses to pray and claim:
For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Philippians 4:6

I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. Psalm 34:17-19

Take captive your thoughts by the blood of Jesus.

Thankful for the Thorns

Sandra felt as low as the heels of her boots as she pushed against a November gust and the florist shop door. Her life had been easy, like spring breeze. Then in the fourth month of her second pregnancy, a minor automobile accident stole her ease.

During this Thanksgiving week she would have delivered a son. She grieved over her loss. As if that weren't enough, her husband's company threatened a transfer. Then her sister, whose holiday visit she coveted, called saying she could not come. What's worse, Sandra's friend infuriated her by suggesting her grief was a God-given path to maturity that would allow her to empathize with others who suffer.

"She has no idea what I'm feeling," thought Sandra with a shudder.

Thanksgiving? Thankful for what? She wondered. For a careless driver whose truck was hardly scratched when he rear-ended her? For an air bag that saved her life but took that of her child?

"Good afternoon, may I help you?" The shop clerk's approach startled her.

"I....I need an arrangement," stammered Sandra.

"For Thanksgiving? Do you want beautiful but ordinary, or would you like to challenge the day with a customer favorite I call the Thanksgiving "Special?" asked the shop clerk. "I'm convinced that flowers tell stories," she continued. "Are you looking for something that conveys 'gratitude' this Thanksgiving?"

"Not exactly!" Sandra blurted out. "In the last five months, everything that could go wrong has gone wrong."

Sandra regretted her outburst, and was surprised when the shop clerk said, "I have the perfect arrangement for you."

Then the door's small bell rang, and the shop clerk said, "Hi, Barbara...let me get your order."

She politely excused herself and walked toward a small workroom, then quickly reappeared, carrying an arrangement of greenery, bows, and long-stemmed thorny roses; Except the ends of the rose stems were neatly snipped: there were no flowers.

"Want this in a box?" asked the clerk.

Sandra watched for the customer's response. Was this a joke? Who would want rose stems with no flowers! She waited for laughter, but neither woman laughed.

"Yes, please," Barbara replied with an appreciative smile. "You'd think after three years of getting the special, I wouldn't be so moved by its significance, but I can feel it right here, all over again," she said as she gently tapped her chest.

"Uh," stammered Sandra, "that lady just left with, uh....she just left with no flowers!"

"Right, said the clerk, "I cut off the flowers. That's the Special. I call it the Thanksgiving Thorns Bouquet."

"Oh, come on, you can't tell me someone is willing to pay for that!" exclaimed Sandra.

"Barbara came into the shop three years ago feeling much like you feel today," explained the clerk. "She thought she had very little to be thankful for. She had lost her father to cancer, the family business was failing, her son was into drugs, and she was facing major surgery."

"That same year I had lost my husband," continued the clerk, "and for the first time in my life, had just spent the holidays alone. I had no children, no husband, no family nearby, and too great a debt to allow any travel."

"So what did you do?" asked Sandra.

"I learned to be thankful for thorns," answered the clerk quietly. "I've always thanked God for good things in life and never to ask Him why those good things happened to me, but when bad stuff hit, did I ever ask! It took time for me to learn that dark times are important. I have always enjoyed the 'flowers' of life, but it took thorns to show me the beauty of God's comfort. You know, the Bible says that God comforts us when we're afflicted, and from His consolation we learn to comfort others."

Sandra sucked in her breath as she thought about the very thing her friend had tried to tell her. "I guess the truth is I don't want comfort. I've lost a baby and I'm angry with God."

Just then someone else walked in the shop.

"Hey, Phil!" shouted the clerk to the balding, rotund man.

"My wife sent me in to get our usual Thanksgiving arrangement...twelve thorny, long-stemmed stems," laughed Phil as the clerk handed him a tissue-wrapped arrangement from the refrigerator.

"Those are for your wife?" asked Sandra incredulously. "Do you mind me asking why she wants something that looks like that?"

"No...I'm glad you asked," Phil replied. "Four years ago my wife and I nearly divorced. After forty years, we were in a real mess, but with the Lord's grace and guidance, we slogged through problem after problem. He rescued our marriage. Jenny here (the clerk) told me she kept a vase of rose stems to remind her of what she learned from "thorny" times, and that was good enough for me. I took home some of those stems. My wife and I decided to label each one for a specific "problem" and give thanks for what that problem taught us."

As Phil paid the clerk, he said to Sandra, "I highly recommend the Special."

I don't know if I can be thankful for the thorns in my life," Sandra said to the clerk. "It's all too...fresh."

"Well," the clerk replied carefully, "my experience has shown me that thorns make roses more precious. We treasure God's providential care more during trouble than at any other time. Remember, it was a crown of thorns that Jesus wore so we might know His love. Don't resent the thorns."

Tears rolled down Sandra's cheeks. For the first time since the accident, she loosened her grip on resentment.

"I'll take those twelve long-stemmed thorns, please," she managed to choke out.

"I hoped you would," said the clerk gently. "I'll have them ready in a minute."

"Thank you. What do I owe you?" Sarah asked.

"Nothing; nothing but a promise to allow God to heal your heart. The first year's arrangement is always on me." The clerk smiled and handed a card to Sandra. "I'll attach this card to your arrangement, but maybe you would like to read it first."

It read:

"My God, I have never thanked You for my thorns. I have thanked You a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my thorns. Teach me the glory of the life I bear; teach me the value of my thorns. Show me that I have climbed closer to You along the path of pain. Show me that, through my tears, the colors of Your rainbow look much more brilliant."

Praise Him for your roses, thank him for your thorns.

Author: Unknown


May you have a blessed Thanksgiving with your family and loved ones!

Much love to you all,
Kim

Loaves and Fish

Six months into a season of unemployment...it is hard to believe it has been that long. When James first lost his job, I thought FOR SURE he would be employed by September, but here we are heading to the holidays and no real job in sight. What is more amazing is the supernatural peace God has continued to envelop our family in.

I have been absolutely amazed at how God has continued to provide for my family. We are doing amazingly well. What a blessing this time has been for us to watch God at work in each of us. I have learned so much about the hand of God providing for our every need. God has faithfully kept His Word and promises.

I cling to His promises: Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you. and Since ancient times, no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him. My God has been so faithful.

We have truly seen the principal of the fish and loaves manifest itself in our lives throughout this season. God told us almost a year ago to become extremely diligent in tithing and giving offerings to the Lord. I will be really honest and say it was one of the hardest things we have had to do. Money was so tight and we were living every bit paycheck to paycheck, but James and I made a commitment to become very obedient in this difficult area. The first five months of giving were not easy at all. It seemed like our finances were in worse shape than ever before, but we remained obedient. After the first five months of tithing and expecting God to give James a promotion because we had been faithful - the exact opposite happened and James lost his job instead. But then the miracles started to happen. We continued to tithe and amazingly our bank account had way more money in it then before. That was really cool. So we decided to start giving extra offerings on top of the tithe, and even more money was there. We were living out the fish and the loaves.

Just like the little boy who gave what he could give - some fish and bread - and Jesus turned it into enough food to feed thousands with food to spare. How is that possible? In our finite minds it isn't, but with God absolutely NOTHING is impossible.

This was happening with us, as we continued to give, God continued to keep the money in our account. It never empties, even though on paper it should have been empty - a long time ago.

I was reminded about the story of Elijah and the Widow. Elijah had prophesied that there would be famine in the land. During this time, Elijah ate well - bread and meat brought to him by all things, ravens. But then God told Elijah to move on and go to the next town and the widow woman there would provide food for him. As Elijah approached the widow, he asked for some water and she happily agreed to get it for him. He then also asked her for a piece of bread. She told him, "I only have enough flour in my jar and oil in my jug to make a very small loaf for my son and I and then we were surely die because there is no more left". Elijah told her to make him a small loaf first and then make bread for her and her son and there would be enough flour and oil for all of them. I wonder what that widow woman thought as she walked back to her home and proceeded to do as she was told. But guess what - every morning for two years while the drought and famine ravaged her land, she had enough flour in her jar and oil in her jug to make bread for her, her son AND Elijah. Although the jar and jug should have been emptied long ago, they never were. God provided.

I know that God delights in providing for us. He loves us, but He does want obedience and He wants our trust. I think it is also so very important to give to Him without fear and worry. Honestly, fear and worry is really just sin. It says to God, I know better than you and I really don't believe that You will do as You say and take care of me. Sometimes it is really hard to trust and believe, but God can't work if we bind ourselves to what WE think should happen (but that's a whole other post I need to write). For now, I love knowing that God is in charge and watching out for us and providing for us on a daily basis, just like the widow and Elijah.

So as we head forward, I anticipate with great excitement what happens next. James' job is coming soon - that I do know too - no idea where or when - but soon....

Parenting through hard choices

Never say never...that pretty much sums up my life. In my quest to be in control, I humorously thought that I could decide certain things and have that be so. I used to say, "I would NEVER marry a man that had red hair." I also had been known to say, that I was going to marry a pastor, youth minister or missionary. God must have thought those absolute statements of mine were pretty funny, seeing as how He gave me a wonderful husband (whom I love and adore) that most definitely is a red-head and is not in full-time ministry.

I have made other such statements throughout my life. What I will and won't do, how my life will and won't go. And I have recently realised that I have made such statements where my son is concerned. Even while pregnant with him, I was quite concerned which made me very resolute that he wouldn't be one of those hyper type boys that lacks self control and is impulsive. Up to the point I became pregnant with him, I had a little girl who for the most part was very good. School and learning came easy for her as did being well liked and highly thought of. Of course, me in my humble esteem, chalked it all up to my wonderful parenting. Being a teacher and all, I am sure that her good behavior and smart brain were a direct result to my input and training. SO when we found out we would have a boy, I figured he would be just as easy to raise and train. Boy, how that quickly changed.

My son has always been a pure joy to me. He is a delight and a very witty child, who is creative, imaginative and flat-out fun to be around. But he is also a very spirited child who can be difficult to corral, who can be quite strong-willed and defiant and over-the-top impulsive. I am not sure how that happened, as I was so certain of my excellent parenting skills when I was pregnant with him.

When I think about my 'absolute' statements I made about how my son would and would not be, I am sure God just shook His head. I am learning that God wants us to flexible. He wants us to rely fully on Him, even when what we see happening was not at all in our plan. He wants us to put aside our preconceived notions and ideas of what WE think is right and/or wrong and trust wholly in Him and His divine plan for our lives.

As my son has been growing up (he is 7) he has had numerous challenges. He started getting in trouble at school at the ripe ol' age of 17 months. Being an avid biter, it is sad to think how many children bore his teeth marks. We came to realize that he had a speech issue that probably lead to most of his biting issues. We were fortunate to get him into therapy at a very young age so his speech issues (and his biting problem) was corrected fairly quickly.

My son has always been very impulsive. Acting and then thinking, often I am sure with the thought, "Ah man, I didn't mean for THAT to happen." He gets off task easily, loses focus and cannot sit still to save his life.

I have struggled with this for years. Having one child that is often one of the teacher's favorites, reading at a very young age, straight As, awesome behavior is a blessing. But to see your other child struggle with bad daily reports, poor grades and simply not getting key educational concepts is really hard. It really caused me to become overly protective of my son. Each year, begging and pleading with God for someone to see my son as I saw him. To love him and see in him the great qualities I see in him and to appreciate that about him. But it has never really happened. I have probably been a little short with some people as they were less than supportive of him. And still I figured I could fix him somehow.

We had him repeat kindergarten because he was so young and needed time to mature. Not sure how much that helped. We changed his diet, took out things, added in things, gave him dietary supplements, vitamins, minerals. We woke him up at 5:30 in the morning to go running to try and get out his excess energy before school started. To say we tried it all, would be accurate. But none of it worked. Not even a little bit. And my heart continued to break further and further. I wanted so much for him to succeed. I was a teacher for goodness sake. And by this time, I had done extensive research on how best to teach boys and had become quite an expert. But even with all the knowledge I had, the techniques that I knew worked for many boys, did not help my own son. I was at the end of my rope.

And the despair, frustration and anxiety I saw coming from my sweet son was devastating. He was so upset and would often cry about not being able to read as well as others. He would often make statements about how he was a bad kid because he couldn't sit still and do the right thing. He would tell us how much he wanted to be good, his prayed the most heartfelt, tearful prayers to God to help him make the right choices, and was so disappointed when he didn't. But he would tell us how he didn't know what to do to change it.

This summer I was determined to get him ahead academically. He was going to first grade and I wasn't going to have him be behind. He received one-on-one tutoring from a teacher friend of mine. We played reading games, did flash-cards, body spelling. You name it, we did it. And still, my son would lose focus and you'd have to circle back around to where you left off and by that point we had to start all over again and he would have forgotten all that we had just went over. So if he couldn't do it in a one-on-one setting which incorporated a great deal of movement, how would a structured school environment with a classroom full of others work? It was at this point, that my husband and I started really praying about what to do and specifically about medication. I was so sure that God would not ever have us put our child on any kind of medication to help him succeed in school. But as we were praying God started putting people in my path who had walked down the same road as us and had put their child on medication for ADHD and there child was doing so much better. We had several meetings with his pediatrician. I talked to family and friends and prayed and prayed and prayed. It was a several month process from start to finish.

My husband and I each received a peace about putting him on medication a couple of weeks ago. No one ever wants to put medication in their child that is unnecessary or could be harmful. But I also know God uses all sorts of things to bring about His desired results. I think for me, He used the one thing I had said absolutely I would never do and made that be the one thing that absolutely is working. My son has just started his journey with medication, but he is doing remarkably well so far. It is our prayer that he continues to do so. His academics this week took a huge jump and he keeps saying, "I am making the right choices and I am so happy."

You know, as I think about my thought process on this (and probably many other things)I think it is sometimes easy to become like Jonah in the Bible. He was so convinced that he knew what was best. He knew the Ninevites were evil people. He didn't think they deserved his time or effort because they were not God-fearing and were down-right awful. But yet, that is where God told him to go. He fought God's direction so hard that he ended up in the belly of a whale. And only then was he willing to listen to God's direction. He did end up doing what God said, but with a very hard heart that was not joyful in obedience. I don't want to be like Jonah. I want to be obedient to whatever it is that God is telling me to do, even if in my mind it doesn't make sense. Even if the plan I have sounds a whole lot better to me. I want to follow God in HIS will with complete trust and abandonment to His desires.

“… I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live, that you may love the Lord your God, that you may OBEY HIS VOICE, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days …” (Deuteronomy 30:19)

So as I continue on this journey, I think the first step is going to be taking those absolute words, always and never, out of my vocabulary!!!!