New Year's Resolutions or New Year's Realizations?

New Year's Day always seem to launch people into a desire for change! We come up with our list of things we think we need to stop doing, start doing or change how we are doing. We call that list our New Year's resolutions. How long does that list usually last? A week, a month; maybe a few months if we're lucky. Why? Because being "successful" in our resolutions is based entirely on our ability and our performance.

As 2015 begins, I'd like to suggest a different perspective. Instead of focusing on what YOU should DO this year, focus on what GOD has DONE, what HE is DOING and WHO you ARE in Him! For the child of God, realization of reality is much more effective in producing real change than our attempts at performing differently in order to change. God is really not waiting for us to start acting differently; He is waiting for us to realize who we are and Whose we are! 

He is waiting for us to live out who we really are instead of staying stuck in who we think we are. We are children of the King, co-heirs with Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit. We are destined for greatness...a greatness that reflects the Great One and His Kingdom! When we really believe that, change becomes a natural result! When what we do becomes about the Kingdom of God, when our obedience flows from a heart of love for Him & others and when the thoughts allowed to take up residence in our mind agree with what God declares...then our lives will actually look like the person God has created us to be!! 

So in 2015...be who you really are in Him, walk out love-based obedience and watch God work! 

Grace for the moment

     I recently took a Facebook quiz entitled "What Should Be the Title of Your Autobiography?" While I realize that those quizzes are extremely corny and have no real link to reality, I found this particular result ironic. According to the quiz my autobiography should be called "How I Learned to Dance in the Rain". That is very fitting to what I'll be writing about in this post!

    Have you ever watched a brother or sister in Christ go through something in their life and thought "I don't know how they are doing it, I couldn't handle that!"? Or, have you ever thought about how you would handle dealing with one of your biggest fears coming to fruition and thought it would destroy you? Looking in from the outside or looking forward into the future, there are things that just seem completely unbearable. 

    This past month, one of those "unbearable things" presented itself in my life. But it has turned out far differently than I expected! One of the things that I would have said had the potential to destroy my faith the most has actually done the opposite! I've learned the reality of the phrase "grace for the moment" in a way I never have before. At the very moment when I thought "I don't know if I can do this", God's grace and peace washed over me and I literally felt like I was being carried. In Isaiah 26:3 it says "You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You" and again in Philippians 4:7 we are told that when we trust God "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." I've known those verses all my life but struggled with them because keeping my mind focused on God and trusting Him have never been easy. But in those moments when my circumstances threatened to overwhelm me, the awareness of the presence of my loving God was somehow bigger than it all!

   I discovered that it is, in large part, my understanding of the character of God that draws to me to that place of trust. When I really believe that He is my all-loving, all-faithful Father, focusing on Him is really the only thing to do! It reminds me of when some of Jesus' followers decided it was too hard and walked away and Jesus asked the twelve disciples if they were going to leave too. Peter's response pretty much sums up what I'm learning during this season of my life: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that You are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68-69) 

   Don't get me wrong, it doesn't make everything easy. Emotions still run high at times and fear threatens to consume me sometimes but I just keep going back to the truth...God is who He says He is and nothing changes that. So no matter what may come I can dance in both the sunshine and the rain - "dancing with my Father God in fields of grace" (Big Daddy Weave) 

   So my encouragement to you is this: God gives grace, strength, peace and everything else you need for the moment you are in right now. Right now you don't have strength for tomorrow, but tomorrow you will. Right now you don't have the grace to handle whatever your "unbearable thing" is, but if it comes I can promise you that as a child of God you will have all the grace you need in that moment. 

   

Surrender

We should all have a daily exchange with God. We need to place our lives in God's hands and let Him fill us with faith. We need to let God totally envelop us in His grace. Sounds simple doesn't it? It is. But it is also a moment by moment choice. 

So how do we make that choice? The answer is in one word. That's right, just one word. One word that will set the entire tone of our lives. One word that has the potential to re-define who we are. It probably is not the word you are expecting.  It's a word that goes against the natural grain of our thinking, a word that at first glance does not seem to fit at all with the idea of being a victorious Christian. 

The word is surrender. Yes, surrender, as in relinquishing control and giving up. Sounds strangely like a word of defeat. After all, in a physical battle, surrendering is not seen as a good thing. It means the enemy has won. We see surrender as someone standing, arms up, admitting defeat and giving up the fight. So this must not be what I mean by surrender? Actually it is! The difference however lies in what, or more accurately who, we are choosing to surrender to. Do we surrender to the enemy and call it quits? No way! Never! Instead, we surrender to the God who can fight for us far better than we could ever fight for ourselves. We need to relinquish control, which really wasn't ours to begin with, and surrender to God's perfect control. We need to give up our way of doing things that lands us flat on our face time and time again. In the words of Paul - "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." (Galatians 2:20) Our lives should reflect the fact that the Spirit indwells us. 

What does it look like to live in full surrender?  To be honest, I'm still figuring that out! But I think it begins by loving God more than anything else, by recognizing what He did for us and by living out of that. When we truly love God, surrender becomes more and more natural in our lives. Our desire to please Him starts to supersede our desire to please ourselves. When we understand just what Jesus accomplished on the cross, we live in the truth that sin has been defeated. The obligation to surrender to sin no longer exists in our lives. Instead we have the power to live a life of obedience and freedom. 

Surrender in the life of a Christian is a beautiful thing. It shows off the power of Christ and brings the essence of His Kingdom to earth. While the world may view surrender as weakness, for the child of God surrender is power! So may we live in full surrender to the One who offers us an abundant life that we could never attain on our own! 

Who are you?

Who are you? Sounds like a simple question. You may answer with things like your name, who your family is, where you live, what your career is or what kind of personality you have. But dig deeper. Where do you really find your identity? There are many factors that can influence how we see ourselves, what we claim as our identity. Sadly, many of those factors lead us into a skewed perspective of identity. As a child of God, we have a very distinct identity and a proper understanding of who we are is vital to living the abundant life that God has designed us for.

One of the things that can lead to a skewed picture of who we are is what other people say about us. But the truth is that people's opinions of us are only as powerful as we allow them to be. When we are overly concerned about how people perceive us, we are actually allowing ourselves to be controlled by them. I recently heard a pastor friend of mine say that "insecurities are wrong securities exposed" (Pastor Jason Seaman). That concept, when fully understood, can really change how we live. True security has a singular source and that source is God Himself. God alone has the power to tell us who we really are and what we are worth. Take a moment and consider who God says we are in Him. "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago" (Ephesians 2:10) God's masterpiece! God is our Creator; He is the master artist who wove us together before the foundation of the earth and gave us a purpose. Sounds pretty amazing to me! "See how very much our Father loves us, for He calls us His children, and that is what we are!" (1 John 3:1a) Not only are we created by God, but we are loved by Him! We are children of the perfect Father! God's love far exceeds any other love we have ever known. In fact, God even says that He delights in us! "He will take delight in you with gladness. With His love He will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs." (Zephaniah 3:17b) That is who God says we are...His masterpiece, adopted and loved by Him and created for a special purpose! 

Another identity error is found in viewing ourselves through our past. Whether we focus on successes or failures, what we have done does not determine who we are. If we are counting our successes and leaning on that as our identity, then we have forgotten that our works apart from Christ are nothing. "For apart from Me you can do nothing" (John15:5b) More often than not though, we end up viewing ourselves through our failures. But the reality is, as children of God, God does not see us through the lens of our failures. We are completely forgiven. "He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west." (Psalm 103:12) But more than that, we have been given the righteousness of Christ. "For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21) We may keep a record of our failures, but God does not and when we choose to wallow in our sins we are pretty much saying that what Jesus did on the cross for us is not sufficient. Focusing on our failures also holds us back from gaining the victory over sin that Jesus provided for us to walk in. God's grace and forgiveness is intended to give us freedom, not freedom to sin, but freedom to be who we are in Him. "He is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of the Son and forgave our sins. He has showered His kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding" (Ephesians 1:7-8) 

When we embrace our true identity in Christ, our lives will be characterized by real freedom, true joy and consistent victory! Freedom because we know who we were created to be, joy because we know Who we belong to and victory because we know where our power comes from! And that is the life God intended for us to live! 

Say what!?

   Have you ever had a conversation with a doctor after which you walked away totally clueless about what he just told you? Or maybe you've listened to a science teacher who was supposedly explaining something, but it made no sense to you? What is it about those kinds of interactions that makes them so hard to understand? It's usually the terminology or lingo that they use. It makes perfect sense to them but how many people actually know what words like "somnolence", "xerostomia", "oligosaccharide" or "borborgymi" mean!? They could be sharing valuable and truthful information with you but the meaning gets lost in translation. As a result, the attempt at communication becomes frustrating and unproductive. 

   Have you ever considered that we as Christians may be guilty of this same kind of communication? We use terms, that while biblically accurate, are often lost on those who are not familiar with the Bible or well versed in theology. The reality is that we can simplify the terms without watering down the truth. For example, consider the medical & scientific terms I used earlier. They sound like complicated things, when in fact they aren't at all. Somnolence means sleepiness and xerostomia means dry mouth. Oligosaccharide is a carbohydrate with only a few sugars in it and borborgymi refers to your stomach growling. Those terms make perfect sense now and it is not any less true for a doctor to tell you that you have dry mouth than it is for him to say you have xerostomia. In the same way, telling someone that they have a Father who loves them and wants a relationship with them is no less true than saying that God does not want anyone to perish but all to come to repentance.

   Think about this! We have the most valuable truth in the world! Don't we want it to be clear!? Yes, the Bible uses words like predestined, justified and sanctified and there is great value in the Christian knowing and understanding the truth represented by those words. But if we really understand God's truth we should be able to communicate it in ways that those who have never read the Bible could grasp. Even phrases like "divine appointment" and "a hedge of protection" are going to sound foreign to a lot of people and yet most people would understand us saying that we believe God is in control of every circumstance or that God promises to send angels to protect His children. Clearly, there is nothing wrong with using theological terminology or "Christianese" phrases but don't get so caught up in those things that you miss out on opportunities to share God's love and truth with those around you. Be willingly to enter into the world God has kept us in, not with lofty, self-righteous communication but with loving, personable conversation. He kept us here for a purpose...to love Him and love others the way He does. In every conversation, those two things should be made clear! 

   "Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ. When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law. When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ. When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings." 

(1 Corinthians 9:19-23) 

The Gospel for Everyday

   When was the last time you thought about the Gospel? The last time you considered the sacrifice Christ made for you? All too often, our thoughts of the Gospel are relegated to memories of when we got saved or to taking communion at church. But the reality is that the Gospel is not just a message for  salvation, it is a message for life. The Gospel should be ingrained into the life of a believer every moment of everyday. Milton Vincent, in his book A Gospel Primer for Christians, says this: " God did not give us His gospel just so we could embrace it and be converted. Actually He offers it to us every day as a gift that keeps on giving to us everything we need for life and godliness."  

    We readily recognize the need for the gospel in the life of an unbeliever, but our need for the gospel does not end when we accept God's gift of salvation. In fact, that is only the beginning. Think about it. The gospel brings us the greatest truth about who God is and who we are. It reveals the power of God, the justice of God, the love of God and the grace of God. It's also reveals our weakness, our sinfulness, and our great need for God's love and grace. There are many reasons why the gospel is vital to the life of a believer. I'll just share a few. 

    The gospel reminds us that it is not about us! Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." Just as salvation is the work of grace, so is the process of growth in our lives! We may understand that we did nothing to earn salvation but once we are saved we often work really hard at trying to change our behavior. For example, I spent years attempting to fight off anxiety by trying to work up courage and not be afraid. But the reality is that I can't...instead I need to learn to simply transfer trust. Stop trusting my own efforts and put my trust solely in God and His perfect control. You see change comes not from mustering up our greatest effort, but from fixing our eyes on the Author & Finisher of our faith. 

     The gospel also shows us how to love others. Romans 5:8 says, "But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us." In those moments when we find it difficult or extend love to someone, have we forgotten how Christ loved us? The love, grace and mercy that He lavished on us are meant to be shared with those around us. Whether they deserve it or not matters very little, we have the very love of God in us to love them just the same. 

    Thirdly, the gospel reminds us of the power we've been given. The crux of the gospel is found in the resurrection of Jesus. Had He only come and died, we would still be lost. But He rose in power and as His children we have that same power at work within us. As we read in Ephesians 1:19-20, "I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe Him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms." We have no excuse to live defeated, powerless lives!! Jesus has defeated sin, He has defeated the enemy and He has given us the power to live in that victory! 

    So remember the gospel today! Remember what you have been given and let it continue to change your life!!

    

Always Learning: a lesson in spiritual discipline

It's amazing to me how someone, like myself, can be saved for almost 20 years and still be learning so much! I grew up in a Christian home with two of the godliest parents in the world. I've been in good, solid churches my entire life. And yet, God continues to teach me new & exciting things about Him and about what He desires of His children. One of the newest areas God is teaching me in is the concept of fasting. 

So what is fasting? Jentezen Franklin, in his book on fasting says that "biblical fasting invites you to refrain from food for a spiritual purpose". It is choosing to give up something, typically food, for a period of time in order to dedicate that time to the Lord. Fasting on its own is pointless, it's only when fasting is done with prayer and study of the Word that it is true biblical fasting. 

Of course I'd heard of fasting, but had never really studied it and therefore didn't practice it or even understand the need for it. Fasting is not directly commanded in Scripture. However, Matthew 6:16-18 says, "And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." I find it interesting that Jesus said "when you fast" not "if you fast". This discussion of fasting comes directly after Jesus tells us how to give and how to pray. As believers, we will readily admit that giving and praying are an essential part of our spiritual lives. This passage seems to indicate that we should view fasting in the same way.  Also in Luke 5:33-35 we read, "And they said to him, “The disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.” And Jesus said to them, “Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.”  Here Jesus says "they will fast". So it seems that even though Jesus never directly commanded it, He expects His followers to do it. Scripture also holds a wealth of examples of believers fasting. Here are just a few: Moses fasted for 40 days on the mountain before receiving the commandments, Esther and the Jews fasted for 3 days before she approached the king about the deliverance of the Jews, Ezra fasted for 3 days over the sins of Israel, Daniel fasted for 21 days while seeking an answer to prayer and of course Jesus Himself fasted for 40 days prior to beginning His earthly ministry. 

Based on the examples of people fasting in Scripture, I saw several purposes of fasting. In the words of Jentezen Franklin, fasting "opens a door to God's promises" and "your spirit becomes uncluttered by the things of this world and amazingly sensitive to the things of God"  Fasting enables us to take our eyes off our often mis-placed priorities and focus on God's priorities for our lives. One of the purposes of fasting is to seek direction from the Lord. In times of chaos and confusion, setting aside that time to fast, pray and study His Word can make everything around us seem to fade away and His will becomes clear to us. 

Another purpose is confession and repentance. When we see our sinfulness before God it should bring us to our knees. If we have found ourselves wandering from the righteous life God desires of us, prayer and fasting can be the stimulant we need to get us back on the right path. Fasting can always be a way of preparing ourselves to be used by God. It can bring both physical and spiritual cleansing. We ask God to clear away anything in our lives that will get in the way of His glory.  It is only when we empty ourselves and desire to be filled by Him that He can fully use us for His glory. Another purpose of fasting is seeking deliverance. Whether we are asking for physical healing or release from spiritual bondage, the discipline of fasting shows our dependence on God and solidifies our belief in what He can do. Last, but certainly not least, fasting can be a way to intercede for others. When we see a great need in another's life, it can be a time to come before the Lord in prayer and fasting on their behalf. 

Fasting also brings with it spiritual benefits, such as deepening our love for God. When we take that time away from food to simply spend it with our Savior, it will renew our love for Him and cause it to grow stronger. It also causes us to be more aware of God's presence. We can get so caught up in our busy lives that we miss out on what God is speaking to us, what He desires for us and how He wants to use us. Fasting makes us more receptive to the touch of the Spirit in our lives. 

With all that the Scriptures have to say about fasting, the question really becomes not "why should we fast?" but rather "why wouldn't we?" 

Journey of growth

Spiritual growth is not a steady climb. It's more like a roller coaster ride with twists and turns, ups and downs and sometimes being suspended upside down! I personally hate roller coasters but this ride is one that I wouldn't trade for the world and one that I will stay on no matter what comes next! Sometimes it feels as though I take one step forward only to take three steps back. But I serve a patient God who will never leave me on this roller coaster ride alone.

On this journey of growth I am finding myself more and more enthralled with how amazing God is! On the flip side of that, I am finding myself more and more aware of how flawed and sinful I am! The first one sounds so much better than the second but in actuality they blend together beautifully as God draws me closer to Him. You see, in and of myself I can do nothing about my sin. On my own I am trapped in my sinful thoughts and desires. That's a very discouraging thought. It's the thought Satan often reminds me of, telling me I can't change or that I will always be a certain way. It's how the enemy keeps me from growing. It's only when I insert the presence and power of my amazing God that I find hope! This amazing God is the One who makes me aware of my sin, brings me to my knees in repentance and then gives the desire and the power to change. All the things that keep me from growing...discouragement, laziness, fear of man etc...when you place them up against the picture of my amazing God they suddenly begin to disappear! 

The more God grows me, the more I love Him. And the more I love Him, the more I desire to grow! Jesus Himself linked the ideas of love and obedience together in John 14:21 when He said "Those who accept My commandments and obey them are the ones who love Me. And because they love Me, My Father will love them and reveal Myself to each of them." It's really an amazing concept to think about, It reminds me of Jason Gray's song More Like Falling in Love:  "I need more than a truth to believe. I need a truth that lives, moves and breathes to sweep me off my feet. It's gotta be more like falling in love, than something to believe in. More like losing my heart, than giving my allegiance." 

Every nation, tribe and tongue

My husband and I had the amazing privilege of serving in India for almost two weeks. We served with Children's Fellowship of India, the orphanage with whom Never Forsaken has partnered with in ministry. CFI is home to 179 orphan boys in central India and the work they do there is incredible. These boys are fed the Word of God continually and poured into by men & women who love the Lord and love them. CFI is a bright beacon of light in the middle of a very spiritually dark land. These boys have literally been rescued in every sense of the word!

I could go into detail about exactly what we did while we were there but I think it is  more profits to share what I learned while there. It's amazing to me how you go on a missions trip to serve and be a blessing and yet end up walking away with so much! 

So I want to share the two biggest things that impacted me during our time there. First, American Christians as a whole lack something that the Indian people possess much of! It is a heart of service and hospitality. They have so little and yet they freely open their homes and serve others. You don't go into an Indian home without being served. You are immediately offered tea or soda and often food. This is true even in the majority of  Indian stores as well. It continually made me think of how Jesus has called us to be hospitable and serve others. We are often so busy with our own lives and don't really take the time to give of ourselves to others, even in a simple thing like opening our home at a moments notice. We could take a lesson in service & hospitality from the Indian people. To them, it's their culture, to us as believers it should be a calling! 

Secondly, I was reminded of how big our God is and what a small part of His kingdom I am! I would sit in a worship time with the staff of CFI and just soak in what was happening. There we were, the Indians singing and praying in their native tongue and the American team doing the same in ours. And while we may have needed a translator to understand each other, God did not! He heard and understood us all equally. He was glorified equally by the worship of every individual there. I would listen to the Hindi singing and while I could not understand the words I could feel the worship! It was an awesome reminder of the fact that we are all one in Christ! As believers we are brothers and sisters in Him, regardless of language barriers and cultural differences. And God is glorified immensely by that unity! 

So I came back challenged to take God out of my "American box". To take a look at my busy life and see how I can better serve others. To remember that God is big enough to hear every prayer and every song in every language and yet still personal enough to know me by name. 

Standing Firm

"How firm, our foundation. How sure, our salvation. And we will not be shaken. Jesus, firm foundation." These words, written by the musician Mike Donehey, sum up the thoughts of my heart right now. I've stepped into a new building stage in my Christian life and it has caused me to remember again the crucial nature of standing on a firm foundation. Without a foundation, a building is nothing. In the same way, as a child of the Most High, I am nothing without my Foundation! I need to increase in my knowledge of who I'm standing on if I want to continue to grow! 

As a builder, it's important to know your foundation. Build something on the wrong foundation and you are sure to watch it come crumbling down. Can the foundation support what you are about to build? Can it withstand the test of time? Is it easily shaken? When you build on a foundation, you need to have confidence in that foundation. Throughout Scripture, God had proven Himself to be that foundation in which we can place our total confidence. 

God made us a promise, that when we become His child He will give us "all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence" (2 Peter 1:3) Does that sound like a foundation that can support us? Absolutely! In Him, we have no lack of anything. We have all that we need to build lives of faith & godliness. God even gives us a blueprint of how to continue the building process! After starting with Him as our foundation, He goes on with instruction: "make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with alive. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 1:5-8) 

Our God can also withstand the test of time. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, "Trust in The Lord forever, for The Lord God is an everlasting rock." (Isaiah 26:4) The very words of our God are eternal and unchanging. Jesus Himself said that heaven and earth will pass way but His words will not. He stands as our firm foundation, from before the beginning of time and throughout all of eternity. 

My favorite characteristic of our Foundation is His unshakeable and unchanging nature.  Time changes, culture changes, other foundations will begin to shift and fall but our God never will! "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8) When everything around us fails, He will not! He will be our peace and our security and in Him we can be unshakeable!! "I have set the Lord always before me, because He is at my right hand I shall not be shaken." (Psalm 16:8) 

So as believers, if we desire to build lives of godliness and faith, lives that will matter for eternity, we must stand firm on our one foundation, Jesus Christ! 

Back to the grind.

So its a new year, and after a long holiday we are back on the grind. We tested our live video rig and it worked good. Some minor codec changes have to be done, but overall it worked as envisioned. Now we just have to get more content to go with it. We want to cover our entire show with video, kinetic typography and other elements that will give our live performance a little something to make it awesome.