Candles

   Thousands upon thousands of candles cover the ground and stretch out into the horizon. There is no uniform shape or size. Some are lit while others have never had a flame touch their wicks. All the candles have wax that has dripped down the side and are bent, crooked and/or cracked. Some are in worse shape than others. The candles move around sometimes gathering in groups and at other times trying avoiding contact. As time passes, the candles shrink in size. The rate at which the candles grow smaller has nothing to do with the size of the flame (if it even has one) or the size of the candle. Eventually the candles disappear as new ones replace them.
   Above all the candles a special flame hovers. This flame somehow feeds the flames of the candles without becoming part of the candles' flames. Its size and brightness neither grows nor diminishes. Whenever an unlit candle becomes lit, red liquid falls from the flame making the candle pure white. It is not until the special flame touches the candle that the candle truly begins to burn.
   The unlit candles have many different colors and wick sizes. Normally these candles wander about aimlessly, either in a group or by themselves. If they purposefully go somewhere, it is typically so they can try to smother the flames of the lit candles. Some of the wicks are trimmed and ready to be lit. Others are so long that if they were lit, the flame would die before it ever touched the candle. When the candles with trimmed wicks gather with candles that have long wicks, the trimmed wicks often grow longer. When a lit candle approaches, the long wicks normally become shorter and the trimmed wicks often become lit.
   All the lit candles are white, however the size of the flame varies. On some candles the flame is so large that it threatens to engulf the entire candle but others have only smoldering wicks. Whenever a group of white candles begins to hang out together, most if not all of the flames either grow larger or diminish until they are left with only smoldering wicks. The white candles try to light the unlit candles. Often many unlit candles will light up at once when a candle that is almost engulfed in its flame comes. The candles with smoldering wicks are almost never successful at lighting an unlit candle. If a white candle stays with a group of the unlit candles for a long time without also spending time with a group of lighted candles, its flame begins to sputter and die out.
   How is your flame today? Is it so large that those around you can't possible miss it, a smoldering wick that is easy to miss seeing, or somewhere in between? My prayer is that your flame will grow until it reaches the point that you can no longer control or contain it.

Leaving My Comfort Zone

I live in a small box
Holed up just like a fox
Whenever I fear
That danger is near
To it I flee
Fast as can be
   ---
It's my personal space
So don't get in my face
Just leave me alone
In my comfort zone
Here I will stay
And spend each day
   ---
If I don't want to do
What You're telling me to
Your voice I'll ignore
And walk out the door
Leaving behind
Mercy so kind
   ---
You sent Your Son to die
My sinful soul to buy
But I tried to hide
And be my own guide
It didn't work
I'm at a fork
   ---
Will I choose to follow
Through joy and through sorrow
Everything You say
Or go my own way
Show me the light
That shines so bright
   ---
In it I will walk
And with You I'll talk
Forgive me of wrong
And please make me strong
My life I'll give
To truly live
   ---
I left my comfort zone
When my defense was blown
Now that I'm free
I cannot see
How I could stay
Boxed up all day
   ---
Of course sometimes it's hard
Not to send You a card
Saying I've gone back
For courage I lack
To keep the fight
All through the night
   ---
Help me to do my best
Through every single test
Give me a new start
And show me Your heart
To reach the lost
At any cost

When We Try To Argue With God.....

   Arguing with God never works. God always wins. Maybe we don't obey Him right away but deep in our hearts we know that He is right. I often wonder why I keep choosing to argue when I always lose. There have been so many times when I would have a conversation with God similar to the one below.

   God, I've had it! I know you have this grand plan that I wanted to participate in but I don't like the way You're going about making it happen. I can't take the stress and uncertainty any longer. I've suffered to much pain to continue. I quit!

   Even if you quit, I won't quit. I still love you and always will. I created you for a purpose. My plan for you began before you were born.
   I don't really care right now. If I hadn't tried to follow You, I don't think my life would be so messy.
   I had a plan for Israel too. One much better than the path they chose. I still used them but if they had obeyed my voice and heeded my commands, I would have blessed them even more. I am giving you the same choice. I will use you no matter what but if you choose to follow me, I will bless you. My glory will become more evident in your life and the harvest will be greater.
   (Why can't I ever win an argument with God?)
   Which path will you choose?
   Why are you asking me? Don't you already know the answer?
   Remember when I established Ezekiel as a watchman for the Israelites and said that I would hold him responsible for every person he failed to warn?
   Sigh. Yes.
   I have called my church to a similar position and you are part of that church.
   (I don't like where this is going.)
   How many people do you want to be held responsible for?
   Ouch.
   I love you. I will never leave you or stop loving you. Nothing will ever change that. I will provide. Do you trust me enough to follow me through the pain?

Worldly Approval Vs. God-Given Worth

   Our desire for approval often drives us to do whatever it takes to gain the world's approval. We change our habits, clothes, hairstyle, etc. in an attempt to gain value in the world's eyes. The change is only on the outside and often temporary leaving us feeling dissatisfied and worthless. Basing our sense of worth on the world is not healthy. It will cause us to judge ourselves and everyone else based on some arbitrary ideas of whatever the world says is 'in' at the moment. In today's world, what is considered 'in' often changes every few days.

   Sometimes men achieve a sense of worth by attributing all their success to themselves. In their pride, they think that they have the power to control their own destinies. My favorite explanation of the ridiculousness of thinking this way comes from a fairytale by Hans Christian Anderson.
   "How foolish it would be for the violin and the bow to boast of their greatness! And yet, we men often do the same foolish thing - the poet, the artist, the scientist, the general - we all do it. We are only the instruments which the Almighty uses. He alone deserves the honor! We have nothing to be proud of. To Him be all the honor!" ~ The Pen and the Inkstand

   Everyone has value but it does not come from anything they did. It comes from God.

   "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them." - Genesis 1:27 ESV
    A simple but profound truth. God created you in HIS image. Nothing can ever change that. You are not a mistake so stop listening to the lies of the enemy. He hates you because he sees God's image in you.
   Sometimes we feel worthless but God sees us as His special creation who is worth every single drop of His Son's blood. Sometimes we feel hopeless but God gives us a hope that will never fail. Sometimes we feel depressed but God has given us a joy that is deeper than sorrow, despair, pain, sickness, and hardships combined.

   "Father, make us more like Jesus. Help us bear difficulty, pain, disappointment, and sorrow, knowing that in Your perfect working and design You can use such bitter experiences to mold our characters and make us more like our Lord. We look with hope to the day when we will be completely like Christ, because we will see Him as He is." ~ Ignatius

Prayer Changes Everything

   When most people think of prayer, they do not realize its power. They view prayer as some kind of magic charm or good luck spell that may or may not do any good. Prayer is often used as a last resort when everything else has failed. But what if we made prayer our first response to everything? After all the Bible contains example after example of times when prayer changed the course of history. Maybe you are afraid to pray because you worry that you might pray for something outside of God’s will. Allow me to present three examples of what happened when people in the Bible prayed for things outside of God’s will.

   When David committed adultery with Bathsheba and then killed her husband Uriah, God sent the prophet Nathan to him with the message that God would kill David’s son as a punishment for his sin. David acknowledged his guilt and pleaded with the Lord for his son. Day and night David prayed and fasted, crying out for his son’s life. God chose not to answer David’s request and David’s son died. Then David praised the Lord and ended his fast. David did not praise the Lord for his son’s death, he praised God for his faithfulness. God had remained true to His word and David knew he did not deserve any of the mercy God showed him.

   With God’s chosen people, Israel, under attack and unable to mount an army large enough to repel the invaders, it did not seem like a good time for the king to become ill. Then God sent Isaiah to Hezekiah with the news that Hezekiah would soon die from the boil that currently inflicted him. Hezekiah immediately turned to the wall. Instead of focusing on the problem, he chose to focus on God. He pleaded for the safety of the people God had entrusted to him and asked that God would heal him and deliver the nation of Israel. Just like David, he acknowledged that he did not deserve God’s mercy. God heard Hezekiah’s plea and gave him fifteen more years to live. Israel was delivered and her next king was born during those years.

   While Moses spent time with God on the mountain of Sinai and received the Ten Commandments, the people of Israel grew restless. They built a golden calf and began to worship it instead of honoring the One who had brought them out of Egypt. God’s anger rose against them and he swore to destroy the multitude and rebuild the nation through Moses. Moses, however, would not hear of it. He reminded God that these people were chosen by the Lord to reveal His glory to the nations. If the Almighty destroyed them here in the desert after miraculously bringing them out of Egypt, the entire world would mock the name of the Lord. God relented. The fledgling nation of Israel was spared and God even renewed His covenant with them.

   In each of these examples God stated what His will was. Yet David, Hezekiah, and Moses all chose to pray for a different outcome. God did not rebuke them. He heard the prayers. God considered their pleas. In David’s case He chose to continue with His plan but in the stories of Hezekiah and Moses God actually changed His mind. I firmly believe that prayers have the power to change the course of history. Prayer invites God to reveal His glory and make His presence known. Prayers honor God when they focus on Him receiving the glory. God is willing to answer your prayers but you must ask first. If you do not pray, you will never see the miraculous.

God, Fortresses, and Prayer

   The Bible repeatedly refers to God as our Strong Tower, Fortress, Refuge, Shield, and Defender. When we accept God’s provision and protection, He surrounds us with light. The light exposes areas of sin, giving us the opportunity to deal with them. Allowing God to remove the sin in our lives allows us to walk in closer fellowship with Him. God is always with us. With God as our Fortress, we can go anywhere He calls us without leaving our safety behind.

   The Bible also states that the gates of Hell cannot stand before those filled with the power of God. To distract us from attacking him, Satan uses our pride and fears to trick us into building walls around ourselves. Convinced that these walls protect us, we become defensive. Instead of relying on God for protection, we spend our time and energy defending the walls we created. Sin often dwells hidden among the shadows of those walls. Since it is not exposed, it is not dealt with which separates us from God and allows the enemy even more power in our lives. Sometimes we don’t obey God because we don’t want to leave our fortress.

   Prayer creates cracks in the walls. Eventually a breakthrough prayer causes a breach. It is then that we face the hardest part of the battle. At that point, we look around and see the rest of the fortress still standing. The habits we formed while living in that fortress still shape our thinking. If we do not have a revelation of who God is and who we are in Christ, we will give up. Breaches can be repaired pretty quickly but completely demolished walls take longer to build back up. Persistent prayer, humility, and trust reduce the walls to rubble.

More Than Just Words

   What we say is important but what we do is even more important. Words tell what people think they believe or want you to think they believe; actions reveal what they really believe. Talking about God's love with others is great but if we don't show that love to them, our words are pointless and we are just wasting our breath. We should always seek to honor God and reveal His love with both our words and our actions.

The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.

~ Proverbs 15:28
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.
~ Proverbs 15:18

   How often do we think about how to respond in difficult situations? Sadly, not often enough. Even when we think about what we say, there are times when we don't make sure our actions line up with our words.
   I know my actions don't always line up with what I say and I don't expect anybody else to act upon what they say at all times either. Nobody is perfect so we are bound to make mistakes. However, I do believe that we need to examine our lives carefully. When we are in stressful situations, do we rely on our own strength or do we seek help from God? Difficult and tense situations are the perfect opportunity for us to bear witness that we are not of this world. We have a higher calling that requires us to walk with God, constantly seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and grow more like Christ.

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

~ Ephesians 4:15&16

    For as Christ, who is the head has loved us unconditionally, we also must love each other unconditionally. God's love that He has graciously bestowed upon us, and commands that we exhibit, can only edify and build up. If we are doing something else we aren't acting in love.
   I know this verse speaks about loving those already within the church but surely there can be no better place to start revealing God's love to others than within His own body. After all, if we can't even love our own family, we cannot expect to show love to strangers. When the world sees the body of Christ loving each other unconditionally, they will be irresistibly drawn to the Eternal Source of that love.

 

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

⁸ Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. ⁹ For we know in part and we prophesy in part, ¹⁰ but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. ¹¹ When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. ¹² For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

¹³ And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

~ 1 Corinthians 13

 

Faith's Struggle With Doubt

Dark clouds surrounding
And rain abounding
Why this gloom
And dark sense of doom
What's up with you
Why aren't you true
-----
Don't be afraid
To make the trade
Turn your frown
Upside down
Lift your eyes
To the skies
Try once more
To get off the floor
-----
Tell me why you hide
Is it fear or pride
Are you stuck
In this smelly muck
Still sinking down
Until you drown
-----
Just release the pain
Run and don't remain
Let fear sleep
Come take the big leap
Into thin air
I'll catch you there
-----
Joyful unreal height
With sunshine so bright
All it took
Was a second look
For you to see
All we could be

Salvation's Journey

    A barren land dotted with stepping stones stretched before me. Up ahead I saw a wide, dark chasm. Black ropes reached out from the chasm wrapping themselves around people, pulling them to the edge. Now at the edge of the chasm I saw that some of the stone paths sloped down into it while others ended at a sheer cliff. Hopelessness and despair crept through my mind almost pulling me into the chasm. Terrified I turned to go back. Then I noticed a wooden beam covered with dark stains stretching above the chasm. Afraid of what the stains might mean but certain that it must lead to something else I began to cross. When I had almost reached the end, I realized that the stains were blood. I was walking on a cross.
    On the other side a wall of blood formed a barrier that the ropes and darkness couldn't penetrate. After that flowed a stream that refreshed the mind, soul, and spirit. Coming out of the stream I found myself in a field of grass. Instead of the many bewildering paths that had been on the other side, only a single path where each stone was stained with blood lay ahead. Full of new life I followed the path rejoicing in God's salvation.
    Pretty soon things began to seem dark. Trials and hardships assailed me from every side. Desperately I cried out to God, demanding to know why He wasn't with me anymore. I looked down at my feet and once again saw the blood-stained stones marking the path. As I lifted my head, I noticed that there was still a light up ahead. Realizing that the light had always been there because my Savior, Jehovah-Yasha, had already prepared the way, I offered a prayer to God asking Him to forgive me for doubting. Eventually the trials no longer seemed as severe and I could look back and see how they had actually helped to strengthen my faith. Confident in my new found purpose and deeper level of faith, I continued my journey.
    It did not take very long, however, before I began to have doubts. This time the trials and hardships seemed more like a fire that threatened to destroy my faith. By either forgetting or willfully choosing not to remember all the times Jehovah-Jireh had helped me before, I almost convinced myself that God no longer cared for me. Deep in my heart I knew that I was choosing to believe a lie but that didn't stop me from railing against God. The truth was I didn't understand everything that I was going through and so I started looking for someone to blame. Quietly God spoke to my heart, reassuring me that He had a plan and reminding me that He will never leave me nor forsake me. He showed me how the trials were purifying me like a fire purifies gold. I repented and once again asked God to forgive me for not completely trusting in Him.
    Feeling tired, I paused to look back. When I did, I realized that I had yet to see the pure glory of God. All the glimpses of His glory that I had seen before had been tainted by my shortcomings. Wondering how I could see Jehovah-Shammah intervene in my life over and over and yet still struggle with fully trusting His purposes and plans for my life, I pressed on towards the end.
Blood washed over me cleansing away any doubts, fears, and imperfections that still remained after all this time. Completely pure and holy, I marveled at the power contained in the blood of the Lamb. Stepping forward as a royal daughter of the King of kings, I rejoiced as I entered the presence of my Father, El Shaddai.

    As God revealed this picture to me, two things were deeply impressed on my heart. First, every step we take on the path to salvation is made possible only by the blood of Jesus that He willingly shed in order to redeem us. Second, no matter how dark and hard things may seem, God's light is always shining, guiding us to eternal glory. I pray that God will use these truths to touch your heart and change your life.

Praying with Thanks and Expectancy

I was reading Psalm 136 and was reminded that we are supposed to give thanks in everything because God's love remains even when we can't see it. I certainly don't feel like giving thanks at all times.  Sometimes I feel like I'm in a long tunnel created by all my failures. I've found that just giving thanks to God for reminding me of His grace that wipes away my failures enables me to see the bigger picture before too long.

  Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting.~ Psalm106:1 NASB

Even the briefest glimpse of a love that is faithful no matter what, will change our view of everything that we experience especially trials.
  Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. ~ James 1:2-3, NLT

  The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. ~ 1 Corinthians 10:13, NLT

When we pray to God in the midst of a trial do we ask Him to teach us how to endure? Or do we ask him to save us from hardship? There have been far too many times in my life when I did the latter.

Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted to you. ~ Mark 11:24 NASB

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. ~ Hebrews 4:16 NIV
        
And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
1 John 5:14-15 ESV

When we pray, do we really expect an answer? We may say we believe everything God says but if we don't expect God to answer our prayers are we speaking the truth? We are called to approach God's throne with confidence; to go boldly before the King of kings expecting an answer. We may miss the bigger picture and pray for something outside of God's will but that doesn't mean He doesn't answer. "No" and "wait" are going to remain answers no matter how much we dislike them. Other times He may use us as a vessel to answer someone's prayer whether we realize it or not.

Come and see what our God has done, what awesome miracles he performs for people. ~ Psalm 66:5, NLT

God's answer to a prayer will almost always be bigger and better than what we pictured. As we participate with God in bringing His glory to those around us, we will be transformed into servants in Christ's image.

Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. Matthew 20:28 NASB

Following Jesus' example means that we too love others unconditionally. Part of this is encouraging one other to use all of our gifts and reach our full potential in God's plan for our lives.

That their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. ~ Colossians 2:2-3 ESV

I pray that God will continue to reveal himself to you and that you may receive the treasures He has for you.

May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has granted to 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 1:2-3 ESV

May you live your lives blessed with a realization of the power that allows you to turn any situation into an opportunity to bring God's glory to a broken world.