As I sit here this Christmas season wrestling with the
desire to give really fun gifts to my children and the limitations of financial
ability to do so (I love to give good gifts to my children), I ponder and
consider have I shifted the focus of Christmas?
I remember all our Christmas’ past, how I created in our
home a somewhat magical time of Christmas decorating to the full extent, with
lights in and out of the house, playing Christmas music each morning as the
girls got ready for school, baking cookies, sleeping under the just decorated
tree, going all out with the gifts oh and yes, remembering too that it was
Jesus’ birthday.But somehow this just
did not seem to be the focus of our holiday season.
As I was getting a cup of coffee one morning looking up at
the collection of Santa’s (which I have to admit I started as collections for
my girls as well) around my kitchen up on the spaces above my kitchen cupboards
God spoke and revealed to me a play on letters, which he often does to bring
home a lesson.I pass this on to you.
Santa is the icon of gift giving.A beautiful concept and one which we all
embrace and one which we are tempted to make the focus of Christmas, especially
if you have a family of young children at this stage in your life or of young grandchildren
who believe in Santa.What a magical
time of make believe and good.But is
it…?
Let’s take the word Santa and remove the N right out of the
middle and put it in its place at the end of the word and Santa then reads
Satan.Now before you think I am evil by
even thinking such a thought let us consider for a moment who and what Satan
is.
Satan is the master deceiver, king of distraction and lover
of lies.What better way to distract
than to come disguised as something good (gift giving is good) increasing focus
on a man, an icon of gift giving to distract, named Santa.
I am not saying we must remove Santa from the scene.I ran this thought by my daughter with two
little ones and her response to me was “ Mom you can’t just take Santa out of
the picture, I have such good memories of all that Santa represented from when
I was a little girl”.
So, I inquired of God asking what I was supposed to do with
this concept that just seems downright mean.While it seems a little drastic to completely remove Santa from the
Christmas scene what I heard was put him in his place, at the end of the celebration,
as an after thought rather than in the middle of the season.
We have slowly been influenced by the world and Hallmark and
marketing strategists to worship the idol of “gift giving”.Think about this for a moment.From the beginning of December we begin the
mad rush to make our lists, check them twice, running around being grumpy and
nice.We put such pressure on ourselves
to buy that “perfect” gift for everyone on our list that before we know it we
are consumed with “gift giving”,“party
preparing” that in trying to do all this “good” we become grumpy, stressed out
and downright…”evil” to those we love.
In a sense, instead of Jesus rising up in us, Satan rises up
on us, on our backs, with his hands over our eyes blindly leading us into his
trap.
“N” stands for Nothingness, in the middle of the holiday
season it turns a celebration meant to embrace the most marvelous gift of all,
Forgiveness born out of Love and turns it into nothingness, just another reason
to consume and overindulge.“N” also
stands for Naivety, for a nation that is naïve and unaware of it’s idols and
how it is being influenced by them.
Without taking Santa right out of Christmas let us wake up,
seeing the clever disguise for what it is and rethink what our emphasis is
putting the “N” of Santa where it rightly belongs…at the end of the word and in
so doing recognize the deception and distraction Santa has become and reclaim
for ourselves and our nation The Gift. Rather than worshipping the idol of
“gift giving” worship The Gift, the one perfect gift given long ago on a cold
winters night that was so deep, given by the true and perfect gift giver and
true Father of Christmas, God Most High, Creator of Heaven and Earth.
(If you then who are evil know how
to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven
give good gifts to those who ask him! Matthew 7:11 NIV)
And as the Santa in my picture has his focus on the star let
us keep our focus this Christmas season on the star that leads us to The Gift….
Celebrate the child who is the light…..Merry Christmas to
all and to all a peace filled life…..
It has been said signs point to something…miracles/blessings/gifts are Gods
signs to us of his loving tender care…His redemption of a thing…they may not
come immediately but they come….
This is the story of God's great gift to one young man...the redemption of a thing obscured by sorrow.
You see a number of years ago, when this young man was in
high school out on a boat doing what high school boys do and wake
boarding…doing what he loved…what he had a passion for…. he got the call…. his
earthly father had died suddenly without warning… returned to his maker…no
longer on this earth… returned way to early by anyone’s standards and certainly
by this young man’s expectations…seemingly left without a father…. and yet…his
Father saw…. His heavenly Father saw…. knowing one day He would redeem this
passion, this pleasure for this young man.
He did not leave this young man fatherless nor did He leave him alone; instead calling to
him….always calling... staying with him over the years….
Well, eventually this young man heard and received
the call of God and he knew a he had a Father once again...for it is said: …as many
as received Him, to them He gave the right to become sons of God, to those
who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the
flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13 NKJV)…. not without a
father at all…not left lonely nor alone….nor with sorrow but with the only Father that is able
to stay by his side and never leave him….the only Father able to give pure joy...
His earthly father had given him all that he could, his love...his passions...introducing him to boating,to wake boarding to his love of architecture but his earthly father could not stay....
And the years passed…the young man grew up…. not only following in his earthly fathers footsteps becoming an architect... but also following
after his heavenly Father rising to become the man God called him to be….
Eventually becoming a father himself…. grown up yet still
with a passion for the things he did when younger…. continuing to wakeboard…. but always
with a sorrow that lingered over this passion…
And then…a miracle... a blessing…a gift…God stepped in
and intervened…. the spiritual realm collided with the physical realm and two
young men met…. one praying earnestly that God would sell his boat to the one
whom He chose….and another listening and praying for the perfect boat, one that
could be used by God for ministry….to bless others….and God Most High moved….
The one young man was introduced to the other young man….
and a boat was sold and a boat was bought…
And a young man’s memory of wake boarding and boating with
sorrow added to it was redeemed….
His Father did not forget…his Father did not
leave him….and now…this young father is in the water doing what he is passionate
about…sharing it with his young daughter….passing on to his daughter his
passion and love…for boating...for wake boarding…for God...no sorrow lingering only pure joy….with one perfect Father who is able to, and will never leave nor forsakes us…
The blessings of the Lord brings wealth with no sorrow added to
it (Proverbs 10:22 NKJV)…I’d say this young man is wealthy beyond measure…
We serve a good God who knows how to give good gifts to His
children (Matt 7:11)….ministry happening?
I’d say so…in only a way God could orchestrate….WOW!
Have you heard it, that trumpet call to follow? What, you are not quite sure, but you feel a restlessness in your soul, like there should be something more. You know you are following God but you aren't sure where you are going. You want to follow but it seems that more often than not you are failing at this thing called Christianity and not following God at all?
Well, you are not alone…many of us have heard the call to follow but our actions just don't seem to add up to what we read about, we are not getting the warm fuzzy feelings of triumph but rather we get the down and out feelings of failure... Why is this? I believe it is because we are in the final battle before the triumphant manifestation of Jesus in our bodies....
My conversation with God the other day went something like this…
God: Where are you going?
Me: I don’t know
God: Call on my name…trust me
Me: I don’t know where I am going but I know you say you lead me beside still waters so why the restlessness in my soul, why the fervency…?
God: Be still my child and I will tell you
Silence…there must be silence to hear the still small voice behind you saying this is the way walk in it.
…silence comes after the storm and the final battle, the final storm is raging on!
...and it is in your mind…
….the silence will come and the victory is won in the mind…..then He will lead and you shall follow…in peace and rest….
As Christians in order to hear the voice of God we must look to scripture to hear what He is saying so to scripture we look…
Scripture says:
For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that [it is] good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but [how] to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. - Romans 7:14-25 KJV[There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. - Romans 8:1 KJV
So what is it that is holding back the abundant life of Jesus from manifesting itself in the members of my body?
We know from scripture that
…what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son …And so he condemned sin in the flesh,… - Romans 8:3 NIV
You however are not controlled by the sinful nature but by the Spirit if God’s Spirit lives in you…-Romans 8:9 NIV
And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead lives In you then…..He will also give life to your mortal body…the members of your body…your tongue...hands…feet…your actions...-Romans 8:11 NIV
Therefore we have an obligation not to the sinful nature or the carnal nature or the flesh nature but…to the Spirit that lives in us…to think on these things so as to put to death the misdeeds of the flesh….. If by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds (actions)of the body you will live! Romans 8:13
This then begs the question what is my mind or my thoughts set on….?If by my actions and my words I say I am frustrated, fearful, oppressed, angry, bitter, depressed, restless feeling like a failure, resentful, mad, unhappy, discontent then my mind must not be on the things of God and my actions will follow suit…for the mind controls the actions.
So then how do we do this thing…How do we put to death the things we do not want to do…the settling for compromise in our behavior?... The mind controlled by the Spirit is how we do this thing….we must take every thought captive as we think it…for our thoughts dictate our behavior….
Let me give you a very real, very painful example of this in my life…
Last week at the end of the week…a hard week…I was feeling sorry for myself…having a pity party because work was hard and I did not want to work and my husband was keeping secrets from me and I was hurt… So I held onto my right to be hurt and my right to feel sorry for myself because life is hard and I let those thoughts run through my mind until they took control of my actions.
The resultant actions were that I decided to invite beer to my pity party…with disastrous results…not because drinking is necessarily bad but because God had been calling me to fast from drinking beer and wine for a time…the resulting behavior was a great hypocrisy of Jesus in me.God said to me as He did toDavid when he sinned with Bathsheba …
“by doing this you have made the enemies of the Lord show utter contempt…” -2 Sam 12:14 NIV.
Well I showed them…I had my way and sat down and had a beer and BAM….utter contempt was manifest….
Contempt means to hold something as worthless….in other words my behavior gave those around me great cause to hold who and what I say I am as a servant of Christ as utterly worthless…the words I have spoken of the goodness of Christ were rendered null and void….worthless…..of no value…..
Nicky Cruz writes in The Pain of Hypocrisy:
“I will never understand how some people can claim Jesus as their Savior yet live as if they had never experienced His saving grace…How can they talk as if they know Christ when their actions show clearly that they know nothing about Him.These kinds of people do more ham for the kingdom that Satan could ever hope to accomplish.They are the enemy’s greatest allies in a world that already looks for ways to discount the claims of Christ.Paul tells us, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. We have allowed the world to not only affect us but to completely infect us.To take over our hearts and minds and keep us in bondage to sin, even though we convince ourselves that we are free.”
Thank goodness that when we repent of our sin God is faithful to forgive us our sins and He can clean up and repair the damage done.
David wrote after that episode with sin…
Create in me a pure heart, O God and renew a right spirit within me…” -Psalm 51:10 NIV
That is the cry of my heart for just knowing I made a mockery of Jesus kills me…And I know that God is faithful so He will create in me a pure heart, I just have to be willing to let Him.
The mind controlled by the Spirit is life…real life…abundant life….not success by the world’s standards but abundant life…and peace. -Romans 8:6 NIV
Again how do I do this hard thing?....Remember what scripture tells us
But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you...if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you,he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you…Therefore, brethren, we are obligated, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh (to hold onto our right to our worldly thougts)….but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. -The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: - Romans 8:11-16 KJV
Christ Jesus lives in me…and how do I know this…by the baptism of the Holy Ghost…this was evidence that something beyond myself has entered my body…physical evidence of the miracle itself….wow….The Spirit of God bears witness to this in me….
And if the very Spirit of Jesus, of God lives in me then…The Spirit himself puts to death the lusts of the flesh….my thoughts, my mindset that I must justify myself, my actions, that I must have my way now….(I think of Violet on Willy Wonka…I want it NOW ) type mentality
So in other words I am obligated…obligated to renew my mind by the pouring in of scripture, feeding the Spirit in me then…
The Spirit of God himself, not me, will put to death the lusts of my flesh and the fears thereof….
My only fear now is of walking in the flesh….but even this I need not fear for scripture says:
For the Spirit God did not give you a Spirit of fear, but of power, of love and of a sound mind, (self discipline in KJV). - 2 Timothy 1:7 NIV
Self discipline of the body cannot come by working hard at not doing a thing while still thinking wrong thoughts about the thing….I cannot quit my bad behavior…”my despising the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in His eyes.” (2 Sam 12:9) when my mind; my thoughts say it’s ok, it’s fun, I deserve it, it relaxes me…instead I must change my “mind” my thoughts about it first then the Spirit will put the death in the members of my body the actions thereof…
The discipline of the body begins in the mind….
Oswald Chambers writes in Will I Bring Myself Up to This Level?
“Therefore, having these promises…”I claim God’s promises for my life fulfillment, and rightly so, but that shows only the human perspective on them.God’s perspective is that through His promises I will come to recognize His claim of ownership on me…God formed His Son in me…setting me apart…But I must begin to transform my natural life into spiritual life by obedience to Him…I must cleanse myself from all filthiness in my flesh (by the washing of the word)…Is the mind of my spirit in perfect agreement with the life of God in me, or am I mentally rebellious and defiant?(Holding onto my right to my “self” thoughts).Christ never spoke of His right to Himself, but always maintained an inner vigilance to submit His spirit continually to His Father…”
So when you are stumbling, confused not sure how to behave…crestfallen, broken because you failed again…cry out…Lord change my thoughts!
Then your actions, your behavior will follow and the battle is won!
For we have been given the very mind of Christ...-Phil 2:5 NIV
…we are children…hiers of God…Co heirs with Christ and though we share in his suffering….we also share in the victory…in his glory…
So let us not be surprised at our circumstances or the battle that rages in our minds but let us call on the Name of the Lord and He will change our thoughts, freeing us from the lusts of the flesh….the fear…the woundedness…the behavior I don’t want to do….and WE WIN…WE TRIUMPH…WE SEND THE DEVIL PACKING
It starts in the mind…the battle is already won but it is fought in the mind…..renew it with the Word…
It has been over a year since my last post....been on an adventure with God....moved twice since that time....first to a small duplex in Eugene which felt more like an orange dress than a wedding gown but heck with God even an orange dress if fixed up right can get comfortable.
Thank goodness though I did not have to wear that orange dress for long....after a year God moved again and called us to the coast of Washington...to a little town in Oak Harbor....on a street called Fairhaven Dr......much like Paul who came upon a place called Fair Havens. And taking Paul's warning to not get on a ship of my own piloting again as I did before, working as a PT which was headed for a shipwreck....I sailed on that ship and now I find my time as a PT was short lived. I have landed safely on an Island...Whidbey Island...in a safe harbor...Oak Harbor....in a place called Fairhaven Dr.....I think this time I will take Paul's advise and just because I get a gentle south wind that seems I have obtained what I wanted, which was a job in home health on Whidbey Island I will not sail on this ship again.....so here I am....back to writing..... I went for a walk the other day along the beach....it is a beautiful beach that looks out to the southwest and northwest toward Sequim, Canada and the San Juan Islands...it was a warm blustery day and I took my shoes off...thinking in my PT mind that to walk barefoot across the sand would be strengthening for my legs and my feet which seem to be getting softer and more tender as I age.... Really, more than this I heard God clearly telling me to take off my shoes for this was to be holy ground we were going to walk upon....He and I together.....and He would speak to me about walking...walking in the footsteps of Jesus....
...so then just as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord continue to walk in him....(Col 2:6 NKJV)
The first thing I noticed when walking was how the surface upon which I was walking changed....sometimes I was walking on hard smooth sand, other times soft squishy sand with sand fleas under the surface and there was even rocks and pebbles and seaweed upon which I ventured to walk....all this to say that it is the same in our lives as we follow in the footsteps of the Son of Man...flesh and blood Jesus as he walked on this earth. Sometimes as we walk we will be on easy, smooth walking surface....thank God for those days.... Other times we will find ourselves walking in what seems to be sinking sand...difficult terrain...with bugs under our feet....like when we have walk through hard circumstances that seem to suck us in and every day is a struggle to make it through the day....praise God for those days and persevere....this too shall pass.... Then there are those times where we are just plain old walking on rocks, everything hurts and all we want to do is get back to the smooth sand...ahhh but hold on... if we choose to pick our own path out of the rocky places in life we may encounter that gross icky seaweed which may have dog poop hiding in it....better to tough it out with God by our side on the rocky path until God gives clear direction to the smooth ground again....thus avoiding some squishy, icky obstacles... Secondly, I realized that if I walked in someone else's footsteps it did not seem as difficult to navigate the terrain....walk as Jesus the Son of Man...the flesh and blood Jesus walked...he has paved the way for us....no matter the condition of the terrain...no matter the circumstances of our lives....he's been there, done that.... And third, I know that walking through sand barefoot without covering our feet....we are strengthened like the feet of a deer swift and able to move quickly to the right or to the left as needed....like hinds feet in high places...
Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, "This [is] the way, walk in it," Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left. (Isaiah 30:21 NKJV)
This my friends is to walk in the Spirit.....being one with the Father as Jesus was.... May you find yourselves walking in the footsteps of faith, following God who is able to give life to the dead and call things that are not as though they were........
