Jayme's Thoughts

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - The House That Wisdom Builds

2011-05-27T07:37:00.000-07:00

Growing up in church, we used to sing, "The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock." If you are familiar with this song, you will know there were some hand motions that went along with it. As children, our favorite part was the hand motions for the foolish man because his house went splat. (Song is based on Matthew 7:24-27)

Last weekend at our women's retreat, we focused on truly what a Proverbs woman is. It doesn't matter whether you are single or married, live alone, with roommates, with family members and so on, you still have a home to build. Proverbs 14:1 says, "A wise woman builds her home, but a foolish woman tears it down with her own hands." The Lord gave me a picture of the home of a wise woman and the home of a foolish woman.

Before any construction can begin, there are some important people needed. First an architect, second a contractor and a blue print. Lastly an inspector. The Lord showed me that God is our architect, Jesus is our contractor, the blue print is the Bible and the inspector is the Holy Spirit. God already has your design in mind. His Word gives us direction. Jesus is the contractor because of his death and resurrection he made building a wise home possible. The Holy Spirit on the other hand is the one who helps us keep in check as to whether we are living to God's standard.

Like the foolish man in the song, who builds his house on the sand which is unstable, so is the foolish woman's home. The foolish woman's foundation is built on fear. A few years ago, I began listening to how often I and other ladies would use "I'm afraid, I'm worried, or I'm scared" in their conversation. I was shocked at how often we say it without thinking twice. I'm as guilty as anyone. Fear also means reverence. When we live in fear, we worship our circumstances instead of God.

This brought me to the thought of what kind of walls a foolish woman's home has. The are walls of anxiety or worry, control (of everything around her), anger and complaining. When a home is built on fear it compromises everything else that is built on it. Romans 8:15 says "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave to fear, but your received the spirit of Sonship." When we accept Jesus as our "contractor" we are no longer slaves to the fears of this world. What I mean is in bondage by the chains that we are bound to. Maybe similar to someone who is under house arrest.

The home of a wise woman, is the complete opposite of the foolish. Her home is built on a solid foundation, the rock of faith. A foundation built on faith can withstand any storm. Psalm 111:10 says, "Fear (or reverence) of the Lord is the foundation of true wisdom. All who obey his commandments will grow in wisdom." (NLT) A wise woman is one who is confident because she knows her "architect" has the best plans in mind. She has a relationship with her "contractor." She's willing to submit to her "inspector" and daily goes over the blueprint to make sure she is sticking with the plan. The walls of a wise woman's home are peaceful instead of anxious, self-controlled instead of in-control, joyful instead of angry, and thankful instead of a complainer. A home built with these four walls can stand up in any kind of circumstance.

What if half of your home is built with wisdom and there are times it is built on foolishness? James 1:8 says "a double-minded person is unstable in all they do." This reminds me of the show on HGTV called "Holmes on Homes." Mike Holmes is a contractor who comes in and finds all of the mistakes that neglectful contractors have made on home improvements or repairs. He comes in and tears everything out and starts over. Who does that sound like? Jesus! Even if you have found yourself in a home that has been compromised by fear, the good news is that Jesus will come in and make all the repairs and make you like new. Not only does he make the repairs, but he already paid for the labor and materials at the cross.

I pray today that if you are finding yourself in a home that needs some improvement, go to your Architect, Contractor and Inspector and ask them to make your "home" one of faith. Read your "blueprint" and get the Great Architect's plan down inside of you as you lay a new foundation. A house built on wisdom will withstand any storm.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - The Royal Wedding

2011-04-29T07:35:00.000-07:00

At 3:00 am, Jordanne, my daughter and I watched with anticipation as we waited to see the bride arrive at the entrance of Westminster Abbey. The groom looked quite handsome in his military uniform. Truly a prince. As the bride stepped out of the car, she looked just like a princess-to-be should look, elegant and happy.

As Kate proceeded down the aisle with a four minute walk, the Holy Spirit spoke something to me. He said that this was a picture of salvation. The reporters kept referring to Kate as a "commoner." The dictionary definition says it is "any person ranking below a peer; a person without a title or nobility." Before we come to Jesus, we are "commoners" or as the Bible says, "sinners." This was history making for England because there has not been a marriage between a Royal and a commoner since the 17th century.

The reporters said that it has taken her 8 years to prepare for this moment as she entered into the Royal family. It was 8 years of learning royal etiquette and even learning how to live with and resist the negative press. Revelation 19:7 says "Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. " When we become followers of Jesus, we prepare for that Wedding day by getting to know Him and who are are now in Christ. We too are faced with a new way of doing things and even how to resist the Enemy.

As the bride made her way down the long aisle, the camera showed the view from above. I noticed that the abbey is in the form of a cross, as most cathedrals are. It made me wonder if the red runner carpet represents the blood of Jesus. It was Jesus death on the cross and his blood that was shed that made a way for us commoners to become royalty. Ephesians 2:12 says, "But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ." Second Corinthians 5:17 says, "This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" (NLT). Kate went in as "Kate Middleton" and came out as Her Royal Highness, which she will now be called. When we come to Jesus, Revelation 5:9 &10 says, “ You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, ¹⁰ And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.”

The wedding of Prince William and Kate was seen around the entire world. Whether one of the 1,900 invited guests, a spectator who lined the streets of London or watched it via television, this wedding was seen by the majority of the world. It made me think of the day when the King of Kings will ride in on his white horse to receive his Bride (the Church) who has made herself ready. Ephesians 5:17 says, "that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish." We as the Bride need to be preparing ourselves for that glorious day when the whole world will be watching as it says in in the Bible. "Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him..." (Revelation 1:7). Bride, make yourself ready, holy and pure as we await the arrival of the Bridegroom to come for his Bride and we celebrate THE Royal Wedding of all time.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Property Virgins

2011-03-23T11:21:00.000-07:00

In real estate, it is all about getting more for your money, whether it is land or houses. In Orange County, that is difficult to do. Most of the homes are so over priced. The sad part is a few years ago, the housing market was so high and now all those people are losing their homes. Most of the houses on the market are short sales or bank owned.

As I have been studying the Israelites in the book of Numbers, it occurred to me that like the television show "Property Virgins," these people were first time home/land owners. All they knew was "renting." Having owned a home once and now as a renter, there is a kind of freedom in that comes with owning something that you can make yours.

The book of Numbers is about God allotting land to the twelve tribes. The map looks very much like the U.S. today. Boundaries are given to Moses by God for each tribe to settle in. But in doing so, like a contract that is written up for the potential homeowner, it comes with rules and regulations. The difference for the Israelites is that their property was an inheritance. They did not have to pay for anything, but like an association that many subdivisions have today, there were rules to be followed. The rules in associations are to keep the neighborhood peaceful, but many people break the rules and there is a consequence. Usually a fine to be paid and unhappy neighbors.

I discovered many things over the past few weeks in studying the book of Numbers and now that I am into Deuteronomy that God is requiring of His people and that is obedience. This all began to unfold for me when I came across Deuteronomy 4 verses 1 and 2. It says, "Hear now, O Israel, the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. ² Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you."

Prior to this "association policy" in the book of Numbers two sentences caught my attention in regards to the property these people were about to receive. It is sandwiched in a passage as Moses is assigning property (boundary lines) to the tribes. It says "... 'This will be your land, with its boundaries on every side.' " ¹³ Moses commanded the Israelites: "Assign this land by lot as an inheritance..." (Numbers 34:12&13) Boundaries bring inheritance. Inheritance isn't only about prosperity, it's about safety, health and well-being. God was very specific on the boundaries He was giving to His people. The reason being was that their enemies were surrounding them in the countries outside of the Promised Land.

Something interesting about this prompted me to go back a few chapters to Numbers 26 verse 52-54. It says, "The LORD said to Moses, ⁵³ "The land is to be allotted to them as an inheritance based on the number of names. ⁵⁴ To a larger group give a larger inheritance, and to a smaller group a smaller one; each is to receive its inheritance according to the number of those listed." Now normally when one would read this, the reader understands the fact that a larger group of people require more land and the smaller group, not so much. But going back to the land and inheritance I realized that it is possible the smaller tribes lost out on some of their inheritance due to their disobedience. A consequence to a previous action. Let me recap on what happened earlier in the book of Numbers.

Shortly after the twelve spies returned from the Promised Land, ten of them brought back a negative report and their negativity spread throughout their tribes. God was very angry at them for this and because of this, the scripture says that these people were struck down by a plague before the Lord. (Numbers 14:36&37) They died! The subtraction begins. In Numbers 16, Korah and some others took it upon themselves to rise up against Moses. They decided that Moses wasn't the right leader for them and wanted to take him out. Um, I don't think that was so smart of them to think they knew better than the Lord. God is the ultimate authority and whom He chooses is the last word. It's kind of like people wanting to fire their pastor. There is no blessing in that because God opened up the ground and swallowed up their whole families. (Numbers 16:31) Another subtraction. Then in Numbers 21, the people started complaining again about not having what their "flesh" desired and fearful of the unknown. So God sent poisonous snakes to kill off the grumbling. (Numbers 21:4) The third subtraction of people.

So now you see where I am going with this. People were lost along the way due to rebellion and complaining. I'm sure this is the reason some of the tribes became smaller and therefore, lost out on some of the land that was promised to them.

This all came together for me about the boundaries God has set up for us. God has given us guidelines and rules, like a Property Management company, for our good. That living inside the boundaries we will receive the inheritance promised to us. That trusting in the Lord with all of our heart, doing the things He asks us to will bring prosperity and success. It is when we complain and distrust, and rebel against Him that we step outside of our safe zone and put ourselves out there for the enemy to attack.

The reason it took so long for these people to inherit the property the Lord wanted to give them was because He truly wanted to make them virgins. One of the definitions of the word virgin is pure and undefiled. God truly was wanting "Property Virgins" to inherit the land He was giving them. It wasn't about the land being pure, but the people. He cares way more about people than property. Psalm 16:6 says, "The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;surely I have a delightful inheritance."

So today I ask this question, what boundary lines have you crossed that God has not laid out for you? Could God call you a "property virgin"? Where or what is your Promise? Maybe you are in your Promised Land, but you are still fighting off the former inhabitants (previous habits of the sin nature). What is God telling you to do to overcome these idols of the world? I want to encourage you today to examine your heart and ask the Lord for forgiveness. I believe before long, you will see the blessings of the Lord chase you down. The sooner we get it together, the sooner we'll be on the other side.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - The Wonder Years

2011-03-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

ln the Iate 80's there was a television show called "The Wonder Years" starring Fred Savage. It was about a preteen boy and what he thought about and experienced during his teen years. I thought that would be a good title for today's devotional from Luke 2. I wonder what Jesus was like at 12? I remember when my son was 12. Where he was emotionally and in his maturity was not even what I imagine Jesus to be at 12.

The story of Jesus at the temple when he was 12 years old is found in Luke 2:41-52. It reads like this: 41 Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. 42 When Jesus was twelve years old, they attended the festival as usual. 43 After the celebration was over, they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t miss him at first, 44 because they assumed he was among the other travelers. But when he didn’t show up that evening, they started looking for him among their relatives and friends.

45 When they couldn’t find him, they went back to Jerusalem to search for him there. 46 Three days later they finally discovered him in the Temple, sitting among the religious teachers, listening to them and asking questions. 47 All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. (Above photo is from the Model City in Jerusalem of the Temple during the second Temple period. What it would have looked like when Jesus was there).

48 His parents didn’t know what to think. “Son,” his mother said to him, “why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been frantic, searching for you everywhere.”

49 “But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they didn’t understand what he meant.

51 Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And his mother stored all these things in her heart.

52 Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people. (NLT)

I can't even imagine what Mary and Joseph must have felt. The sick feeling of losing him, the guilt they must have felt as parents, not double checking that he was with them, let alone that they didn't even realize he was missing.

I wonder what kind of boy Jesus must have been. He must have been quiet mannered, probably an observer, a gentle spirit, but very confident, intelligent and obviously mature. I wonder what Mary must have been thinking when she realized he was not with them? That feeling is not a good one. When my son was 12 years old, he would have never done that because he barely lets me go outside of the house without fearing that I've left him alone. He's my homing pigeon. The scripture says it took them 3 days to find him. Probably because the last place they would have expected to find him was in the temple courts with the religious teachers. I'm sure the the average boy may have been playing ball with the neighborhood kids or whatever boys did in those days. The scripture says his parents didn't know what to think or as the NIV translates, they were astonished (Luke 2:48).

As any parent, even though they may have been angry, but probably a bit proud to find their son interacting with these men. Its says that Jesus was listening and asking questions. I wonder what kind of questions he was asking. I do wish the scripture had mentioned that. I wonder if the religious teachers were wondering what a 12 year old boy was doing hanging around them. But I think the key action here that Jesus did, was listen.

When they finally found him, his mother asked him why he did that to them? Jesus responded, "Why did you have to search? Didn't you know I'd be in my Father's house?" It said they didn't understand. Had Joseph and Mary taken so much of the parenting role in Jesus' life that they had forgotten whose son he was? Did they forget that God was ordering every step of Jesus' life? That Jesus was God in the flesh? I also find it interesting that it was three days. Having been to the Old City, it would not have taken three days to find him. If you've been to the Old City you would know that it would not have taken three days. Interesting that it was three days from Jesus' death and resurrection. On the third day he arose and was found by his "family." Jesus at 12 missing for three days was a snapshot of what was to come.

I wonder when they found Jesus at the temple, if his countenance was different after having been in his Father's house? Did they not recognize him? Maybe they actually passed him up a few times not expecting to find him there. Much like the women in the garden that morning of his resurrection or the men on the road to Emmaus after Jesus had been with his Father in His Heavenly home.

The scripture does not mention anymore about Jesus' teen years or young adult life. Unlike Moses, David and other heroes of the faith, who have biographies of their youth, there is no information on Jesus as a young man other than what the end of this passage says. It says that he grew in wisdom, stature and favor with God and people (Luke 2:52).

Let me ask this question? Would you know the difference if Jesus was missing in your own life for a few days? Do you find yourself anxious? Do you find yourself scattered? Do you find yourself searching for something? Maybe you are not convinced that Jesus makes that much of a difference in your life. I sure can tell when I haven't spent time with him. I am anxious, scattered and lost. I don't know if Mary truly understood the 12 year old that she was raising. The scripture says that Mary stored these things in her heart (Luke 2:51). She was his mother. We are the ones who manage to get lost. The truth is Jesus will never leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). You never have to wonder about that.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - So You Wanna Go Back To Egypt....

2011-03-09T07:00:00.000-08:00

In the late 70's the contemporary Christian music took off. I was a big fan. I am so thankful that I had the influence of Christian music during my teen years. Some of my favorite artists then were Benny Hester, Amy Grant, Kelly Willard, Roby Duke, The Archers and 2nd Chapter of Acts to name a few. But there was another up and coming singer that had a song that to this day that often comes to mind when I read the story of the Moses and the children of Israel. The singer is Keith Green and the song is "So You Wanna Go Back To Egypt..." Every time I begin the book of Numbers that song plays in my head. Going back to Egypt was big for the children of Israel.

It seems like every time things didn't seem to go the way they had planned or wanted, they began to complain and the first thing out of their mouths was "Why did you take us out of Egypt? Did you bring us into the desert with no food and water so we could die?" You know that old saying, "misery loves company" was a motto for them, I believe. They cried about being slaves in Egypt then God answered their cry and the next thing they know they're free. Then they complained about being free.

As I'm reading through these scriptures, my first reaction is to respond with "can't you be grateful? God answered your prayers by getting you out of Egypt." Then I realize, I'm no different! It is actually too familiar. I too am guilty of crying out to God for freedom in areas of my life and when I get them, I find something else to complain about.

What is really interesting to me is after Moses sends 12 men to spy out the promised land. Ten of the twelve came back with a negative perspective. Numbers 13:31- 33 says "But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” ³² And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. ³³ We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” God had already told them that was where He was taking them, but the fear of the people canceled out the promise of God. This was insulting to God that they would believe that man had more authority and power than the One who divided the Red Sea.

Numbers 14:1-9 says, "That night all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. ² All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, “If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this wilderness! ³ Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?” ⁴ And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” ⁵ Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown in front of the whole Israelite assembly gathered there. ⁶ Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes ⁷ and said to the entire Israelite assembly, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. ⁸ If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. ⁹ Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them.”

Those ten guys spoke so negative about the place God had promised to give them that it literally spread like a disease throughout the camp and God was angry. Numbers 14:10-12 says, "But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the LORD appeared at the tent of meeting to all the Israelites. ¹¹ The LORD said to Moses, “How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs I have performed among them? ¹² I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they.” God was so angered by these ten men and the negativity they spread throughout the camp, that God decided to cut them off from their inheritance. He told them that no one from that generation could enter the Promised Land, except Joshua and Caleb (Numbers 14:29 &30). Wow, I bet that was a shock for those people. Now they will spend forty years wandering around in the desert and will never get to see, let alone live in the Promised Land.

What a wake up call for me! What kind of negative words have I spread throughout my circle of friends and family? Have I caused some to be cut off from God? God has given us His Word so that we can learn from it. They did not get to see the promise of God fulfilled because of their attitudes and disobedience. God was angry because they refused to remember and recognize the miracles He had been doing everyday since they left Egypt.

God has done more miraculous things in my life than I could ever count. The biggest miracle was sending His Son to deliver us from eternal death. Because of what Jesus did for mankind at Calvary, and because I believe and he is my savior, I will get to enter my eternal Promised Land. Yet I still complain. It is not about me. Its about others in my life. Have I said something that might cause someone else to doubt? I hope not, but that is the problem with words, once they are out there, you can't take them back. Personally, I want to be much more responsible for the words that I speak. I think if the Church were a bit more responsible for our attitudes and what comes out of our mouths, we'd see more people come to Jesus, more healing miracles and more power, in Body of Christ.

I admit, I've wished for the "good ole' days" and wishing things could be like they used to be. Instead, I should remember God's faithfulness in those days and be thankful for today, even though it may seem difficult. Jesus said the last days would be like a woman in labor. The birth pains are getting closer together. We are much closer to the "eternal promised land" than we think. I don't want to complain anymore. I want to change my attitude. I'll start now by saying, "no, I don't wanna go back to Egypt."

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Home Sweet Home

2011-03-01T20:40:00.001-08:00

Back in January when we began our fast, we as a family committed to do some kind of personal devotional. Jordanne got a new Bible for Christmas and it had a couple different reading plans. One of them is through the Bible in 90 days. The other evening as she was reading her Bible before bed, she came running down stairs to share what the Lord had showed her in His Word. The following "S.O.A.P." is my twelve year old daughter's journal entry.

"Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer" by Jordanne Hamilton

2 Samuel 7:5-11

“Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the LORD says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? ⁶ I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling. ⁷ Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’

⁸ “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. ⁹ I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. ¹⁰ And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning ¹¹ and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies.

“‘The LORD declares to you that the LORD himself will establish a house for you:
Scripture: "The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you:" 2 Samuel 7:11

Observation: David was questioning God about why the Ark of God remained in a tent and he lived in a house of cedar. God told David that He had never expected him to build him a house and that He would make sure His people had homes of their own.

Application: We have been looking for a house since last April. We still haven't found one. We have run into many problems over the last year. For me, it been tough. I want a HOME! Not a house, a HOME! There's a difference . My definition of a house is a physical settlement where it was planned and built up. A home is a place of settling, connection, stress-free, comfortable place that God has prepared. I don't think we have that yet, but I know if we keep our faith in Him, we will prosper and have the perfect home!

Prayer: Dear Jesus, Thank you for blessing our family with the "place you have prepared for us." You have a wonderful house for my family. I pray we keep our faith and not doubt your power. You always come through with your will. You are my only escape from the overwhelming stress. I love you Lord. Amen.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Dirty Jobs

2011-02-23T07:00:00.000-08:00

Jeff likes to watch a show on the Discovery channel called "Dirty Jobs." The host Mike Rowe works jobs that are unusual. Most of them are jobs that the average person doesn't work because it is very unique as well as very dirty.

We began the book of Leviticus this past week. The book of Leviticus was written as an instruction book for the priests. I thought of something this time that I hadn't before, the priests had a unique job that the average person could not do and it was kind of a dirty job. We look at offering sacrifices as almost being romantic because it is the cleansing of one's sin. But as I started reading about all that the actual duties of the priests, it made me realize that getting clean requires getting dirty.

The key verse in Leviticus is 19:2 which says, "Be holy because I, the Lord your God am holy." The priests were responsible for the peoples holiness. The priests were the only ones consecrated to enter the most holy place and perform the different sacrificial offerings. (Leviticus 8:12&13) The Grain offering wasn't too bad. They were to season the Grain offerings with salt, which is a symbol of covenant. When I read about what they had to do for the Fellowship, Sin and Guilt offerings, it was messy. The animals brought had to be butchered in such a way and the blood was to be drained and sprinkled to make atonement.

I remember being in Israel and seeing a model of the area where the people were to bring their sacrifices to the temple. We don't really have a concept of what that would have been like because it is not done today. When our tour guide explained it, the blood drained from the animals would have completely filled the area and the smell of the dead animals surely would not have been pleasant. Once the animals were properly handled they were placed on the alter and the smell of the burning offering over powered everything. Leviticus 1:9 says, "You are to wash the internal organs and the legs with water, and the priest is to burn all of it on the altar. It is a burnt offering, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the LORD." God did invent the barbeque.

The priests also had the job of determining skin diseases and infections. They were to examine a sore or sores on one's skin and tell the person whether or not they were considered clean or unclean. I can't imagine telling someone they were unclean. Then the person would have to cry out, "Unclean! Unclean!" (Leviticus 13:45)

As I thought about the responsibility that was placed on the priests, it made me think of pastors today. Pastors don't have the job of butchering for sacrificial offerings as the priests did because Jesus already took care of that. What it did bring to mind the job pastors have is to help people separate the unclean from the clean in their lives.

A pastor has to be willing to roll up his sleeves and get dirty when helping people clean out their lives. It's like those shows where people live in homes piled with "stuff" that they can't get rid of it because it has become apart of them. A psychologist or therapist has to help them separate the unclean from the clean. In almost every situation, the person struggling with the issue can't let go of the "stuff" because they have lived with it so long it is now apart of who they are.

I am so grateful for what Jesus did for us by taking on my sin so that I could be considered clean. Once we have received our salvation, we are so clean that now the Holy Spirit takes residence in us. 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?" Remember the priests were the only ones allowed in the temple because they had been consecrated before God and could survive the presence of the Lord. If they were not consecrated they would die immediately. So the average person could never be in the presence of God. But because of Jesus, we now have that same presence living in us. Jesus took on the dirty job of carrying our sin and becoming the sacrifice so we could not become consecrated before the Lord. Think about that, the very presence that could kill a man if he was not considered holy, now dwells in us and allows us to live eternally because of Jesus' sacrifice. I'd say Jesus had the dirtiest job of all, but I am thankful that he was willing to do it.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Forever After

2011-02-16T08:00:00.000-08:00

Locked in her room, Cinderella sits on her knees, one hand on the door knob the other in her lap. She's feeling as though all is lost. Just outside the door are two mice carrying a key up several flights of stairs. As Jock and Gus make their way up the stairs carrying the heavy and awkwardly large key, Lady Tremaine and her two daughters try on a tiny glass slipper. Each sister was doing everything possible to get that shoe to fit.

Finally the two tiny mice make it to the door and just as they slip the key under the door, Lucifer the cat grabs Gus, along with the key and hides him under a cup. The mice and birds begin to try and distract the mean cat, but nothing seems to work. His focus is keeping Gus from escaping. The tension in the scene grows as the two sister's finish trying on shoes and it is time for the men to move on to the next house. Finally, some breakthrough when Cinderella remembers the dog Bruno is the only one who the cat will run from. As Bruno chases Lucifer away, Cinderella unlocks the door and runs after the men asking if she could try the shoe on. Just as she sits down, Lady Tremaine trips the clumsy footman and the glass slipper flies in the air and shatters in a million pieces. For a moment, it seems that all is lost. Then out of her pocket, Cinderella pulls out the matching shoe. And so the story concludes with, "And they lived happily ever after."

Much of the events lately in my life seem to resemble the stress in this last portion of the movie, Cinderella. It seems we just miss breakthrough by a margin. Rather than moving closer to a conclusion, it would seem the farther away from a solution and deeper into the hole we get.

This past week in Psalms I read chapter 32. Verses 6 and 7 says this, "Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them. ⁷ You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance." How many times have you found yourself in a place that it seemed the mighty waters of life were over your head and you barely had enough in you to come up for air. I know this feeling all to well. All you can do is to hang on to the life preserver of "promise" that God will rescue you.

The other morning I woke up thinking of some people that must have surely felt this way. Joseph, had found himself in prison. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, had found themselves in a firey furnace. And Daniel, had found himself in the lions den. All these men had "done the right thing" and yet God had allowed them to be put in positions that seemed hopeless. I'm sure they had moments that they wondered how in the world did they get there. God actually made them "go through" rather than deliver them before hand.

After thinking about this for a moment, I began to think about what Jesus did. Jesus was perfect and did nothing wrong, yet he had to "go through" with his death on the cross. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus tells Peter, James and John, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death." (Matthew 26:37 & 38). As Jesus prayed, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." (Matthew 26:39)

If you have seen the movie "The Passion of the Christ" we know what Jesus had to endure. God did not choose to let that cup pass, but rather he had to "go through". Because of this unselfish act, not only did he conquer his own death, but he conquered death for all of mankind. John 3:16 says it all, "For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him will have everlasting life."

There are many stories of young maidens who are held captive by some evil step mother or queen. They did not do anything wrong, but found themselves being blamed for the other person's sin. In those stories there is always a prince who is willing to fight for her life to the point he is willing to die himself so that he may prove his love for her.

Our lives are written much like these stories. Sometimes we are held captive by others sin. What I mean by that, what others impose on us without our consent. That is what Jesus did for us. We imposed our sin on him, but he was willing to endure the cross because of his love for us. He was willing to give his life for us. In return we are then protected from any affliction the enemy would try to impose on us. Psalm 34:18 says, "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, BUT the Lord delivers him out of them all."

As I think back on Joseph, Daniel, and the three Hebrew children, they may have had to "go through" it, but they were set free to the point that Shadrach, Meshach and Abenego did not even smell like smoke and Daniel did not have one scratch when he came out of the den of lions (Daniel 3:27 & 6:23). We can make it through whatever difficulty we find ourselves in. We are victorious in every situation because Jesus rescued us 2000 years ago so that we will live with him not only happily ever after, but forever after.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Purified Water

2011-02-09T09:00:00.000-08:00

Who doesn’t like a refreshing drink of water on a hot day? My husband has his favorite brand of water that he prefers. Most of the good bottled water has minerals added for flavor. Who would have ever thought a piece of wood could do the same.

The first miracle in the desert after God had opened and closed the Red Sea was about a piece of wood and water. The small section found in Exodus 15:22-25 (NIV) caught my eye as I was reading. It reads, “22 Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah. ^[e] ) 24 So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What are we to drink?" 25 Then Moses cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.” Another translation says it became “good to drink”.

As I read those 4 verses, I wondered why a piece of wood? Did the wood represent hope that there could possibly be trees found in this desert region? I wonder if Moses wondered why God would choose a piece of wood as opposed to a rock which probably was more available, especially since rock is made up of minerals from dirt. I’ve been to one of the desert regions near the Dead Sea and there weren’t many trees around, just rocks. Not to mention, it was so hot I couldn’t drink enough water to satisfy my thirst.

I wondered if this was God’s first clue to His children that one day, He would send His son die on a piece of wood to redeem the people from the bitterness of sin. I believe this was God’s visual illustration to show His children what was to come. Even then, God wanted the people to ask the question, what are we to drink? Jesus referred to himself as the “living water” when he encountered the Samaritan woman. He said to her in John 4:13& 14 (NIV), “13Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

Could that piece of wood thrown into that bitter water possibly be the picture of Jesus? Jesus, the living water was hung on a piece of wood to redeem mankind so that we all could have the opportunity to drink from this well. For a moment there Jesus became all sin and bitterness for us. Just as he said in verse 14, if we drink from the water he gives, we will never thirst and that water will well up inside of us and will give us eternal life. The conclusion I have come to is, that piece of wood where the “Living Water” hung made salvation sweet for all of us.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Labor and Delivery

2011-02-01T05:38:00.000-08:00

It was the February 29th, 1996 and I was getting closer to the delivery of my first born. At about 10:30pm, the nurse and the anesthesiologist came into the room to see if I was ready for my epidural. About an hour earlier, the nurse had given me pitocin to increase the contractions as they were irregular. My baby must have been comfortable because he was slow in getting here. The nurse said that it had been too many hours from the point of my water breaking and now we were getting to the point it could be dangerous. Once she gave me the pitocin, my labor pains became more intense and much closer together. It was shortly after that, I had the epidural which relieved the pain.

Around midnight, I remember lying there comfortably. All was quiet and content in my room, but in the distance I could hear the a woman, screaming at the top of her lungs. The nurse came in to check on me and I asked her what was going on. She replied, "Sweetie, some ladies want to heroes." Apparently that mom-to-be had opted out of the epidural and chose to endure the labor and delivery process.

This week, we began the labor and delivery process of the Israelites. Joseph's influence in Egypt had begun to subside. About 400 years after the Israelites settled in Goshen, they found themselves with a new king who did not know Joseph and had become a people greater in number than the Egyptians (Exodus 1:8 & 9). The scripture goes on to say that the Egyptians oppressed them with forced labor and made them work ruthlessly and that they made their lives bitter with hard labor making brick and mortar and working the fields (Exodus 1:11-14).

The people began to cry out to God to deliver them from their pain. God hears them and sends them one of their own, Moses. When God came to Moses, he was in Midian country. Maybe like me, he wanted to avoid the pain that he might experience because he heard the cry of his people, like I heard the the woman down the hall. He argued a bit with God trying to pass on the "hard labor" he might face when confronting Pharaoh about the release of his people. As always, God's plan prevailed and Moses was off to Egypt.

In Chapter 5 of Exodus, we begin the early stages of contractions. The Israelites were already experiencing, what I might call "Braxton Hicks". They are contractions that don't hurt too bad that happen weeks before actual labor takes place. It it the process of preparing the body for the day of delivery. The Israelites were suffering under the rule of new Pharaoh, but they didn't know what labor was until Moses requested their release. Verses 6 through 9 it says, " That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and overseers in charge of the people: ⁷ “You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. ⁸ But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don’t reduce the quota. They are lazy; that is why they are crying out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Make the work harder for the people so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies.'" Moses' request was like giving the Israelites pitocin. Their labor became "hard labor."

We begin to see the contractions become more intense for the Israelites. We all know that the contractions must be stronger and closer together before delivery can happen. I believe this was the first stage of hard labor for the Israelites. God had already promised them 400 years earlier that He would deliver them (Genesis 50:24). Little did they know they would have to go through the whole labor process before they could be delivered.

I believe this is a visual illustration of what we experience as we mature spiritually. When we first come to Jesus, that is our first experience of deliverance. Much like Jacob and his sons had when they had relocated to the land of Goshen. Life was good because they were now going to be taken care of. As time passed, they were growing in number and became a threat to the Egyptian people. Much like what happens as we grow spiritually. The more knowledge and understanding we gain as followers of Jesus, the more of a threat we become to the Enemy. So our suffering becomes greater. Psalm 34:19 says, "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all." (NKJ)

Labor in a spiritual sense is never easy. Over my life as a follower of Jesus, I have discovered there isn't a "spiritual epidural" that can be administered when life labor pains intensify. Oh how I wish there was because there are times in my life that the pain is unbearable. As we push through the process not only is glory to be birthed, but the hope we need to believe is being produced. Romans 5:1-5 says this, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. ³ And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; ⁴ and perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

It is through Jesus' suffering, or should I say, his labor pains, that deliver us from sin to receive salvation. Romans 8:17 says we will share in his sufferings and in order that we may share in his glory. Jesus is like the the mom-to-be that I heard that night I was about to give birth, he chose not to opt out of the painful process, but to be a hero and deliver us.

As with the women in those days and throughout generations, labor and delivery is never experienced alone. A midwife was used to help the coach the woman through the birthing process, much like midwives, nurses, birthing coaches and husbands coach women today. I believe the Holy Spirit is our "husband" to encourage and coach us during our labor and delivery.

Maybe you have found yourself in in a season of "hard labor." Personally, this has been a season in my own life that I have been experiencing labor pains and they seem to be getting more intense and closer together. In child birth, the actual time of delivery is unknown, unless one has a "scheduled" C-section. Like the "spiritual epidural", there is no "spiritual C-section" in our delivery process. We have to p.u.s.h. (pray until something happens) until we have been delivered. With these words, let me encourage you as well as encourage myself, don't give up! Or in another word, do not abort what God is about to birth in your life. The delivery of God's promise will outweigh the pain of labor and the joy that will follow will be more glorious than you can imagine.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Like Father, Like Son

2011-01-26T06:25:00.000-08:00

Over the past few days, the daily reading plan takes us to the story of Joseph. Joseph was the favored son of Jacob, now called Israel. Many of us are familiar with the story of Joseph (Genesis 37-50).

Eventually Jacob and his sons made their way to Egypt and were reunited with Joseph. Jacob lived in Egypt, during the famine. Something that struck me in this next portion of scripture was that after Jacob died, he was embalmed. Joseph told the physicians to embalm his father (Genesis 50:2 & 3).

History tells us the Egyptians are well known for this practice which developed into mummification. They believed that preservation of the mummy empowered the soul after death, which would return to the preserved corpse.* In the Jewish culture, embalming is avoided. At this time Jewish people had not yet become a nation, but Jacob, now called Israel, was embalmed. Joseph, like Jacob was also embalmed when he died (Genesis 50:26). This to me is a foreshadow of God preserving his people throughout history. Joseph tells his brothers in Genesis 45:7, "But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.^a]">"

In the bigger picture, God preserved the nation of Israel because through them His very own Son would be birthed. Jesus, being God, came for a great deliverance. Jesus is not only like God, he is God (John 10:30). Jesus delivered us from death into everlasting life (John 3:16). Because Jesus came, we now have the Holy Spirit. When we receive Jesus into our life, the Holy Spirit then gives our spirit life and "preserves" us from death.

Joseph, like Jacob was not buried in Egypt. When Moses and the children of Israel left Egypt, they took the bones of Joseph with them, as Joseph had requested (Exodus 13:19). If you think about that, that was 400 years later. If they had not embalmed him, there may not have been bones to take. God let Israel know ahead of time that He would deliver them from their slavery through Joseph's request. He said to his brothers, "'I am about to die. But God will surely come to your aid and take you up out of this land to the land he promised an oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.' 25 And Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath and said, 'God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up from this place.'" (Genesis 50:24 & 25) It was another foreshadow of God's preservation for his people.

Our Heavenly Father is eternal. He has given each of us a promise of eternal life. He has given us the Holy Spirit to preserve us until Jesus returns. Just as Jacob and Joseph were buried with their forefathers in death, we will be joined with our Father for life.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Tasty Food

2011-01-12T12:07:00.000-08:00

Ten days ago, we began a twenty-one day fast with our church family. We are well into the book of Genesis in our daily reading plan as well. Last week we read again, another story of food being used as a prop in an act of deception.

In chapter 27 we read the story of Rebekah and Jacob deceiving Isaac so that Jacob could receive the blessing of the birthright he had taken from his brother. The story begins with Isaac as an old man and nearly blind. He was moving closer to his death and told Esau to go out and hunt some wild game (Genesis 27:1-3). "Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing before I die." (Genesis 27:4)

Rebekah had overheard the conversation and because Jacob was her favorite son, quickly came up with a scheme for him to receive the blessing. She said beginning in verse 8, "Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you: 9Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. 10Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing before he dies."(Genesis 27:8-10)

Jacob questioned his mother by replying that his brother was a hairy man and that he had smooth skin. How could he convince his dad that he was Esau if he touched him? He feared that a curse would fall upon him rather than a blessing if his father caught on. That was when Rebekah told him to put on the best of Esau's clothes and then put goat skins on top of his hands and the back of his neck. She prepared the tasty food, along with some bread and had Jacob take it into his father. (Genesis 27:11-17).

In verse 18, Jacob went to his father and claimed he was Esau. Isaac questions Jacob because his voice is that of Jacob. After touching his hands, Isaac believed he was Esau and gave him his blessing. After Esau returned from hunting, he prepared his father tasty food and went to him to receive his blessing. It was then the secret was out and Isaac realized he had been deceived. Both Isaac and Esau were upset by this, so much so that in verse 35 Isaac says to Esau, "Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing." (Genesis 27:18-40)

Esau began to plot to kill his brother after his father passed. Rebekah got wind of his plan and told Jacob to flee to her brother Laban in Haran because the Hittite women disgusted her and she did not want him to marry one of them. (Genesis 27:41-46). I did discovered that Rebekah wasn't such a nice woman, she was much like her brother Laban, deceiving.

What I find truly interesting in this whole story is Jacob didn't know God yet. Back in verse 20, when Jacob went into Isaac he says to him after Isaac asks him how did he find the game so quickly, Jacob replies, "The Lord your God gave me success."(Genesis 27:20) This suggests to me that Jacob didn't know God. It actually didn't happen until he finds himself in the desert on his way to Haran that he has his own encounter with God and makes a vow to God. (Genesis 28:21-22)

I share this story because, it is helping me to understand the importance of why we are to fast. Food, although necessary, can be used as a stumbling block in our lives. Because we need food to live, the enemy likes to use it to lure us by telling us, "you've gotta eat anyway." What I mean by that is we give ourselves permission to eat what we want. We subtly then give ourselves permission to "do" what we want. We each face our own "temptation in the garden" when we have the option to choose food or God. Jesus said when he fasted for 40 days "Worship the Lord your God and serve him only." (Matthew 4:10)

There was a reason Daniel chose not to eat from the king's table. There he could have eaten royal food and wine, but he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. Instead, for ten days he ate only fruits and vegetables. It says that he and the other boys looked healthier than those who had eaten from the king's table and it says God gave them knowledge and understanding. (Daniel 1:1-17)

I heard a pastor say that food is our connection to the world. When we fast and pray, we change that by connecting with God through prayer and disconnect with the world through fasting.* That makes so much sense to me.

There was something very significant about Jesus fasting for 40 days before he began his ministry. Jesus was telling us and the devil that he is not of this world and did not have to live by the world's ways. His fast was proof that he was not connected to this world. Instead that he overcame the world (John 16:33). He came to tell us that "Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." (Matthew 4:4)

Jacob's blessing didn't come immediately. As the saying says, "what goes around, comes around." For twenty-some years Jacob had been deceived by his Uncle Laban, but in God's goodness Jacob's life turned around and he even made peace with his brother Esau.

As we move into the end of our fast, I pray that we will begin to see things turn around. I pray specifically for health issues that have been caused by tasty food. That we will see and hear of healing miracles because we have been willing to disconnect from the world and connect with God. Through prayer that we would see a new and better connection to the Lord than ever before. That His power and presence would be sensed in every area of our lives. So I encourage you to press through on this fast. As Jacob said, "Let OUR God give us success."

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Fast Food

2011-01-12T10:49:00.000-08:00

We have heard for years that fast food is unhealthy. Even though we know this, many of us, due to schedule, still eat it. Some claim to be healthier than others because they use vegetable oil rather than lard. Whatever the case, if we are in a hurry or have skipped meals and end up feeling starved, we'll drive through our favorite fast food restaurant for the quick convenience of it.

Genesis 25 begins the story of Esau and Jacob. The twin brothers were complete opposites. Esau was a "man's man" and loved to hunt. Jacob, on the other hand, preferred to help out around the house and cook. Even though they were twins, Esau was in line for the "birthright" because he had been born first. Jacob, who's name means supplanter which means to take the place of through force or scheming, wanted that birthright. Genesis 25:29-34 reads, "Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. ³⁰ He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.) ³¹ Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” ³² “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?” ³³ But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. ³⁴ Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright." This "fast food" moment definitely was an unwise choice of Esau. Maybe this "fast food" didn't kill him literally, but it killed the blessing on his household and future generations to come.

I started thinking about these verses in a spiritual context. I find it interesting that I'm reading this as I began a twenty-one day fast. Often times when we are spiritually starving, like Esau who said if he didn't get anything to eat was about to die, are willing to eat anything to fill us up. We'll be so spiritually famished, but rather than get into the Word of God or listen to some teaching podcast or even go to church, we'll fill up on "junk" food. Junk food is referring to anything that does not have any Godly edification. We'll watch the television and possibly pass by a preacher who is speaking, but won't stop to listen often because we don't care for his style. I admit I am guilty of this, but somehow, if I stick around there for a few minutes, more than likely the Holy Spirit uses that moment to speak to me. Instead, we'll turn on some mindless program that does nothing for us except pollute us with information that isn't even important. Those empty calories.

Esau in this passage, allowed his flesh to overrun his moment of need and in one bite of food, sold his blessing for eternity. What I am saying here is that we have to be more cautious of becoming spiritually famished. Many times we are "spiritually starving to death" for the thing that only Jesus can give us, the bread of life. Often times we'll choose the "fast food" to fill us. Fast food only ends up leaving us more hungry and sometimes can lead us to sickness or death. For example, watching some of the "positive thinking" lectures on television is like eating french fries. We convince ourselves that it's okay because french fries are made from potatoes and it is a vegetable. We know it's fried in oil that is full of additives, but give ourselves permission to because it's satisfying for the moment. Those "positive thinking" lectures are similar in the fact there is some truth, but it's coated in man's wisdom. Fast food can lead to the clogging of your arteries or adding unwanted pounds, so is it when we take in spiritual fast food.

When we chose Jesus as our Savior, we immediately received the birthright. That birthright can never be taken from us as long as we choose Him. When we took that birthright, our spirit became alive and has to be fed properly. We can never live a healthy spiritual life if we aren't feeding our spirit regularly the Truth. There have been some who claimed Jesus as their Lord, but didn't feed their spirit properly and became spiritually famished. When that happened they no longer had a taste for Truth but for junk and therefore turned away from Jesus. Just like when we turn to the potato chips when we're physically famished instead of carrot sticks. Eventually we lose a taste for healthy food.

It is said that people who eat small portions more often throughout the day stay full. I can say that is true when I have tried this way of eating. But when we skip breakfast, we end up eating more in the afternoon and it is usually unhealthy food. That quick bite to tide us over can eventually be harmful. I too can say this from experience. This can be true in our spiritual life. It is better to start the day off with, a Proverb or Psalm and listen to some teaching podcast, a little worship, and conclude the day with a good meal of the Word. You will be amazed at how you good feel. Yes, there will be days that it's like eating salad. It's was good for you, but not so comforting. Then there will be days that it's like eating Filet Mignon and will be so filling and comforting. My point is, don't turn to the "spiritual fast food" it's about being filled not famished. Otherwise you might end up like Esau, full but nothing of value in your life.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Temptation

2011-01-04T12:40:00.000-08:00

Every year when January rolls around, people begin making resolutions. The number one resolution for the average person is to lose weight. Advertisers bombard us with weight loss programs, pills and fitness clubs cut prices in half to acquire new members. What is it about food that we allow ourselves to indulge? There is even a new word out there for people who love food. They are called "foody's". Eventually our lack of restraint causes extra pounds that bring on all kinds of health issues. Our eating habits can cause heart disease and diabetes which both are at an all time high. We all know the fall of man had to do with a desire for food. A piece of fruit for that matter.

This week as we begin reading through the Bible, we begin with creation. I noticed three things in the fall of man that to this day we deal with. The first being Satan always questioning God's authority and who He is. He said to the woman in verse one, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" (Genesis 3:1) What's he trying to say here, that God is a liar?

The second is questioning power. Most of the world's problems throughout history and today are from those who want to rule the world. Genesis 3:4-5 says, "You will not surely die, " the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." God had already given them complete authority over every living thing on the earth. The very first thing God said to man was he was to increase in number and to rule over every fish, bird and creature on the earth (Genesis 1:28). Satan made an accusation causing them to question the authority God had given them and that He was holding out on them something more and better. Maybe if they knew what good and evil was then they would have God's power and authority. Think about it, they had not yet been exposed to evil.

The third is food. After God created man, the first command God gave man was to eat, but not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2:16-17). In chapter 3 of Genesis, food was the prop used by Satan to tempt Adam and Eve. In verse 6 it says, "When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it" (Genesis 3:6). It is no wonder why we struggle today with food, whether it is with obesity or even anorexia. It was obviously one of the pleasures from the garden of Eden that God allowed us to keep. As a result of sin, Satan used it to sabotage what God intended it for pleasure and use it to our demise.

We also read this week the beginning of Jesus' life. In Matthew 4, Jesus has not yet begun his ministry. Jesus goes to the desert. There he fasted 40 days (Matthew 4:1&2). Jesus being man, felt the hunger pangs. The scripture is clear to let us know that. Again, Satan attempts to catch Jesus in a time of weakness and tries to do to him what he did to Adam, using the same technique. This time the scenery is different than Adam's. Jesus is no where near fruit trees or lush gardens. Instead he's in the dry, hot and dusty desert.

Satan is referred to as the tempter in this passage. Matthew 4:3 says, "The tempter came to him and said, 'If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.'" The tempter in his suggestion to Jesus uses the word if as to question who Jesus is. Of course it was no surprise to Jesus that he would play on his moment of weakness by suggesting food that would have probably been satisfying in that moment. But Jesus refute him by using the Word of God back that man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3).

Again, the tempter challenged who Jesus is in verse 6 and even tried to use the Word of God as his reason for questioning. It says, "'If you are the Son of God,' he said, 'throw yourself down. For it is written: "He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone'" (Matthew 4:6; Psalm 91:11 & 12). Again, Jesus refute his suggestion with using the Word by telling him not to put God to the test (Matthew 4:7; Deuteronomy 6:16).

Lastly, like Adam, dangled the carrot of power in front of Jesus by taking him to a high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor (Matthew 4:8). In verse 9 he says, "'All this I will give you,' he said, 'if you will bow down and worship me."' But Jesus knew who he was and knew the authority he was given and again, refute the words of Satan by the Word of God that says "Away from me Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord you God, and serve him only.'" (Matthew 4:10;Deuteronomy 6:13)

The lesson we learn from Jesus is how to handle temptations. This is why it is so important to know the Word of God. Beginning a new year off with committing to read through the Bible will help when faced with temptations.

I believe this is why even fasting is so important and specifically at the first of the year. God meant for us to be spiritual beings and the kind of food the spirit needs is different from the flesh. God intended for Adam to be eternal, but because he was flesh ended up making choices that brought death to man. Jesus is called the "last Adam". God sent him to give life to our spirit so we could dwell with him eternally. (1 Corinthians 15:45). Eternally is the way he originally intended for us to live. Jesus showed us that we can resist temptation if we have a clear connection in the spirit with God and know the Word. Fasting is a way of saying "no" to our flesh, and "yes" to our spirit.

As you begin this new year with resolutions that will likely be broken, I want to encourage you to read through the Bible this year and try a fast of some kind over the next month. Give God a tithe of your life this year by saying "no" to your flesh and "yes" to Him. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, "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." (NLT) He will not lead you into temptation, but deliver you from evil one (Matthew 16:13).

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Reflections

2010-12-29T12:07:00.001-08:00

We are two days away from the beginning of a new year. One of my New Year's resolutions is to read through the Bible. It seems to be the only resolution I manage to keep.

I also spend time looking back at my prayer journal that I have kept for the past 12 months. It is very interesting to see the adventure that unfolds just living life from day to day. If one were to draw it out in graph form, it would look like some engineers layout for a theme park roller coaster. Lots of ups and downs and loops as well as moments of smooth sailing.

One of our traditions at the beginning of the year, is to choose a scripture from a "Promise Card" holder. Some years, the scripture I pull is exciting and comforting and some years, a mystery. This year was one of those mystery cards. My scripture was Psalm 16:8, "I have set the Lord always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken." The prayer that was prayed over me was "Resist the devil and he will flee. Find my 'security' in Christ". I did not really understand what this meant until we hit the beginning of March when the rug was pulled out from under my feet. Literally!

In the middle of the night on March 6th, I was awaken by the Lord. I heard as clear as I've ever heard His voice say, "You have to go through this, but don't worry, I am going to be with you all the way." For the next two days I questioned the Lord asking Him what it was I was having to go through. On March 8th we were told that the owner of the home that we were living in was having to sell it. At first, this seemed to be fine as we felt this was the Lord giving us the opportunity to buy our own home. I jumped in with a heart full of faith believing that by the time Easter arrived, we'd likely be moving into our own place. There were hundreds of houses listed so this shouldn't be a very difficult process. Our rental home sold within one month after being listed.

As we began the process, we did find we had limitations, but it didn't seem too difficult until we actually put in our first offer. That was when we realized this process was not going to be that easy. This wide open door for opportunity began to shut, little by little. By the time we hit July we had put in 17 offers that had all been rejected. I can't even begin to tell you how many times I sat in my closet, crying and asking the Lord, what was going on. How could it be so hard for us to find a home?

The summer thermometer began to rise along with challenges we were facing. By the time we hit the end of July, we had to move so that our kids would have time to register for school, not to mention the new owner of the home we were in, was ready to move into his new house. It seemed as though every day was faced with a cement wall, that we had to knock down before we could take the next step. I know this might seem dramatic, but I can truly say that is what it felt like.

As I read through the chronological Bible this year and Jeff taught through the Bible this year, it seemed every week we experienced what we read. There were moments we prepared ourselves for what was coming because of how it lined up with God's Word. My daily devotions became my life preserver for the storms that we were facing. I truly believe, as my scripture says that He is at my right hand, was my commitment to read His Word every day. His Word is the anchor that keeps me from getting lost and tossed when the winds and waves come.

Reflecting back on 2010, I can honestly say this year has been the year my faith has been challenged and stretched. More than any other in my life. If anything, I sit here at this computer writing this entry, feeling much like Peter must have felt when Jesus called him out of the boat (Matthew 14:28-30). Peter even asked Jesus to call him out of the boat. Right there shows that Peter started out with great faith. Just like I did as I took my first steps into 2010. But once his feet crossed over the security of the wooden structure he was in, into the unstable, liquid, that scientifically says is impossible to stand on, not to mention the darkness out there on the lake, fear crept in. He probably couldn't see Jesus either due to the darkness. This picture sounds so familiar to where I am standing today. It was so important for Peter to have recognized Jesus' voice when he was blinded by the darkness of night. This is why I would encourage you, if you have never committed to reading through the Bible, why you should. This is how you hear and recognize His voice when you have to step into the dark sea of faith.

The conclusion to these two verses says that Peter began to sink because he was afraid. I can't tell you how many times this year, I have sunk into my fear, but Jesus has been there to pull me up at each sinking. I can't go back to the boat now and we still have a ways to go before we reach the shore. Hopefully, it won't be much longer before we find a home. I feel more like Jesus is leading me step by step on the sea of faith to show me how important is is for me to hold on to His hand. He is leading my family and me on a path that only He knows the way. As long as I choose to follow him there will always be water underneath my feet and it will always be dark before me. That is why I listen closely to His voice leading me. And I can only do that by reading His Word. But as long as I keep walking with Him, I can always look back and catch the reflection in the water of the boat from where I started. I can see how far I've walked since the day I stepped in.

I hope you will take some time over the next few days to reflect on 2010 and see how far Jesus has taken you since you stepped onto the path of faith. If you find that you are still inside the security of the boat, let me encourage you to climb over the side. You won't be alone because there are several of us out here. Make this your 2011 resolution, to read through His Word. His desire is for you to recognize His voice and hold His hand, especially when it's dark.

Happy 2011!!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - A Revelation

2010-12-22T08:30:00.000-08:00

In most one year Bible reading plans, the last few weeks of December we read in Revelation about the "second" coming of Jesus while we celebrate His "first" coming. This just proves how God does everything intentionally. There are so many clues pointing to Jesus as the Messiah.

As I was reading Revelation I had my own revelation about the "first" and "second" coming of Jesus. In Revelation Jesus if called the Lamb of God. "Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth." Revelation 5:6. In Revelation 5:12 the heavenly creatures sang in a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!"

This sounds so familiar to what the shepherds heard that night in their fields in Bethlehem (Fields pictured above). Bethlehem was the place where the sheep for the Passover sacrifice were raised. Think about this, the sacrificial lambs were bred there in Bethlehem. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. He was the Lamb of God (John 1:29, John 1:36). They could only use a lamb without blemish or defect for the Passover sacrifice. 1 Peter 1:19 says "the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect." 1 Corinthians 5:7 says Jesus is the Passover lamb that was sacrificed.

When the Angels appeared to the shepherds this is what they said, "Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."(Luke 2:11-14) The key word for me here is sign. There are many signs pointing now to Jesus as the Messiah and who He is in this picture of the nativity.

First, Jesus being the Lamb of God, and being born in a stable and lying in a manger. When we were in Israel, our tour guide showed us what a typical manger would have looked like when we were in Meggido. It's not made out of wood like we see in nativity pictures today. It was carved out of stone. (See the photo above) This would have held the grain or hay the animals would have eaten as well as holding the water they would have drunk. Now, think about this, here's the Lamb of God born in the stable, but he was lying in a food/drink trough. What did Jesus say he was? Bread of Life and Living Water. And what is bread made from? Grain. Jesus said we'd never go hungry or thirsty again in John 4. But, Revelation 7:14-17 says, "I answered, "Sir, you know."And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15Therefore,"they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.

16Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them,
nor any scorching heat. 17For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."

Another revelation to me was who came to visit him. We often talk about the shepherds being the lowliest of the people. His "first" group of visitors were shepherds. What else is Jesus referred to? He's the Good Shepherd. (John 10:11,) His first introduction to mankind is that he came as a shepherd. The "first" coming.

The "second" set of visitors were kings. What is Jesus coming back as the "second" time he appears to mankind? As the King of kings and Lord of lords. Revelation 19:11-16:says, "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. 12His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. 14The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter."He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. " If this isn't another sign pointing to Jesus as the Messiah.

We see the picture of the Heavenly Hosts in the field greeting the shepherds with the glad tidings of great joy. Only a selected few had the opportunity of experiencing that. But the "second" time around the whole world will experience the glad tidings of great joy. The kind of joy where there will be no more tears. The Bible says that shepherds and kings bowed and worshiped the child lying in a manger. When Jesus appears to us for the second time, we will all have the opportunity to bow and worship him and this time he will take his rightful place on the throne in the temple. The very temple that as a Lamb of God he was sacrificed.

The book of Revelation has several references to stars. All of them being a symbol. The other morning, I believe the Lord gave me my own revelation to the Star of Bethlehem.

When God called Abraham, He promised him that his offspring would be as many as the stars in the sky (Genesis 15:5). I'm sure, just like the Passover story is told each year at Passover, this was one of those family tree story's that was passed down from generation to generation. This was another sign for the Hebrew people to keep their eyes open for the Messiah. In Numbers 24:17 the scripture says, "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the people of Sheth." God used a star to direct the Magi to the baby (Matthew 2). I truly believe this was the sign to His people that their Messiah had come. Like every family, why after all this time would he show up now. Instead, it was the foreigners to went looking for him.

There is no doubt in my mind that all of these are signs pointing to Jesus as the Messiah. God is pretty creative and I would not put it passed the Creator of Life to have had some fun including these clues for us. Especially for those who are skeptical and have to have proof that Jesus is who God says he is. Watch for the signs. It won't be long before he makes his grand entrance for the second time, but this time, it won't be a select few who will see him. We all will get to see him come to earth this time. Revelation 22:20 says, "Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus."

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Peace on Earth

2010-12-15T08:00:00.000-08:00

During the month of December, many cities post banners on light posts that have the words written Love, Joy, and Peace. It seems that this one month out of twelve, it is time to lay all differences aside and include those three words into our lives.

There is such a focus on peace around the world, yet to see it in action is very rare. Rather than people actually living in peace with one another, they are tolerating one another. People will protest a cause with signs that scream "PEACE". This would seem like an oxymoron. The symbol used for peace is another thing that puzzles me. Years ago it was brought to my attention that it is a symbol of an upside down, broken cross. The thought behind it is if there wasn't religion then we'd have peace. It's interesting that the symbol for religion was the cross, not any other religions symbol. Yet, Jesus was sent by God with one of his titles being the Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6). The peace sign should be the symbol of the cross!

First, Second and Third John are small books, yet they have a big message. The general idea in these three books is love. The Lord brought to my mind those banners. People want peace throughout the world. Jesus is the peace that people are looking for but refuse to accept him. We all know that John 3:16 tells us that God loved us so much that He sent us love in the flesh, his Son Jesus.

In first John, a particular verse jumped out at me that made me realize true peace only comes from true love. First John 4:11 says, "Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." True peace can only exist if love is the root of it. If we truly think there can be peace in the world with out love being the source of which it thrives, then we are just fooling ourselves and the peace we are looking for is a cheap imitation. Jesus paid a high price for us to receive the gift of genuine peace.

As I mentioned in beginning, we only get one month out of twelve with the theme "Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men". It is the only time of the year, that everyone gets to hear the Good News of Peace through the Christmas carols that play as the back ground music in stores and shops. Even a local secular radio station that is playing Christmas music all month long, is playing songs that proclaim Jesus has come to bring life, joy and peace to the earth.

This Christmas, I pray the world would receive the peace it so desperately wants. The kind of peace that can only be received through Jesus Christ, God's one and only Son. There is a song called "Let There Be Peace on Earth" that is sometimes sung during this season. The lyrics say this:

Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me,
Let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be.
With God as our Father, brothers all are we,
Let me walk with my brother, in perfect harmony.

Let peace begin with me, let this be the moment now,
With every step I take, let this be my solemn vow,
To take each moment and live each moment in peace eternally.
Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me!

May you receive the gift of peace this season through the act of love. May you be love to those without peace!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Beauty Does Comes From Within

2010-12-04T18:35:00.000-08:00

Television shows, product advertisements and magazines remind us regularly that we as average women do not measure up to the world's standard of beauty. Women can spend up to $3,000 dollars a year on creams, make up, hair products, not to mention what it costs for a cut and color these days, and manicures.* With all of the world's influence on our outward appearance and never being beautiful enough, what is real beauty?

This past week we read through 1 Peter. I personally love the chapter 3, verses 3-6. It is God's idea of a beautiful woman. Its says, "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. ⁴ Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. ⁵ For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, ⁶ like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear." It is completely the opposite of what the advertisements tell us. The world tells us we have to fight for our place, because it's a man's world.

What caught my attention is where it says "gentle and quiet spirit." How often do you find yourself restless inside your soul? When I read this a few years ago, I was dealing with some inner conflict with who I was. I admit, I still often wrestle in my soul, but those four words went deep to my spirit. It's not about how beautiful we are on the outside, it's that proverbial saying, "beauty comes from within." We hear that, but I don't think we really know what that means. Peter explains it to us. Most women don't realize that when they are angry and discontent on the inside, it leaks into the way they talk and act, which can result in bad attitudes, negativity and just plain mean.

I actually don't think we women are trying to beautify ourselves for the men in our lives. If we are really truthful about it, we are in competition with other women. Afraid that our husband or boyfriend will leave us for some woman more beautiful than we are. Or maybe we just think everyone out there is prettier than we are. I have to laugh, one day my son and I were at the grocery store. He was glancing at all the of magazine covers. Out of the blue he says to me, "Mom, I don't want to date or marry a girl who looks like a doll." That's exactly what these airbrushed models look like, porcelain dolls. Something fragile. Paul describes us as jars of clay that hold the treasure of Christ inside (2 Corinthians 4:7).

I mentioned the word just a moment ago, afraid. We read about this in verse 6. If we put our hope in the Lord, then we have no reason to give way to fear. A few years ago, I did a study on this passage. I took a survey from 50 of my friends and found that 30 replied saying rejection was their greatest fear. What else I discovered was how often we use the words, afraid and scared in our conversations. It was truly amazing to me when I began to take notice of it. "Fear not" is mentioned 365 times. That means one "fear not" for each day.

What else I find interesting about this verse is that Peter referred to Sarah. We are her daughters if we don't give way to fear. It is amazing to me how Sarah is now known by her incredible faith. But it wasn't always that way because if we remember back when Sarai offered her servant Hagar to Abram (Genesis 16), she did not seem like a woman with much faith. It was about 10 years from the time Ishmael was born to Hagar until the time Isaac was born to Sarah. I am sure she had much turmoil in her spirit wondering if she would ever see her promise. I wonder if God changed her name from Sarai to Sarah after she surrendered her spirit to Him (Genesis 17:15&16). Her new identity was now based on an act of faith. Much like salvation is for us. After all, her name does mean princess and you can't reign if you don't have people to reign over.

Fear is paralyzing, isolating and deadly. It hold us captive to our circumstance. I have told this story many times of how the Lord explained circumstance to me. He told me to take the word and break it in to two. Then He had me look them up. The word circum means "to go around" and the word stance means "position while standing." We need to realize that our circumstances are going to keep going around and it's our stance of "faith" that will get us through. There are two definitions for fear. One is to be afraid and the other is reverential awe. The question here is, are you so afraid of what you fear that you revere it? What I mean by that is do you worship what you fear? It is said what you think about the most is what you worship. Our reverential awe should be for God. Do you put your fears above God?

Job sums it all up for us in chapter 3, verses 25 and 26. It says "What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me. ²⁶ I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest, but only turmoil.” That is exactly what happens to us. The fear we live with causes us so much turmoil and restlessness. It goes back to keeping a gentle and quiet spirit.

Whatever the world thinks is beautiful, is contradictory to what God says is beautiful. Jesus is beautiful and if we believe in him and have the Holy Spirit within us, there is no doubt that we are beautiful because He is beautiful.

This portion of scripture is near and dear to my heart. I am without a doubt guilty of struggling with fear and wrestling with my self worth on the inside. I wish I could be writing this from the perspective of someone who has overcome, but I write as someone who fights this every day of my life. If you too struggle at all with insecurity and/or fear, I want to encourage you not to give up the fight. Don't let fear hold you captive. Don't let that restless spirit from within keep you uptight. Instead, let the peace of Christ rule in your heart (Colossians 3:15), because beauty really does come from within.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Wake Up Sleepy Head

2010-11-30T11:30:00.000-08:00

In the months of the year when the mornings are dark before the alarm rings, it is difficult to get my children up. I will go into their rooms and turn on the light and say, "Wake up sleepy head, it's time to rise and shine," plant a kiss on their cheeks and sing "rise and shine and give God the glory, glory..." Then they will pull the covers over their head to avoid me. No matter how loud I am, it is the light that gets them up.

Every year as we head into the winter months, I too, like a bear, want to go into hibernation. For whatever reason, it seems that when the days get dark in the early evening hours all I want to do is sleep. Why is it the more sleep I get, the more tired I am?

In Romans 13, verses 11 and 12, Paul is talking about being spiritually sleepy. It says, "And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. ¹² The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light."

I thought back to when I read about Jesus being in the garden with the disciples just before he was arrested. Jesus, being in the flesh, did not choose to sleep through the dark of the night he was about to face. So often it seems when life gets "dark" our tendency is to sleep through it. Instead, Jesus prayed all night. His closest friends did just the opposite. Rather than stay up and pray with him, he found them sleeping (Luke 22:45). In Luke 22:46, Jesus asked them, "Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation."

I believe that both of these references to sleep is a spiritual warning to future Believers. In the physical sense, the darker it is the more we want to sleep. When we are sleepy it's much easier for us to conform to the world. Paul's reference about putting aside our deeds of darkness is referring to sin (Romans 13:12-14). In verse 13 of Romans 13, he tells us to behave decently as in the daytime. In Jesus' case, here are the very men whom he had shared life with day in and day out, found them sleeping in his most critical hour.

The darkness of sin is all around us today. Sometimes, like we do at home on our couches, we can get comfortable on the pew of the church and cozy under the blanket of fellowship that we are too sleepy to get up turn on the light when it gets dark. When the lights are on, it's much easier to stay awake. Jesus said in Matthew 26:41 "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

In looking up passages referring to sleep, much of the time sleep is referring to death. We as the Church cannot afford to fall asleep now. There is a world that is sound asleep out there. We do not want to fall asleep like the disciples did when Jesus needed them the most. In Revelation 16:15 Jesus said, "Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed.” He expects us to rest in Him (Matthew 11:28)

God knew, after the fall of man, that sleep would be something we would always fight. We as the Church need to know that we cannot fall a sleep, spiritually speaking. Ephesians 5:8 says, "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light." Verse 14 of Ephesians 5 goes on to say, "This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

I want to encourage you today to be careful not to fall asleep. Jesus told us to keep watch because we don't know when He will return (Matthew 24:42). I am sensing we are in a time similar to that night in the garden. We need to be in prayer and alert. Maybe you have been feeling a little sleepy or maybe you have been asleep, spiritually speaking. Turn on the light inside of you and wake up sleepy head, it's time to rise and shine! You won't be able to hit the snooze button and pull the covers over your head when the alarm of the trumpet of His return sounds (Revelation 11:15).

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - A Diamond is Forever

2010-11-24T08:34:00.000-08:00

"A diamond is a chunk of coal made good under pressure." - Anonymous

"Twinkle, twinkle little star. How I wonder what you are? Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky..." Do you recognize these familiar lyrics? It came to mind as I was reading Philippians 2:14 &15. It says, "Do everything without complaining and arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe." Several generations prior to Paul's letter to the Philippians, God had made a promise to Abraham that he would have as many children as the stars in the sky. (Genesis 15:5) Guess what? We've been included in that family of stars. We too, who have been adopted through Jesus, are now included in that family of stars. God desired so much to have a relationship with us, that all the way back then He was thinking of you. Just as the words of the nursery rhyme is sung, "We are like a diamond in the sky."

How are diamonds formed? (see diamond cutting video) A diamond starts out as a chunk of coal that is mined and brought to the jeweler. The jeweler takes that coal and begins chipping off the layers to reach the potential diamond. In that process, a piece of dull, unshaped glass-like form appears. The rough diamond is clamped in a dop and held against this whirly disc or a polishing wheel. The diamond dust is mixed with olive oil and is used on the wheel to grind away the diamond to the desired angle. The polishing wheel spins around and around cutting, scraping and shining up the diamond. This process polishes the diamond symmetrically on all the facets at angles to reflect the maximum amount of light. Eventually the outcome is a diamond that is clear and colorful. The more cut to the diamond the greater its value.

We too are similar to a diamond. God uses other people to help shape us. It is the cutting and grinding away of our rough edges and the polishing of encouragement that begins to help us see our potential. But it is the circular motion of the polishing wheel, which is similar to our circumstances that come around regularly, that also contributes to our value. 2 Corinthians 4:6-10 says it best. "For God, who said, "Let light shine out of the darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body."

God knows and sees our potential. After all, He did create you. But Jesus is like the dop, standing in the gap and holding you in position while you are being cut, shaped and polished. The diamond dust represents our relationships that sometimes rub us the wrong way and yet this is what helps to allow the light to reflect. The Holy Spirit is like the olive oil that comforts us in those times and helps to make a new creation. It's the soothing of the olive oil that gives us the grace to endure that allows us to shine.

The hope is that we will become a transparent yet a brilliant and colorful diamond. We are to be a reflection of the glory of the one and only flawless diamond, Jesus. He is the treasure of Heaven. 2 Corinthians 3:18 says, "And we who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." Who would have ever guessed such a treasure could be found in a piece of coal. God's ultimate purpose for us is to spend eternity with Him. Like the advertisement says, "A diamond is forever."

Thought: What circumstances are you facing right now that are bringing out your hidden potential? What areas of your life are being cut away and polished so you may reflect the glory of the Lord? What real-ationships is God using in your life to make you all that He created you to be?

Take a moment to think about these questions. If you are unsure, take this time to ask God the question, what are You doing in my life? Who and what are you using to bring out my hidden potential? And last but not least, am I a reflection of Jesus?

Whatever circumstances you may be facing right now that seem to be bringing you to the end of your rope, don't worry that is not the way God sees it. Just as Psalm 121:5 says God is watching over your life. He will bring comfort and hope to the most distressing circumstances. Take comfort knowing that His purpose in your life will be fulfilled. No matter what the pressure is that you are facing, it is adding another facet to your life. This process will bring beauty to your life, just as the many cuts to a diamond maximize its brilliance. You are God's treasure and His plan is for eternity, because diamonds are forever.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Lawlessness & Disorder

2010-11-17T07:56:00.000-08:00

In recent years, our elections have been very interesting. Some of the propositions we have had on our ballots would have never been considered as early as10 years ago. The television ads that seem to run endlessly during the weeks prior to an election can be a bit confusing. Most of the time I believe the proposition ads talk in circles as to confuse the voter. As followers of Jesus, we shouldn't base our decisions necessarily on moral issues, but on the Kingdom of God principles. What does God's Word say about the things man's law is trying to pass. It would seem that it is "lawfulness" against "lawlessness" and "order" against "disorder."

This week we read 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 and the title of this chapter in my NIV Bible is "The Man of Lawlessness." Verses 1- 12 says, "Now, dear brothers and sisters, let us clarify some things about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and how we will be gathered to meet him. 2 Don’t be so easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord has already begun. Don’t believe them, even if they claim to have had a spiritual vision, a revelation, or a letter supposedly from us. 3 Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction. 4 He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God.

5 Don’t you remember that I told you about all this when I was with you? 6 And you know what is holding him back, for he can be revealed only when his time comes. 7 For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one who is holding it back steps out of the way. 8 Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming.

9 This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. 10 He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. 11 So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. 12 Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth."

Verse 12 hits the nail on the head, so to speak. Mankind today would rather enjoy evil living rather than believing the truth. The most controversial propositions are not about freedom as much as they are selfish and considered "rebellion" in the eyes of God. Rebellion is the same as witchcraft so these issues are definitely "lawlessness." They are all about instant gratification. We talk about the future of our country, yet we really don't think about the side effects it will have on people in future of our country.

It is so disheartening to see our country so divided right now. We are in the midst of a political civil war. Laws are given to promote order and safety. There is still a small majority who vote for lawfulness and order. But the more we promote rebellion that majority is losing voters with every election. It is like some underworld movie Arnold Swartzenegger or Sylvester Stallone would play in. It is a world full of bitter, angry, hateful, and murderous citizens.

In the Book of Lamentations Jeremiah is mourning the destruction of Jerusalem from Babylon. It says "Jerusalem has sinned greatly, so she has been tossed away like a filthy rag. All who once honored her now despise her, for they have seen her stripped naked and humiliated. All she can do is groan and hide her face. 9 She defiled herself with immorality and gave no thought to her future. Now she lies in the gutter with no one to lift her out. “Lord, see my misery,” she cries. “The enemy has triumphed.”10 The enemy has plundered her completely, taking every precious thing she owns. She has seen foreigners violate her sacred Temple, the place the Lord had forbidden them to enter. 11 Her people groan as they search for bread. They have sold their treasures for food to stay alive. “O Lord, look,” she mourns, “and see how I am despised." (Lamentations 1:8-11, NLT) This passage of scripture is so fitting for the current condition as a country.

Having the right to choose is what makes the United States of America great. But when the majority of the people are choosing out of a rebellious heart, it can be a dangerous place. It is said that history repeats itself and this isn't the first time a country has been teetering on the side of destruction. The disturbing part about all of this is that it is all done in the name of peace. Unfortunately, the heart of rebellion is not peace. It is wickedness which is the cause of lawlessness and disorder. It is a counterfeit peace that is truly the spirit of anti-Christ. 1 Corinthians 14:33 says, "For God is not a God of disorder but of peace." That is why He sent His son Jesus to the earth. Jesus is the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). Only His peace can bring law and order.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Blaze of Glory

2010-11-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

California is no stranger to fire. In the fall of 2007, it was a critical time in Southern California. The state was literally on fire. There were fires in Northern California as well as Southern California. The smell of smoke was intense. Many of us were glued to the news for several days.

One night in October, as I was doing up the last few dishes from dinner, I could see a red-orange glow outside my window. A few nights earlier, when the fire began, my son, and I sat in my upstairs window watching the tiny spark on the hillside grow into a raging fire. For days, the smoke hung over our heads like a canopy shading us from the sun. It was an eerie feeling. Although we were at least 20 miles or more from the location, the house was filled with the smell of smoke as though we had just built a bonfire on our patio. Every night I would watch the fire jump from hillside to hillside. During the day I could see the charred ground and the cloud of smoke it would leave in its wake.

I am describing all of this to you to draw a picture of how powerful our tongues can be. James 3:5 & 6 says, "Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell." I watched, what looked like a tiny spark, ignite into a blaze. What an illustrated picture of what words can do. Not only does a fire damage everything in its path, but even those who are watching from afar, have to deal with the residue the ash leaves behind. There is stench of smoke that lingers in the air, even when the fire has passed. Much like damaging words that are spoken. They can destroy everything in their path and more often than not, observers can become victims by default.

Job 41 talks about the leviathan and how difficult he is to tame. 19 Firebrands stream from his mouth; sparks of fire shoot out. 20 Smoke pours from his nostrils as from a boiling pot over a fire of reeds. 21 His breath sets coals ablaze, and flames dart from his mouth. That picture reminds me of the giant cobra on the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland. Often the tongue of man is even more difficult to tame than the leviathan.

I truly don't think man understands the power of words. Think about this, God spoke the universe into existence. That is pretty powerful! Of course the enemy wants to use words to retaliate, so he uses people to speak against one another. James 3:9&10 says, "With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. ¹⁰ Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be." Satan is also known as the accuser. He tries to use us to accuse and speak words of harm to each other. Isaiah 54:17 says "no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and this is their vindication from me,” declares the LORD." We are included in this heritage. Imagine what would happen if we spoke praise and blessing not only to God, but with and to each other. I bet we'd see fire. Like the fire that rested on the heads of the disciples in Acts (Acts 2:3&4). What kind of blaze would that start? A blaze of Glory that could not be contained!

I pray that we would get the destructive fire from our mouths 100% contained. I pray that a blowing wind would spark the fire of the Holy Spirit in us. That it would set a blaze of Glory that would never be put out.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - What's Your Sign?

2010-11-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

Several years ago, I saw an interview of a well-known music entertainer who had recently converted to an Eastern religion. He was wearing a red dot on his forehead. The interviewer asked him why he chose that particular religion. He responded by saying that all religions can be recognized by their outward appearance as a sign as to what they believe in and the reason he chose Hinduism was because when people see him, they know exactly what he believes. He went on to say that Christianity has nothing outwardly to define what it believes.

As we read this past week in our Epic reading guide, we do have signs that define who we are as followers of Jesus. In Mark 16, when Jesus told the disciples to go out into all the world and preach the good news to all creation, he said whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. With their salvation signs would accompany them. Those signs are driving out demons, speaking in new tongues, being able to pick up snakes with their hands, drinking deadly poison and not being hurt, and laying hands on the sick and seeing them healed, all by the power of Jesus name (Mark 16:15-18).

In Acts 1, Jesus specifically talks about one gift that the Father had promised to send. Acts 1:4-8 reads, "On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. ⁵ For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” ⁶ Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Power is a sign of a follower of Jesus. The power of the Holy Spirit is truly the sign that separates us from the world and other religions. Luke 24:49 Jesus told them to stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high. Reading this made me think that another sign as a follower of Jesus is patience, a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Jesus told them to stay in the city until (Luke 24:48) and wait for (Acts 1:4) the gift of the power of the Holy Spirit. It was probably like us as children at Christmas waiting with anticipation and excitement for Christmas morning to see what we might find under the tree. Remember the disciples did not know what to expect.

Receiving the gift of tongues is a sign that truly separates us from the world. The challenge with the gift of tongues is that it is also the one gift that divides the Body of Christ. Some choose not to believe that it is something we can have today, yet we will believe in healing and salvation. Some Believer's are afraid of it. Some are more likely to pick up snakes with their bare hands and drink poison than to be open to the gift of tongues. All one has to do is believe to receive and then wait. In Acts 2:1, the scripture says on the day of Pentecost they were all together, in one place. I believe the power of unity is a sign of a Believer. In Acts 2:2-4, it says a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house and what seemed to be tongues of fire rested on each of them and they were filled with the Holy Spirit and they began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. This reminded me of the time the Glory of God filled Solomon's temple after it was built. In 2 Chronicles 5:13-14 it says the musicians with one voice giving praise and thanks to the Lord singing, He is good, his love endures forever, that the temple was filled with a cloud and the priests could not perform because the glory of the Lord filled the temple of God. (I have heard that this cloud was from the burning of lamp stand and sacrifices in the temple because there was no ventilation. Man made that fire, but God made the fire in Acts.)

We live in a world that will only believe if there is a sign. God knew that we being of flesh nature, provided signs for us to believe in the Truth. I ask you today, are you clothed with power? Only those who "believe the things of the Spirit" can "receive the things of the Spirit." I will close with this last question, what's your sign?

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Beyond the Grave

2010-10-27T08:12:00.000-07:00

Every October, we are inundated with decorations portraying death. People even decorate their front yards to look like cemeteries. In Mexico, Nov 2nd is "Día de los Muertos," literally the Day of the Dead. Over the past few years, I've realized Halloween is the only holiday that people of different faiths can celebrate together, which is a bit disturbing.

I started thinking about something I read the other day in my devotions. The last two verses in Luke 21. It says, "Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple, and each evening he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives, 38 and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple." I thought about the Mount of Olives. When we read about the Mount of Olives, it sounds like this romantic grove of olive trees. At the foot of this hillside is where Gethseme is located. For some reason I have never connected the dots until now. I have stood at the top of that hill and looked down into Jerusalem. It is not a beautiful olive grove, instead the whole hillside today is covered with graves. Now I don't know if there were that many graves on the hillside in Jesus day, but it was still a cemetery. In fact, this is a special place for the Jewish people to be buried. So if you think about it, why would Jesus spend the night in or near a cemetery? This is also the location where he made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. He took the path next to the cemetery.

John 10:10 says that Jesus came to give us life and life more abundant. He often refers to himself as the bread of life and the living water. Why would someone so confident of his purpose, sleep and walk among the dead? My thought is that he was using this as a metaphor to explain why he came. Maybe he was saying he was not afraid of death because he would overcome it. The scripture does not say anyone was with him when he spent the night on the hill.

What else is interesting having read the through Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy is that the Israelites were not to touch a dead body or they would be defiled. Jesus was always creating a stir among the Pharisees. After all, he had brought a few who were dead back to life. I wonder if that could have been an issue for them as well. How can this man who claims to be the Messiah sleep where the dead sleep?

My last thought on this is, maybe Jesus was showing us in the natural what happens in the spiritual. That where he is, there is life. Maybe the cemetery represents us spiritually and it's only when he is there, that life happens. As I was just looking through the concordance, the Mount of Olives is only mentioned a few times in the Old Testament. But its only mentioned in the New Testament in reference to Jesus. Jesus actually spent a lot of time on the Mount of Olives. Did you know that Jesus never spent the night in Jerusalem, until the night he was crucified? The Mount of Olives is the location where Jesus will return. In Zechariah 14:4 it says that the Lord will stand with his feet on the Mount of Olives and it will split apart. Maybe Jesus spent time there so we would know where to look for him when he returns. That is how we will know the difference to those who claim to be the Messiah. If when they stand on it, it will split apart.

I've never known cemeteries to be places of holy ground, but I wonder if this cemetery could be considered holy ground because the One who brings life spent a lot of time there. On that day when the Messiah returns, the dead in Christ will rise (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Oh what a day it will be when Jesus comes back! I wonder what the spiritually dead will say then? Will they even be able to speak! Jesus is life and because he is, we can live beyond the grave!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Do Not Fear That Inflation Is Hear

2010-10-20T11:24:00.000-07:00

This week in our "Epic" prayer and reading guide, we come across a very popular passage when Jesus taught on the topic of worry. The dictionary definition of worry is: to torment oneself with or suffer from disturbing thoughts and to torment with cares, anxieties, etc.; trouble; plague. I find it interesting that the word torment is used to describe worry. The word plague makes me think of being called a worry wort. Isn't a wort a virus?

I wonder if Matthew and Luke were worriers and if that is why they both made it a point to write about this teaching of Jesus'. These two men were not fisherman either. Matthew was a tax collector and Luke was a physician. Matthew dealt with money and Luke dealt with health. Today they would be considered "white collar" professionals. Fisherman would be considered "blue collar" professionals and were probably used to living one day at a time. At least every time Jesus shows up while they are on the job, they aren't catching much or anything at all.

Luke 12:22-34 says, "Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. ²³Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. ²⁴Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ²⁵Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? ²⁶Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?²⁷"Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ²⁸If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! ²⁹And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. ³⁰For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.³²"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. ³³Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. ³⁴For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

In the spring of 2008, flour, rice, eggs and cooking oil were hit by the economic bomb. Milk was at an all time high and bread prices were close to $4 a loaf. At that time, oil prices were rising quickly, much like they are today. Just two weeks ago gas was under $3 and it is now up to $3.19 in some locations. The news reported then, that farmers were not producing enough grain to feed people and livestock because they needed the ethanol to produce gas to feed our cars. (Ethanol is made from corn and other crops. It is a renewable fuel.)

The media reported then also that bulk club stores were limiting purchases on rice and flour. The way the media reports these stories puts fear in the hearts of many of us, including me. Psalms 37:25 says, "I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

I remember watching a Christian news broadcast during that crisis and they reported that some people had quit attending Sunday church because they couldn't afford the gas in their cars. I'm sure these people drove to work and the grocery store. I wonder what God must be thinking of us. Didn't Jesus conclude his teaching on worry with where our treasure is there our hearts will be? Not going to church to save gas? Yet people will drive out of their way to find the lowest prices for food and gas.

Proverbs 13:22b says, "... but a sinner's wealth is stored up for the righteous." Proverbs 13:23 says, "A poor man's field may produce abundant food, but injustice sweeps it away." Doesn't it seem that the high demand for oil is injustice and the poor farmers who have been growing food for people are now having to grow food for our cars? But this last verse truly left me with hope that God is looking out after His children. Proverbs 13:25 says, "The righteous eat to their hearts' content, but the stomach of the wicked goes hungry." I know it would seem silly of me to write about this, but being a mom with two children heading into the teen years, and one of them being a boy, it is a concern. But the Word of God gives me hope that everything is going to be o.k.

So if you, like me, struggle with worry, in the words of Jesus, "Do not be afraid!" He has proven Himself faithful over and over. And He has nothing to prove to us. He is God and everything in the earth belongs to Him and He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. (Psalm 50:10) Rather than worrying about rising costs, we should instead allow our faith to rise. We followers of Jesus shouldn't worry about inflation, we should match it with "in-faith-tion." Imagine what our world would be like if our faith rose to an all time high! It would be priceless! Do not fear, in-faith-tion is here!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Pass the Bread

2010-10-13T15:31:00.000-07:00

It seems that bread is a common part of every meal. In today's diet fads, bread is the first thing to go. The problem for me is, I love my bread! I was always thankful that on the food pyramid it ranked on the bottom which meant, more bread was good.

This week as we read in the book of John, Jesus was talking about bread. John 6:27-33, 35, 47-58 says, "Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval. 28 Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?'29 Jesus answered, 'The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.' 32 Jesus said to them, 'I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.'

35 Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.'

47I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. 50But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."

52Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"

53Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. 57Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever."

Jesus clearly states that he is the bread from Heaven. It sounds a bit cannibalistic to be talking about eating flesh and drinking blood. This could be a problem for some people who don't know Jesus. Jesus is talking spiritually speaking.

It would seem that today in our Christian culture that we are on a spiritual Atkins diet. What's interesting is that doctors are finding the Atkins diet to be unhealthy for the heart because people binge on bacon and red meat. If we start cutting Jesus out of our daily life, we become heart disease victims. What I mean by that is that we stop focusing on forgiveness through Jesus and our spiritual arteries become clogged with the plaque of anger, bitterness, and most of all, unforgiveness. Jesus was very direct when he said he was the bread of life. He did not use a parable to explain this. He just came out and said it, twice!

In Jesus prayer that he was teaching his disciples to pray, he says "give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil" (paraphrased from Matthew 6:12) . I find it very interesting that daily bread and sin, temptation and evil fall in line behind the request for daily bread. That is ultimately what Jesus came to do. To be the bread of life that absorbs the sin and death that we deserve. I guess the question for today is, have you had your bread today? Don't deny yourself the bread of life. Instead, say "Pass the bread!"

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Batten Down the Hatches

2010-10-06T08:16:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Hugo, hurricane Andrew, and one of the most unforgettable storms, hurricane Katrina are some of the most devastating storms in recent history. I bring up these storms to describe the passage in Mark 4 verses 35-41 when Jesus calmed the storm. It reads, "That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." ³⁶Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. ³⁷A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. ³⁸Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"³⁹He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. ⁴⁰He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" ⁴¹They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!" I've experienced a Galilee squall. It's amazing how strong the wind gets. I stood looking out of our hotel room window during one of these winds and many of the mosaic tiles on the side of our balcony were missing. Probably from the frequent wind storms they get. The geographic location of the Sea of Galilee is in a valley between to hillsides. It is the perfect setting for the wind to whip through.

Now the disciples were experienced fishermen and it's likely they had experienced these before. Maybe this squall was stronger because God wanted to expose the fear in these men and to help them realize who they had been with was truly the Son of God. The men woke Jesus up, and asked him if he even cared that they were going to drown. Jesus must have been so tired from speaking all day that he didn't notice the boat rocking or it actually kept him asleep. The disciples didn't know what to think except they were going to die.

Aren't the circumstances of our lives similar to the weather? We can be cruising along on the smooth waters of life, then suddenly the wind begins to blow, the waves begin to swell and before you know it, the clouds have gathered overhead. Some of us, like the disciples start screaming, "Batten down the hatches!" when life gets stormy. It's easy to live by faith when the waters are smooth. The only way we are going to strengthen our faith is for God to stir up the weather so we can truly see His power that can preserve us in times of trouble.

I think in a spiritual sense crossing over to the other side is important in this passage. What made this storm any different? Fishing was usually done in the early morning hours when it is dark, so I don't think it was because it was dark. There was something intentional that God wanted them to know. These men had seen Jesus heal the sick and cast out demons, but they needed to experience the power that Jesus had for themselves. They needed to cross over from the "shore of fear to the other side of faith." This passage even mentions there were other boats out there with them. I think that is reminder to us that we are not alone in these storms. Others are sharing our experience too and they are watching us, as Jesus disciples, and how we get through it.

Maybe right now, you have experienced the loss of a home, a car, retirement, savings, a business, and even employment. The list goes on. You might even feel like Jesus is not concerned with your storm or maybe he's sleeping through it. But I want to encourage you that Jesus knows. Maybe you are wondering why He would allow you to have to go through this storm. Like Jesus telling the disciples to go over to the other side, maybe the Lord is telling you it's time to "go over to the other side." The other side being, no longer do I live by my own understanding, but to trust in Him completely, even if it doesn't make sense. God doesn't have to make sense to us, He can do the impossible. He loves us so much. If you are spending time with him, like the disciples did, then the question He asks is "Why are you so afraid?"

I don't know what your circumstance is right now. I have this illustration the Lord gave me about circumstance. The word circum means to go around and the word stance means a position while standing. When the squalls of life are spinning around you, Ephesians 6:14 says to stand firm! They say people, who are drowning, drown because they are panicking. When I think of the movie Titanic the people who panicked lost their lives. The ones who went directly to the life boats were saved. So while you are standing firm, waiting for the storm to pass, hold on to your life preserver, which is the Word of God. Psalm 119:50 says, "My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life." In the storms of life, God's promises are our life preservers. If you are in that place today you may not have time to "batten down the hatches." Instead go get your "life preserver" that is sitting on the shelf, coffee table, in that box that is out in the garage or in the trunk of your car. It will preserve your life and keep you drowning. (Photo above is a replica of the boat that Jesus would have been on)

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Give Me Strength

2010-09-29T15:02:00.000-07:00

Our study this week has been in the book of Nehemiah. God had given Nehemiah the task of rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem that was destroyed by the Babylonians. In Chapter 4, beginning in verse 1, there were a couple of people who didn't like the Jews. One of the men, Sanballat became angry when he heard what they were doing. He ridiculed them and asked, "What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from these heaps of rubble- burned as they are?" Then Tobiah the Ammonite said "What they are building - if even a fox climbed up on it, he would break down their wall of stones!" How often do you hear those same kinds of discouraging questions about what God has called you to do? Most of the time, those questions don't come from people, but from the thoughts that are the arrows from the Devil. (See Photo: Excavated portion of the wall in Jerusalem from the first Temple period from 1000-586 B.C.)

Nehemiah was constantly being attacked by his enemies with words of doubt. Nehemiah's enemies had all plotted to fight against them and stir up trouble. Then the people of Judah became discouraged and began to doubt that they could rebuild the wall. They were afraid of being attacked. In verse 9, Nehemiah prayed to God and posted guards day and night to meet this threat. He stationed people everywhere with swords, spears and bows to protect every person and family. Nehemiah trusted that God would fight for each person. In verses 15-18 says, "When our enemies heard that we were aware of their plot and that God had frustrated it, we all returned to the wall, each to his own work. 16 From that day on, half of my men did the work, while the other half were equipped with spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers posted themselves behind all the people of Judah17 who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other, 18 and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. But the man who sounded the trumpet stayed with me." Verse 23 says "Neither I nor my brothers nor my men nor the guards with me took off our clothes; each had his weapon, even when he went for water."

When I read the words "sword and weapon", I immediately thought of the Spiritual armor. The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. (Ephesians 6:17) Even the word "sword" has the word "word" in it as a reminder. I suppose we should call it the sWord of the Spirit. If we can get the Word of God into our hearts so that, like those men, we have it by our side at all times. Ready to be spoken at the moment of a surprise attack!

In chapter 6 verse 2 it says that Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem the Arab were scheming to harm Nehemiah. Ephesians 6:11 tells us to take our stand against the Devil's schemes. One of the dictionary definitions is "an underhand plot." That is what these men were trying to do to discourage Nehemiah from completing the task he'd been given. Our enemy, the Devil is always scheming against us.

Nehemiah didn't fall prey to those "lions" who were trying to devour him. Instead he replied to them in verses 8 & 9 by saying "Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head." They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, 'Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.' " Instead Nehemiah spoke back by praying "Now strengthen my hands." He didn't ask God to make them go away, or to kill them, he asked God for strength.

I wonder how our circumstances would turn out if we asked God to give us strength instead of making it go away. I'm guilty of praying that. Our human nature doesn't like to suffer or deal with difficult things so we usually pray, God heal me, provide for me, or make that difficult person go away. I wonder what would happen if we prayed, "Father give me strength to endure this sickness, give me wisdom in this financial bind or show me how to lead that difficult person to You."

At the end of chapter 6, the wall is finally completed. It took them fifty-two days to get the job done. Nehemiah realized that his enemies had even sent prophets to discourage him. Sometimes our own brothers and sisters in the Lord are used by the enemy to attack us. That is why it is important to know what God is saying to you personally.

On the other hand, notice that Nehemiah split the people in half. Half of them were workers and the other half were warriors. Some to do the job and the others to keep watch. We who are followers of Jesus need to watch out for each other. If we are armed with the Word then when our brothers and sisters in Christ become discouraged, we can help them press through and vice versa. In the end the job was done and I'm sure Nehemiah was relieved yet even more confident in God's Word. Verse 16 says, "When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God."

Ask yourself these questions. How is Satan discouraging you from the promises of God? Do you recognize his schemes yet? How are you fighting back? Are you fighting out of fear or faith? Lastly, are you possibly being used like those prophets to speak discouragement to other brothers and sisters in the Lord? Or are you one who is on "watch"? The Bible is clear about building one another up. I would take some time to write down some areas that you believe the enemy is scheming against you and thwart his effort. Conquering the battle is exposing the enemy's plan. God's plan is for us to be victorious. All we have to do is say, "God give me strength to endure" and He will!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Here Kitty, Kitty

2010-09-22T11:24:00.000-07:00

Today's devotional is coming from my "Narrated Chronological Bible." If you are following along in the chronological prayer and reading guide, this past week we've been reading Zechariah, Esther, Ezra and Nehemiah. All of these books including the passage I am going to share today from Daniel, were all going on about the same time.

The devotions for today are from the book of Daniel, chapter 6. It is a familiar story of which most of us grew up hearing, Daniel and the lions den. As I was reading today, the Holy Spirit put a new twist on it for me. I believe that is why the Bible is a life giving book. You can always find something new in it.

The story begins with some coworkers who do not like Daniel. Daniel is now well into his life and probably close to retirement. The current king over Babylon is Darius the Mede, who only reigned for a few years himself. Darius was fond of Daniel. Daniel had a high position in the government and had exceptional qualities, so much so that Darius wanted Daniel to oversee all of the satraps and administrators. Obviously these men were jealous of Daniel's favor and decided to come up with a plan to do him in. Much like Haman did with Mordecai and all the Jews in the book of Esther. The satraps and administrators went to King Darius with this plan to enforce a decree that anyone who prays to any god or man instead of King Darius would be thrown into the lions den. They knew how committed Daniel was to his God so they thought this was a sure way to get rid of him. Of course King Darius agreed with them, not realizing he was putting his favorite man in jeopardy.

Daniel in his humility and obedience did not submit to the decree and sure enough, the satraps and administrators plans succeeded. Immediately they ran to King Darius to tell him that Daniel did not obey the decree so he had to be thrown in to the den with the lions. King Darius was troubled by this, but nonetheless, had to follow through on the punishment.

Daniel 6:16-19 reads, "So at last the king gave orders for Daniel to be arrested and thrown into the den of lions. The king said to him, “May your God, whom you serve so faithfully, rescue you.”

¹⁷ A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den. The king sealed the stone with his own royal seal and the seals of his nobles, so that no one could rescue Daniel. ¹⁸ Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night fasting. He refused his usual entertainment and couldn’t sleep at all that night.

¹⁹ Very early the next morning, the king got up and hurried out to the lions’ den. ²⁰ When he got there, he called out in anguish, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God, whom you serve so faithfully, able to rescue you from the lions?” (NLT)

Daniel replied in verse 22 & 23, “Long live the king! My God sent his angel to shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, for I have been found innocent in his sight. And I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.” ²³ The king was overjoyed and ordered that Daniel be lifted from the den. Not a scratch was found on him, for he had trusted in his God." (NLT)

Everything the satraps and administrators had planned now backfired. Not only was Daniel still alive, but it was proof that the God Daniel served was the living God. Instead, King Darius ordered them to be thrown into the lions den. Not only were the accusers punished, but their wives and children as well.

As I read this, I thought about how Daniel must have been feeling sitting in that pitch black cave. Unable to see anything, especially unable to see his predator. Daniel had spent his whole life living in humility and prayer that God protected him against the instinct of the animal that He had created.

The twist that I found this time in reading the story was not about the ferocious lions, but instead the ferocious men that came against Daniel. The men were more lion-like than even the lions. Their whole focus was to devour Daniel.

This brought me to this thought that I want to share with you today. Unlike Daniel, we may not have experienced the physical act of being in a dark cave with a pack of lions. But there are many times in our lives, we step out into a dark world where, in this case Satan is like Daniel's accusers and men are like the lions whose whole goal is to devour you.

This brought to mind 1 Peter 5, which I believe should be included with this chapter of Daniel. It says, "So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. ⁷ Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. ⁸ Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. ⁹ Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters^b]"> all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are." (1 Peter 5:6-9, NLT)

What is important about this passage is that the "lower" we put ourselves, the "higher" God lifts us up out of the pit. It doesn't tell us to live ignorant or oblivious to the "lions" around us, but in verse 8 it says "stay alert" with an exclamation point for emphasis. We need to be on "watch" all the time. Even when it's pitch black and you can't see a thing, let your eyes of faith be your infrared light.

Daniel was a man who lived his life in complete obedience to the Lord. Thinking back on that night that Daniel spent in the den with the lions, I wonder if Daniel was so confident that his God would protect him from those lions that he was in there saying, "Here kitty, kitty." Instead, maybe the lions were afraid of him. Let God deal with the accuser and you say to those lions, "here kitty, kitty, my God will rescue me."

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Why Me Lord?

2010-09-15T06:56:00.000-07:00

This past week, we have been reading through the book of Job. Never in my life have I, to some degree, related to Job. Not necessarily because of his loss or illness, but rather the question "why me Lord?" I'm sure most of us can relate to that question. Especially when you are trying to do what the Lord has asked of you. I've come to the conclusion as a follower of Jesus that God's will sometimes conflicts with our will. We might be doing what God has asked of us, but the will of our flesh doesn't like it. I heard myself say the other day that living in God's will is sometimes hard. I've realized it's hard because my own will gets in the way.

In the last ten years, I've noticed that the months of August and September seem to be the hardest months for me. Seasonally, they are the hottest months of the year. It also seems to be the time God turns up the heat in my refining process.

Something in me this time wanted to forfeit reading this book this time. I don't know if it is too depressing or if it is because so many of us are currently facing similar circumstances, that I would rather read a book of the Bible that is more uplifting. It is even interesting that this book, which was written long before the others is nestled in between the books of Esther and the Psalms. I wonder if God placed it there because He knew that eventually a reading plan would be set up. In all of God's wisdom, He knew August/September would be the last months of the summer season, usually the hottest months of the year which also means fall is coming, a season of letting go. It is interesting that this man, Job who lived long before the nation of Israel, believed in God and even all those thousands of years ago, still struggled with the same issues, sufferings and thoughts as we do today.

This past month has been a struggle for several people that I know. Even recently I was faced with a reality that has brought me to a place of fearfulness. (I have to say I am trying to stay faithfilled) One of the most well known scriptures from the book of Job is from chapter 3 verse 25 "What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me." I believe more than ever this is true in our lives. Just the other day, I was glancing back at 16 years worth of prayer journals. In reading those journals a majority of my most difficult times have been in August, yet it seems that most of the dreams that I have had from the Lord were in the month of August. Job 33:14-18 says, "For God does speak - now one way, now another- though man may not perceive it. 15 In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men as they slumber in their beds, 16 he may speak in their ears and terrify them with warnings, 17 to turn man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride, 18 to preserve his soul from the pit, his life perishing by the sword." Its true. Most of my dreams from the Lord seem like warnings.

Fear seems to be one of the main schemes used by the devil to paralyze his victims. Job lost everything including his health. He was a very wealthy man with a big family. Then Satan took what he feared and used it against him. What is even more interesting is that God chose Job to be the one Satan could bring torment to. That would seem disturbing. But that is only because God "knew" Job and where his heart was, that he was a man who revered the Lord and was truly good. God did not fear that Job would turn away. Think about that for a minute, God is not afraid of anyone or anything. Even after Job's life seemed to fall apart and his friends gave him a hard time, Job says in chapter 17:9 "Nevertheless, the righteous will hold to their ways, and those with clean hands will grow stronger." That was what Nehemiah asked for in his days of distress, strength. Only the strength that comes from the Lord can carry us through suffering. Job in his distress, hung on for dear life.

Thankfully, the book of Job ends on a good note. Chapter 42 is all about Job being restored everything, in a double portion. Job 42:2 says "I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted." So true. God can do all things and even when enemy plots out his scheme to bring you down, God's plan always prevails. This past week Pastor Jeff put a new twist on "nothing is impossible with God." No thing is impossible for Him. Even when it seems like "nothing" is happening, it is impossible for God to do nothing about it. God is always working.

The book of Job is such a picture of the average Christians life. We live our lives doing what we know is right and then because we are in the world, we are subject to the side effects of sin. Those being sickness, financial ruin do to world economy and being wronged. We can to nothing about any of these things that are out of our control. Most of the time, it just happens. But it is all in our attitude and how we choose to walk it out. By faith or by fear. By faith keeping focused that Jesus is leading us, even in the unknown areas. Or by fear, allowing us to be paralyzed by or circumstances and not moving at all. I believe our double portion isn't going to be found here on earth as Job's was. Our double portion will be when we get to meet Jesus face to face. As the old hymn "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus" sings, "...and the things of earth will grow strangely dim..." It won't even matter when we get there what happened here. That is when we will finally be in perfect health, no more financial worries and no more grief, pain or fear! It's all about enduring, just like Job did and hanging in there, even when it seems to be the end, there's always a happy ending when Jesus is involved.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Tarnished

2010-09-08T15:49:00.000-07:00

A white satin tablecloth, fine china, crystal stemware, polished silver and candles set a perfect table for a special occasion. One of my favorite things about entertaining is setting the table. There is something that makes one feel special when sitting down to a well dressed table. There are also those who prefer not to use their special dishes, but intesd display this precious dinnerware in a china hutch.

This past week, I began reading the book of Daniel. As I read Chapter 5, I was reminded of a study I went through a few years ago by Beth Moore on the book of Daniel. This particular chapter begins with a great banquet given by Belshazzar, the King of Babylon. He was the grandson of King Nebuchadnezzar and co-ruled Babylon with his father Nabonidus. Belshazzar watched over the affairs of the kingdom while his father worked on reopening trade routes that were taken by Cyrus and the Persians.

The banquet Belshazzar was having, was not your everyday shindig. What I mean by this is that, traditionally the custom at that time was that women did not attend the same banquets with the men. Remember Queen Vashti's banquet for the women in the book of Esther? He had invited his nobles, his wives, and his concubines to this party. They had been drinking wine and were possibly acting out immorally. The King wanted to kick it up a notch, so he ordered that all of the gold and silver goblets that his grandfather, Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem to be brought in for them to use. (Daniel 5:1-3) Verses 3 and 4 read, "So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. 4 As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone."

These articles from the temple were holy and undefiled. They belonged to God and were to be kept in the temple. God was angry with what Belshazzar had done. If you read the rest of this passage, God writes with his finger on the wall in an unknown script that only Daniel can interpret. God wrote on the wall for Belshazzar and for everyone else to see. The inscription said that his kingdom and life would be short lived. That very night he was slain and King Darius the Mede overtook Babylon.

When I went through this study, Beth Moore brought something to my attention. These gold and silver goblets were important to God. They were special and holy vessels. Not only did Belshazzar use them imorally, but they praised their gods with them. This was defilement at its best and it was detestable to God. Under the Old Covenant, these cups were to remain in the temple because they had been anointed by Moses and placed in the temple where God's presence dwelt. The temple is where these vessels were protected. Much like a china hutch that keeps special dinnerware protected.

Now that we live under the New Covenant, we are considered God's gold and silver vessels. 2 Timothy 2:20-21 says, "In a wealthy home some utensils are made of gold and silver, and some are made of wood and clay. The expensive utensils are used for special occasions, and the cheap ones are for everyday use. 21 If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work." (NLT) Hebrews 10:10 says, "we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all."

Unfortunately, we find ourselves tarnished from the pollutants of life. (See above photo) Satan is always looking for ways to use us to celebrate his cause. He wants to defile us, just like Belshazzar did the temple vessels. His goal is to make us think we aren't holy enough for God. He can't take our salvation from us, but if he can make us think we are unholy, then he's already got a foothold on us.

The amazing conclusion of these defiled vessels is that they were sent back to the temple in Jerusalem by King Cyrus of Persia. (Ezra 1:2-8; 8:28 &29) In the book of Ezra, these vessels were now being given back to God's people and were to be reinstated as holy. We too can declare ourselves holy, even if we have been used for unholy acts. Jesus paid that price for us when he shed his blood. 1 John 1:7 tells us that the blood of Jesus purifies us from all sin. I'd like to think of Jesus cleaning us, just like that popular brand of silver cleaner/polish. Remember those commercials of the tarnished spoon and when it was dipped into his miracle cleaner, it sparkled like new? Jesus' blood is greater than any silver cleaner or polish. Even if we have defiled ourselves over and over, God see's us marked with His name and declares us holy! It doesn't matter what you've done, you are a permanent vessel in God's china hutch!

If you are feeling today a little tarnished from the pollutants in your life, know today that no matter what, you belong to God. Pray this prayer with me:

Dear Heavenly Father, I am holy because your Holy Spirit lives in me. You are the Most High God who has declared me holy because you are holy. I commit today that I will believe and start believing everyday from here on out, that I am your holy vessel. Help me to think of myself as holy. Help me to recognize the schemes of the enemy who wants to treat me as if I am not holy. You are God! Your Word is the truth and it WILL set me free. In the purifying and cleansing name of Jesus! Amen.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - River of Life

2010-08-31T16:27:00.000-07:00

Last week, I read a passage in Ezekiel that brought to mind a song that I learned when I was in Junior High. The song is called "River of Life" and the words are:
Verse
I've got a river of life flowing out of me.
Makes the lame to walk and the blind to see.
Opens prison doors sets the captives free.
I've got a river of life flowing out of me.
Chorus
Spring up O well (splish splash)
Within my soul.
Spring up O well (splish splash)
And make me whole.
Spring up O well (splish splash)
And give to me That life abundantly.

If you were apart of a youth group in the late 70's, early 80's this would have been a top ten. Probably because of the splish splash part. There were hand motions that went with it. Something like a sprinkler. I hadn't thought of this song in years until I read Ezekiel 47. It is titled, The River from the Temple. It begins verse 1 and goes to 12. 1 The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was flowing from the south side. 3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. 5 He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. 6 He asked me, "Son of man, do you see this?"

Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, "This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Sea. When it empties into the Sea, the water there becomes fresh. 9 Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Great Sea. 11But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing."

As I read this, it drew a picture of the life we have in Christ Jesus. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:19 "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;" We are now the temple where the Spirit of God now dwells.

Jesus said in John 7:38, "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." As soon as we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, immediately the Holy Spirit takes residence and out of Him we receive the living water. The very same "living water" that Jesus spoke of to the woman at the well (John 4:10-12). Ezekiel 47:9 said that wherever the water flows, everything would live.

In this passage, the water that flows from the temple actually changes the salt water into fresh water and not only can all kinds of fish thrive in it, but the Word says that fruit trees will grow along the banks. I believe the swamps and marshes could represent the sin in our lives. Those places that we are not to go back to because of the "salt" it is a place of bitterness that we are to walk away from. In verse 12 it says that fruit trees of all kinds were growing on both sides. Their leaves will not wither and their fruit will not fail. Another picture of a life in the Spirit. Galations 5:22-26 says,"22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other." The fruit of the Spirit should continue to reproduce each day and should be producing more and more as we mature in our faith.

There are two verses in the Old Testament about the tree planted by the river. The first one is Psalm 1:3, "He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." The second is Jeremiah 17:8, "He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."

What a picture of who we have become when we follow Jesus. When Ezekiel had this vision, he said he stepped in water ankle-deep. I believe this reflects the new believer. But as he went along, the water got deeper and deeper. As we grow in our relationship with Jesus, we should eventually become like the river that was too deep to walk across, but swim across. The words we speak should bring life to many and be words that bring healing. Instead, there are many Believers who are still knee-deep. They've been there for years. They are deep enough so they can say they are in it, but not submerged.

I remember being at the Jordan River. (Pictured above) I couldn't wait to see it. It has had so much meaning for me. It is one of the reasons my daughter's name is Jordanne. When we arrived it was this beautiful tree covered river. The pictures I took looked like post cards. There were ducks and birds above the surface and catfish below the surface. When I called Jordanne to tell her I was there, at the place she was named after, I told her about the birds and fish. She replied, "Well mom, you know I love animals and God did make the animals on the fifth day and I was born on the fifth of May." That's a girl who knows the Word. After I hung up, I just couldn't wait to step in. Several people in our group wanted to be baptized. We didn't sign up earlier and now regret we didn't. But as I stepped into the water, ankle-deep, the catfish began nibbling at my toes! I just couldn't stand it! There were people waist-deep and it didn't seem to bother them. My brother-in-law Tim was one of those getting baptized and when he went under the water all I could think about was all those fish nibbling on his head. Yikes!

Isn't that an interesting picture of an average Christian's life? We step in and as soon as those fish begin, not even biting, just "kissing" our toes, we get spooked. It paralyzes us not to go any farther. What was interesting about the the line of people being baptized, was the pastor had to stand in the water the whole time as each person was being baptized.

The river that flowed from the Temple in Jerusalem was full of fish. Life was being given to the trees along the banks. The water was filtering out the salt and making it fresh enough to drink. What kind of "water" flows from your life? Is it salty water that is "bitter" to others? Does the living water not produce the fruit of the Spirit in your life like it should? Is the well of water inside of you shallow because it is not being nourished by the Word of God and purified through prayer? The kind of prayer where the Holy Spirit intercedes or filters out the unnecessary things. Is Jesus reigning enough in your life to fill you up?

Take sometime to do an acid level check of the living water that flows from your life. The water should produce the fruit of the Spirit continually and bring healing to those around you. Your leaves should not wither under the pressure of life. The Living Water (the Holy Spirit) that flows from the Temple (the Believer) should be life giving. So spring up O well, within my soul, and make me whole. And give to me, that life abundantly!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Bloom Where You Are Planted

2010-08-25T16:47:00.000-07:00

A little less than two weeks ago we moved from Irvine to Mission Viejo. Yesterday I was reading the passage from John 15.

This particular passage is very precious to me as it was something the Lord spoke to me in 2006 when we were at the International Foursquare Pastors Conference. It was at that time, I was still grieving the closure of our church New Horizons that we had planted in Irvine. The Lord was gracious to place us at Cornerstone in Anaheim so that we would not have to move. In my heart, I truly felt the Lord had called us to Irvine and was so confused as to why our church did not survive.

While sitting in an evening session, I was listening to a pastor speak on Joel 2 and the greater days ahead. As I looked down at my name badge, it had written on it, “Jayme Hamilton, Irvine, CA”. Apparently, those in administration had not changed our location to Anaheim yet. As I looked at that, my heart ached because even though I lived in Irvine, our assignment to pastor there was no more. It was at that moment the Lord spoke to me, “Jayme, spell Irvine.” As I proceeded to spell it, all of the sudden I realized, “I R – vine.” The Lord said, “I R vine, U R branch, apart from me you can do nothing. Continue to bear fruit.” The Lord was telling me to continue to do what He had called us to, even though our church location was different.

It’s now August of 2010 and as of last week, I no longer reside in Irvine. The name of the city alone reminded me of my purpose. First of all, change is very difficult for me. I’m not one who transitions easy. Not to mention, this particular move has been incredibly difficult. Moving to Irvine seemed so smooth and yet this move just 13 miles south to Mission Viejo has been the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Not only in location, but it seems as though Mission Viejo is resisting us. We can’t get our mail, we’ve had a hard time getting our children registered for school, not to mention many other challenges.

Yesterday, I opened up the special devotion Pastor Jeff has asked us to do this week which was in John 15. John 15:1-8 says, “‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ²He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. ³You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. ⁵"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. ⁸This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.’”

The verse that particularly spoke to me was verse 2 about cutting off the dead branches and even cutting off the fruitful branches. If you are familiar with gardening, the branches that die on the plant or vine, literally suck the life away from the plant. It’s kind of a gardening oxymoron. The dead branches have to be cut off if the plant is going to survive. On the other hand, the branches that do produce fruit or flowers have to be cut back so that they will produce more the next time around.

This move to some degree has been like that for me. I’ve had to purge so much of me in this move, not just materially, but emotionally too. I currently am feeling lost and as though I am bare. My heart seems to be empty and the dreams I once had for Irvine I’ve had to let go. But in reading John 15, verse 7-8 were comforting. As long as I stay connected to Jesus, I will live and new desires will be planted in my heart. His promise is that I will bear much fruit and the Father will be glorified.

Gardenia’s are my favorite flower. A month before we moved, I bought a gardenia plant and put it in a pot. It did not bloom for the whole month that I had it while I lived in Irvine. Three days after we moved into our new “temporary” home in Mission Viejo, that plant bloomed its first flower. That was no coincidence. That was God telling me, I’m still connected to Him and that I can still bear fruit. Since then it has sprouted new growth and another flower. I need let Him prune “me” so that I may bear more fruit. I need to bloom no matter where I’m planted.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Climb Every Mountain

2010-08-10T17:58:00.001-07:00

Last Friday would be marked as one of the most "unknown" day's of my life. Most of you know we are in the process of moving. This move has not been particularly smooth. It has been the longest local move. It has taken 2 weeks to move 13 miles. As I said to someone the other day, the mountain seems to be getting higher and higher and now I'm at the place where the air is thin. I actually found myself taking deep breaths. I'm not a mountain climber and I know why. I don't like heights and I don't like the unknown. Jeff is more adventurous. He chose to climb Masada when we were in Israel rather than take the tram.
(See photo: Jeff is in the red shirt. It was 112 degrees that morning)

Without going into too many details, let's just say that last week we became scattered, literally. We had been taking boxes over to the rental house. Last Friday was supposed to be the day I would clean and begin unpacking. We had packed up a trailer with furniture that was headed to the new home. After a few short hours, some news came that caught us off guard and seemed to paralyze us. It all happened before the trailer load arrived so when it got there, we stopped everything we were doing and asked our friend if it would be possible for him to take the trailer home for the rest of the weekend. My heart dropped to my feet and my emotions were frazzled at that moment. Jeff told me to go home. As I walked into my home, an emptiness filled my heart. I was standing in an empty living room in the home that God surprised us with 3 years ago. Some furniture was missing from other rooms, but boxes still lined my hallways. My life seemed to be at a stand still. Nothing for my family seemed stable. Like climbing a mountain with loose rocks. My son tried to console me by saying "Mom, remember all the stories have a struggle, but remember the endings are always good." I turned to him and said, "I know look at Cinderella, Snow White, and Pinocchio." He said, "No mom, the stories in the Bible!" Needless to say, it was a sleepless night. The mountain seemed to get taller.

Saturday morning as I opened my chronological Bible for some hope, it was no coincidence that I was at Jeremiah 29. When I looked at my reading plan that Jeff had put together for the church at the beginning of the year, the reading plan for Saturday was Jeremiah 29! God wanted me to read this!

Jeremiah 29 holds a promise that many of us hang on to. It is verse 11 that says, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Those words are like oxygen to my spirit. I read this passage over and over. The first 10 verses prior to 11 say so much more as to why 11 is so important. You see, this was a promise to the exiles from Jerusalem who were in Babylon. God wanted Jeremiah to let them know things were going to be good for them. That although they had no idea what their future held, the Word of the Lord was a promise that their future was going to be hopeful.

The Word the Lord spoke through Jeremiah to the exiles in Babylon, spoke to me as well. This process in finding a home in south Orange County has not been easy. It has been more like climbing a mountain. After five months, I'm exhausted and worn out. But it was what the Lord said beginning in verse 5 that settled my spirit as to where He was leading us. It says"'Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. ⁶ Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. ⁷ Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper." (Jeremiah 29:5-7) The past 11 years have seemed very temporary. He's now showing us where He wants to plant us.

Sunday Pastor Jeff explained what Babylon represents. It represents the world's system and way of thinking. As I have thought about this over the last few days, I realized that in a spiritual sense, we as children of God are like the captives in Babylon in the world today. Ephesians 2:19 says, "Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household." Like Jeremiah, we have been set apart. Jesus said, "If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you." (John 15:19) Like God's people who were in captivity to the Babylonians, God told them to go ahead and "live" their lives. We as children of God need to do the same. So many times we separate ourselves from the world. Instead we need to be out there living and climbing every mountain because God is leading us. I know I find myself in isolation, especially when I'm "climbing a mountain." I put my life on hold because it's all I can do to focus and breathe. But it is better to climb the mountains of life with others. We need to climb with Believers so they may encourage, and with unbelievers so they might discover God in the journey.

No matter how much adversity we face today, tomorrow's hope is that it rests in the hands of God. His promise is that if we pray to Him, He will hear us. If we look for Him with all of our heart, we will find Him. (Jeremiah 29:12-14) Whatever challenges you might be facing or mountains you might be climbing, know that God knows the plan. God does have a sense of humor because the city He chose for us has a very mountainous terrain. I like the way the Message Bible translates Jeremiah 29:11 and I will close with this, "I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. " Don't be afraid to climb the mountains, they are only as high as His feet.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Joy to the World

2010-08-04T07:59:00.000-07:00

Now that we are in the book of Jeremiah, every time I read his name, I start singing that oldie, "Joy to the world, all the boys and girls..." No, Jeremiah wasn't a bull frog, he was a prophet and from what I can tell, he wasn't spreading much joy to the Israelites. In fact, the more I am reading about the prophets of the Old Testament, rarely were they bringing good news to the people. It seems that most prophets were loners in life. God even told Jeremiah that from the beginning of his existence that he was set apart and appointed a prophet to the nations. (Jeremiah 1:5)

Not only is Jeremiah a loner, but he is known as the weeping prophet. Not a very joyful title either. Jeremiah's purpose was to warn the people that if they would not turn from their evil ways, they would be taken captive by the Neo-Babylonian Empire. It was under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar that Solomon's Temple was destroyed and the Holy articles of the Temple were taken to Babylon and defiled. I imagine Jeremiah being like Robert Redford in that movie from the early 70's "Jeremiah Johnson." I don't remember much of that movie except that Jeremiah was a scruffy man, living off the land and was faced with many challenges and had to endure them alone.

Often Jeremiah would stand at the city gates speaking the Word of the Lord. Jeremiah 7:1-11 says that the Lord told him to proclaim some, not-so-good news to the people. It says this, "The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, ² “Go to the entrance of the Lord’s Temple, and give this message to the people: ‘O Judah, listen to this message from the Lord! Listen to it, all of you who worship here! ³ This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “‘Even now, if you quit your evil ways, I will let you stay in your own land. ⁴ But don’t be fooled by those who promise you safety simply because the Lord’s Temple is here. They chant, “The Lord’s Temple is here! The Lord’s Temple is here!” ⁵ But I will be merciful only if you stop your evil thoughts and deeds and start treating each other with justice; ⁶ only if you stop exploiting foreigners, orphans, and widows; only if you stop your murdering; and only if you stop harming yourselves by worshiping idols. ⁷ Then I will let you stay in this land that I gave to your ancestors to keep forever. ⁸ “‘Don’t be fooled into thinking that you will never suffer because the Temple is here. It’s a lie! ⁹ Do you really think you can steal, murder, commit adultery, lie, and burn incense to Baal and all those other new gods of yours, ¹⁰ and then come here and stand before me in my Temple and chant, “We are safe!”—only to go right back to all those evils again? ¹¹ Don’t you yourselves admit that this Temple, which bears my name, has become a den of thieves? Surely I see all the evil going on there. I, the Lord , have spoken! " (New Living Translation)

Just the other day, while I was out I passed by a building that had been a church for many years. At times there were two churches meeting in that location. On this day, as I passed by, no church was to be found. Instead a false religion that worships other gods and burns incense to them. I was suddenly reminded of this passage in Jeremiah. No longer is that building a place of worship to the Living God. Little by little the foreign gods are beginning to over take our land like what happened when Babylon took over Jerusalem. I believe Jeremiah's words spoken then are relevant for today. It would seem that today we Christians are in the same place God's people were then. Subtly we are conforming to the ways of this land. We are like "a frog in boiling water." We don't even recognize our little compromises and disobedience.

No longer do we live under the Old Testament covenant. Jesus brought the good news that he came that we might have life and have it to the fullest. (John 10:10) Jesus came to bring the good news that if we know the truth then the truth will set us free. (John 8:32) That if the Son, sets us free, we are free in deed. (John 8:36) No longer are we destined to be captive to the things of this world. Why is it then we live like captives? I know I do at times. We need to keep our eyes on Jesus, the One who sets us free so we can be the Church, full of grace and truth with love. We need to keep each other encouraged because we are the Church. No longer does the Lord's Spirit dwell in a building, but in people who are followers of Jesus. Ephesians 2:22 says that we are being built together to become a dwelling place for God's Spirit. I realized that the difference between the prophets and apostles was that the apostles had Good News to share. Our purpose as followers of Jesus (in contrast to Jeremiah assignment), is to spread the Good News that Jesus came to bring joy to the world.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Scars and Stripes

2010-07-27T07:09:00.000-07:00

In 1947, a young Bedouin farmer was tending his flock in the desert area called Qumran near the Dead Sea. It was there he discovered several caves in which he found clay jars. In those jars were scrolls which are dated back (about 150 B.C - 70 A.D.) to the Essenes. The Essenes (known as the Sons of Light) was a communal group of men who dedicated their lives to God in preparation of the coming Messiah. One of their practices was to write onto scrolls the Old Testament. In these jars were portions of their writings. The only book that was found in these scrolls, in its entirety, was the book of Isaiah.

I have had the privilege of seeing these scrolls three times. Twice here in Southern California and once at the Shrine of the Book in Jerusalem. It is amazing to see these writings that date back before the birth of Jesus. I find it very interesting that the only book that has every page is the book of Isaiah. I remember standing in front of Isaiah 53 and being in awe of what I was seeing.

As we have journeyed through the scripture over these past months, we can clearly see that man was unable to be completely obedient to the Lord. Isaiah was the prophet who God used to introduce the Messiah to His people.

This week as we read through Isaiah 49-66, I was reminded of the scars and stripes that Jesus took for all of us. I love Isaiah 49:16 that says, "See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;..." This reminds me of the conversation Jesus had with Thomas. Jesus was standing there with his disciples after his resurrection with the scars of the nail piercings in his hands. (John 20:25-27) Not that Jesus ever forgets our names, but we sure easily forget what he did. Those scars are our reminder to us, that he never forgets us.

Isaiah 53 is a very familiar passage. For those who have seen the movie, "The Passion of the Christ" have a very visual picture of this description. In the New King James translation, chapter 53:4-7 says this, "Surely He has borne our griefs, And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. ⁵ But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. ⁶ All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. ⁷ He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth." This sounds so poetic in writing, yet this act, when it happened was so violent. To think that Jesus took a beating that made him even unrecognizable, that eventually lead to his death, is truly the ultimate sacrifice.

If we ponder on some of these words that are used to describe this act, it becomes such a visual of sin. The word wounded describes the infliction of the sins of others done against us. The word bruised is a visual of the sin we have committed. We know that blood is precious to God because it represents life. Did you know the reason you bleed first when you get a cut is because the blood is the body's natural way of cleansing the affected area. The same goes with a bruise. Blood is released to cleanse the damaged area. And for every lashing Jesus took on his body, it was for our healing. Not only our physical healing, but our emotional and spiritual healing as well. He also dealt with our shame so that we no longer carry that scar. If you truly think about it, the pain you feel emotionally, spiritually, physically and even shamefully, he carried and felt for everyone that has been, is and will be at that moment! We can't even imagine. What a heavy burden!

I hope you will read Isaiah 53 again. I also recommend you to read Isaiah 61 as it is the healing and restoration we have received from His sacrifice. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you through his eyes and understanding a more personal connection. I pray that that passage will come to life for you and that by his scars and stripes you are healed.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - No Visibility: Faith

2010-07-20T08:41:00.000-07:00

This morning, the weather on my homepage read, "visibility: 8 miles." For those who live or have lived in California know that the first 4 to 6 weeks of summer there is this weather pattern called June gloom. It is when the clouds decide to hide the sun for most of the day. Most of the time, the view from my windows are of the Saddleback mountains. (Photo to the right) But on these cloudy mornings, the visibility of those mountains is zero.

At the beginning of March we were notified that the owner of our home was going to sell our house. We believed that this was God giving us permission to buy our own home so we began looking right away. When we started our home search, the visibility was so clear that we thought we would find a home in no time. Now we are heading to the end of July and still no home in sight. We've made 15 offers and all have been denied, not to mention we even have submitted offers on houses we haven't seen. God is choosing our house now.

This week as I read the book of Isaiah, I came across the promises that I have written on cards and posted around my house. The first one being, "My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest." (Isaiah 32:18) The second scripture I've been holding on to is Isaiah 45:2 & 3 that says, "I will go before you and will level the mountains, I will break down the gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. 3I will give you treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by name."

In the beginning my faith level was at a visibility level of 50 miles. I have seen God do some incredible things in my life so I had no lack of faith that He would do something on the timetable we are on. As the weeks pass, my clarity has become limited. My faith is often like the view from my home. There are days that I can clearly see the mountains and then there are days I don't see anything. Even though I can't see the mountains, I know, without a doubt, they are there. Maybe I need to change my view when I don't see the mountains. I need to look at it as though God has leveled them instead of hid them. The Lord used this visual one morning to illustrate where I am currently at. He showed me that not only do the clouds block my view, but as we head into the summer months, the smog blocks it until we get the first autumn rain. Smog, which we Southern California residents know all too well, is similar to the pollution that clouds my faith. The day to day events of life that begin to build up if I'm not regularly washing my mind with the Word. And even when I am washing with the Word daily, like the air fights against the daily exhaust fumes from cars, trucks and machinery, so do the pollutants of life that come against my faith. Keeping our faith view clear is a fight.

Hebrews 11:1 says that "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." I think that is a good description of the view out of my window during these seasons when the heat is turned up. Much like the summer is hot. Paul says that the righteous will live by faith. (Romans 1:17) Romans 10:17 says that "faith comes from hearing and hearing from the Word of God." It doesn't say that it comes from what we see, but what we hear. Jesus healing the blind man is probably important visual illustration to those of us who choose to live by faith. He had never seen Jesus to know whether or not Jesus was who he said he was. But by the words Jesus spoke, recognized his voice and received them and because of that faith he was healed. Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight, your faith has healed you." (Luke 18:42) Maybe I'm not physically blind, but there sure are days that my faith is challenged with blindness. Yet in God's process of working all things together for good, He turns my faith into something that eventually I will see.

I don't know what the visibility of faith is in your life right now. Maybe you have a clear view or maybe you are at the zero visibility mark. Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still and know that I am God..." It is hard to be settled in your spirit when in the natural we cannot see. As I am growing in my faith, I'm learning that the less visibility, the more faith and hope that is required. I sometimes wonder if God allows the zero visibility days to open our eyes of faith. Maybe life seems uncertain for you right now. Personally, I am at a place that I can't see tomorrow. It's like that game of trust we played as kids. One person is blindfolded and the other person leads you around. What if all of this uncertainty is God's way of working my control issues out of my life. My expectations disappoint me more than God does.

I'd like to close with a verse that I read this past week as well. It is Isaiah 49:23b. It says, "...those who hope in me (God) will not be disappointed." If you, like me are living life with a lack of visibility, then hold tightly to God's hand because He knows exactly where He's leading you. "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. ⁴ And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. ⁵ And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love." (Romans 5:3-5 New Living Translation)

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Pageant of the Master

2010-07-13T20:53:00.000-07:00

So many times when I am reading my daily devotional, it lines up with something that is actually happening. The other day when I was reading Isaiah 22, I came across verse 13 that says, "Let us eat and drink," you say, "for tomorrow we die!" I wasn't sure why that scripture caught my attention, until later that evening.

We had friends who just happened to get tickets, invite us to see "Pageant of the Masters" in Laguna Beach. If you have never seen this way of displaying art, it is spectacular. They have taken famous paintings and sculptures and have recreated these life size pieces of art using people. It is absolutely amazing! It just so happened the theme for 2010 is "Eat, Drink and be Merry." That was no coincidence. That was God bringing something to my attention.

We sat there in awe of the amazing artwork. Not only were we admiring the original artists work, but even what the contemporary artists had done using real people to portray the people in the painting. I started wondering how long it takes them to dress them up and how much practice it must take to get them posed picture perfect. I'm sure when the cast members are being painted and dressed in their costumes, they aren't telling the artist who is doing their work what to do. Not to mention that they have to stand still for a minimum of 3 minutes while posing in the painting or sculpture for the audience. They probably have to sit there quietly for hours while they are being transformed into a piece of art. Rather than complain, they are willing to be uncomfortable for those hours just because it is an honor to be apart of such an amazing event.

As I was sitting there admiring this work, the Lord reminded me of what I had read that day. In chapter 29, verse 16 this particular verse talks about a potter and clay. This took me to Isaiah 45:9-12. It says, "“What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator. Does a clay pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, ‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’ Does the pot exclaim, ‘How clumsy can you be?’ 10How terrible it would be if a newborn baby said to its father, ‘Why was I born?’ or if it said to its mother, ‘Why did you make me this way?’” ¹¹ This is what the Lord says— the Holy One of Israel and your Creator: “Do you question what I do for my children? Do you give me orders about the work of my hands? ¹² I am the one who made the earth and created people to live on it. With my hand I stretched out the heavens. All the stars at my command." (New Living Translation)

What is it about our human nature that we always question what God is doing in our lives? He says right there in verse 12 that HE is the one who made the earth and the heavens and created people to live in it. That word live is very important. God didn't just create people, but He designed our lives. Living the life God has given us every day is a stroke on the portrait He is painting. Each one of us has a unique life that is being painted by the Master. Why is it that we think we can argue with the Potter? Yes, sometimes it hurts when we, like clay, are being stretched and pulled and even put into the kiln. It's then our paint colors become more vibrant. But there are times when we are softly stroked with the tiniest of detail because our Creator is so particular with His artwork. Ephesians 2:10 says "We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (NLT)

If we would rest knowing that He already has our lives, or I should say, the portrait of our lives sketched out, then there would be less stress and less wresting in our souls. I admit, it is not easy, but in the grand scheme of life, our lives would be rest assured. Isaiah 64:8 says, "Yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand." Let's make this our focus this week. After all we are His artwork on display in the "Pageant of the Master."

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - I Wonder...

2010-07-07T11:01:00.000-07:00

Over the past week, we've been reading through a few of the minor prophets. There are many "I wonders" in these books. I am one of those "I wonder" people. As we look at a few of these books, I would like to leave you with some thoughts.

The Book of Amos is not one of the more "quoted" books, but there was a verse in the book that caught my attention. It is Amos 8:11. It says, "The days are coming," declares the Sovereign Lord, "when I will send a famine through the land-not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord." Hmmmmm, could this possibly be the warning to the people of the four hundred years of silence between the Old and New Testament?

In Micah 5:3 it says, "Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor gives birth and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites." The New Testament begins at the birth of Jesus. God's silence is broken. Think about that. Whenever God speaks it is life-giving. For four hundred years God was quiet. He did not interact with His people. I could not imagine not interacting with God for one day.

Obadiah had another interesting "I wonder" verse. Verse 15 &16 says, "The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; our deeds will return upon your own head. 16Just as you drank on my holy hill, so all the nations will drink continually; they will drink and drink and be as if they had never been." I know this is another warning, but it is interesting that it says the nations will drink. Jesus is the living water (John 7:37) and because of him, anyone, from any nation has the opportunity to receive him as their Lord and Savior. It is also a reminder to me that sin can leave you dehydrated.

Most of us are familiar with the Book of Jonah. Jonah is a man running away from God because he's scared to do the job God asked him to. In the mean time, he runs in the other direction, gets on a boat in Joppa (pictured above) and a big storm comes. He tells the men to throw him overboard, which says he was even afraid to do it himself. He gets swallowed up by a big fish. After three days, the fish spits him out and he finally does what God tells him to. We usually end the story there. Actually chapter 4 is just as important because it exposes Jonah's heart and God's. Jonah runs from God, yet God still protects him and then he's angry with God because of his mercy on a sinful people. Like Jonah wasn't sinful disobeying God? Jonah didn't seem to be a particularly happy man. He asked God to take away his life. He'd rather die than live. God challenged Jonah by asking him why he felt he had the right to be angry. Jonah decided he wanted to hang out and see what God was going to do with this city. Then once again, God provided shelter for Jonah with a vine. This vine protected him from the scorching sun. But the next day a worm ate it up. Again Jonah was angry with God for taking away his shelter. God once again confronted Jonah on his attitude. God asks Jonah why he is concerned about this vine even though he did not make it grow or tend to it. The people in Ninevah mattered to God. But here is the "I wonder" in this book. It is the only book that ends with a question. God says to Jonah, "But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?" (Jonah 4:11) This does say a lot about God's mercy and compassion on the people who don't know Him. It shows how much God desires us to partner with Him. It also reveals man's selfish nature, even in being obedient to what God's asks of us. It truly is a matter of the heart.

This book leaves us with a cliff hanger. I wonder if it is God's way of asking us, how conerned we are about others. I believe it also reveals how much God loves us and wants us to recognize any selfhishness that we may have, so that He can remove it from our lives. There are many Believers today who live their lives like Jonah, including me. Like the vine in chapter 4, insecurity and fear is what shelters our selfishness. The dictionary defines selfishness as devoted to or caring only for oneself; concerned primarily with one's own interests, benefits, welfare, etc., regardless of others. I must confess, I land in that category more often than I would like to. Take some time to reflect on times when you've allowed insecurity or fear to shelter you from what God has asked of you. Get to the root of that vine and allow God to send the worm to eat it up. Don't be angry with God or yourself if it does show up. This is another plot the enemy uses against us to keep us from moving ahead. Instead, repent and ask the Lord for forgiveness and forgive yourself as well.

Every story in the Bible is a brush stroke in the bigger picture of God's plan. I wonder if while we are reading God is pointing His finger at a verse or passage that He wants us to see, but sometimes we miss it because we're to busy "wondering" about our own circumstances. Be careful what you allow yourself to "wonder" about.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - M'm! M'm! Bad!

2010-06-30T08:27:00.000-07:00

Like a good bowl of soup or stew that hits the spot, this short story in 2 Kings, chapter 4, verses 38 to 41 is that kind of story. It's says so much for such a short story. It is subtitled in my Bible as "Death in the Pot."

"And Elisha came again to Gilgal when there was a famine in the land. And as the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, he said to his servant, "Set on the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets." 39One of them went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine and gathered from it his lap full of wild gourds, and came and cut them up into the pot of stew, not knowing what they were. 40And they poured out some for the men to eat. But while they were eating of the stew, they cried out, "O man of God, there is death in the pot!" And they could not eat it. 41He said, "Then bring flour." And he threw it into the pot and said, "Pour some out for the men, that they may eat." And there was no harm in the pot."

You might ask, "what does this have to do with words?" This was my observation of this story. In verse 38, it says there was a famine in the land. I believe famine can represent us when we are not reading God's Word daily and especially not reading it for ourselves. You can't live off of preaching only. So many Believer's don't read because they don't understand the Bible. It reminds me of when I was introducing my children to table foods. They didn't like it at first, but the more I kept serving it to them, they began to develop a taste for those foods. So it is with reading the Bible.

Elisha tells one of his servants to prepare some stew for them. The servant uses vines, herbs and gourds to put into the stew without knowing what they were (ignorance and illiteracy). Then he served them to the sons of the prophets. Now this servant had no idea what he was cooking, but after eating it, the men realized it was poisonous. The men cried out saying there was "death in the pot". As I began digesting this, the Holy Spirit began to show me that like food that becomes apart of our bodies after eating, so do the words that others speak to us. What are others serving you, when it comes to words and is it poisonous to your spirit? What music do you listen to? What do you watch on t.v.? What movies do you see? What kinds of books are you reading? All these are snacks and meals that we ingest everyday. Proverbs 18:21 says "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat it's fruit." Whether we recognize it or not, we do live on good and bad words, whether we receive them by what we are listening to or by watching or reading.

Elisha responds, by telling them to bring flour and pour it in the stew. That would seem a little strange to put flour in it. But that is when I recognized the importance of that ingredient. Isn't flour the main ingredient for making bread? In John 6:48 Jesus said "I am the Bread of Life!" I believe that flour is a representation for Jesus and he is life. Only Jesus overcame death!

I want to encourage you to be cautious of what you allow into your spirit. Even out of ignorance, negativity, gossip, curses, etc., those words become apart of who we are. You are what you eat. But know that if you are in the Word of God daily, it will absorb any words of death that might be served to you. As you read the Word of God pray that you will receive every morsel that God wants to feed you. Be more aware of what you are being served each day. Spend more time nourishing your spirit on the Word of God. This is a life changing meal. An old Campbell's soup slogan says, "Good for the Body. Good for the Soul." God's Word is that and more, it's just M'mmmmm good!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - The Great Divide

2010-06-22T08:29:00.000-07:00

By the end of Solomon's life, the nation of Israel was not what God had intended. Solomon's disobedience was the beginning of Israel's division. Jeroboam, who Solomon made a special project foreman, had great leadership skills. The Lord told the prophet Ahijah to contact Jeroboam and tell him that He would punish David's line by making him ruler over ten of the twelve tribes and that his line would be destroyed if he failed to obey the Lord. Solomon was not happy about this and tried to have Jeroboam killed. Jeroboam fled to Egypt until Solomon died. After the death of Solomon, his son Rehoboam took the throne. Israel was now divided into two kingdoms. Northern Israel was known as Israel, which was ruled by Jeroboam. Judah and Benjamin stayed in Jerusalem and was known as Judah and ruled by Rehoboam. God preserved Judah because of his promise to David, yet he was not pleased with many of the next succession of kings. From this point on, rebellious kings ruled over Israel and Judah and the nation of Israel was divided and at war with one another. There were a few good kings, but the evil kings out numbered them.

This week reading in 2 Kings 17, the children of Israel were in the midst of war with each other. They were in chaos. The kings couldn't keep it together. For the most part the kings did their own thing and the scripture says, "did evil in the eyes of the Lord."

In 2 Kings 17:29,37-41. It says, "Nevertheless, each national group made its own gods in the several towns where they settled, and set them up in the shrines the people of Samaria had made at the high places." It sounds so much like living in the United States today. Each state in the U.S. has the option of choosing its own laws. Let's skip down to 37, "You must always be careful to keep the decrees and ordinances, the laws and commands he (God) wrote for you. Do not worship other gods. 38 Do not forget the covenant I have made with you, and do not worship other gods. 39 Rather, worship the Lord your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies." 40 They would not listen, however, but persisted in their former practices. 41 Even while these people were worshiping the Lord, they were serving their idols. To this day their children and grandchildren continue to do as their fathers did." This sounds so much like our country today. One of the things that we are fighting to keep is "In God We Trust" on our currency and "One nation under God" in our pledge of allegiance. What our currency should say is, "In Us we Trust" because America really doesn't trust God. Our country is so divided that we should be called the Individual States of America.

Earlier in this chapter, in verse 18, it says, "So the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence." Only Judah was still in good graces, but they too followed their brother Israel in practices of idol and Baal worship. Eventually, Judah too lost God's presence. It would seem we are headed in that same direction. They say, history repeats itself.

This whole picture of God's chosen people looks much like the Body of Christ today. We are divided by so many denominations. I recently was told by a friend, who is a follower of Jesus in one denomination, was accused by another follower of Jesus who is in another denomination, of being in a cult. Not only is this happening in the Church, but it is happening within churches. People are at war with one another all the time. Sunday after Sunday people show up, to worship the Lord, who are offended with others in their congregation. Sometimes it's even family members who are at war with one another, and yet they come to church expecting to enter the presence of the Lord. It's no wonder the Church is weak today. I once heard T.D. Jakes say that the one thing Satan has better than us, it's that he and his demons are in unity about destroying the Body of Christ. Think about this, he uses us as his weapon to destroy each other, therefore bringing division to the Church.

Jesus said in Luke 11:17, "... Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall." Jesus did not say in the great commission to go and make denominations of all nations, but to go and make disciples of all nations. (Matthew 28:19) 1 Corinthians 4:20 says, "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power." God's plan for His kingdom is one of power. Power only comes when there is unity. The nation of Israel always won their battles not only being in unity with God, but with one another. Imagine the power of God in the Church if we joined as one. Jesus said that he and the Father are one. One divided by one equals one!

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - No More Words

2010-06-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

Years ago I read an article by Dorothy Nevill. She said and I quote "The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing in the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment." This particular article said that women "talk" three times as much as men. Women use at least 20,000 words a day and men only use about 7,000 words. Wow! But having a daughter, I'm not surprised. She talks at least three times as much as my son.

What is it about women and words? As you can see I have many words, that’s why these devotionals are so long. We have this idea that we have the liberty to say whatever we want, and in the Christian vocabulary, we feel we can say it "in love". I recently heard a Christian woman, who in the same breath claimed to be filled with the Holy Spirit, speak horrible words to someone close to me. We don't realize sometimes the words we choose can leave deep wounds and although they heal over time, often leave scars. Why is it we always remember the negative things that are said to us? I wonder how many of those 20,000 words a day are negative and how many are positive. We might be able to cut our word count in half! Ecclesiastes 5:2 & 3 says "Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. 3 As a dream comes when there are many cares, so the speech of a fool when there are many words."

We really need to guard our mouths. We need to speak more "loving words" to one another than words "in love". We need to allow the Holy Spirit to be the filter in which we run our words through before we say them. I heard Joyce Meyer say once that it was interesting that the fruit of the spirit "love" and "self control" book end all the fruit in the middle. Sometimes love and self-control go hand in hand. I would challenge us to begin to look at what words we choose to use. Let us allow the Holy Spirit to bring it to our attention. He will do it in a gentle and loving way.

I admit I struggle in this area. Especially when life seems really heavy. It's like the pressure squeezes things out of me that would not be normally be said. To some degree that is good as it is releasing the toxins within my heart. But it all depends on "who" am I expressing it to. When we spew these toxins on others, it poisons them too, but when we recognize them and hand them over to the Lord, He can purify them. Take some time regularly to bring your heart to the Lord for purification. Jesus said in Matthew 12:34, "...out of the 'overflow' of the heart the mouth speaks."

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Divine Design

2010-06-08T08:55:00.000-07:00

HGTV is one of my favorite stations. One of my favorite programs is, Divine Design with Candice Olsen. Candice is an interior designer who can take a home from blah and boring to wow and wonderful. The creativity she has and how she can see the finished product before she's even started, amazes me. Sometimes the room she has to work with has much to be desired. I love decorating too, but to be able to be creative on so many levels is truly a gift.

In the chapters 2-4 of 2 Chronicles, I would say is truly Divine Design. The passages talk about Solomon building God's temple in Jerusalem. As we have read, David wanted so much to build a place for God's presence to dwell, but God told David it was for his son to build. Partly because Israel was still fighting with some of the inhabitants of the land and they needed every man for battle. It took 70,000 men to be carriers and 80,000 men to be stone cutters and 3,600 foremen over them to keep the people working. Imagine that construction project. They didn't even have Home Depot or Lowes to help.

In 2 Chronicles 2:5 &6 Solomon says, "The temple I am going to build will be great, because our God is greater than all other gods. ⁶ But who is able to build a temple for him, since the heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain him? Who then am I to build a temple for him, except as a place to burn sacrifices before him?" Solomon went all out for the Lord. The decor inside the temple was more spectacular than anyone could have ever imagined. Solomon had cedar brought in from Lebanon. The colors and precious metals of gold, silver and bronze were carefully selected. In the 21st Century when a 2,000 square foot house costs almost a million dollars, imagine what the market value on this grand temple would have been then. Just a few miles from where I live is one of the most expensive house in the U.S. It's located in Corona Del Mar and the house even has a name. Its called the Portabello because its roof looks like a mushroom cap, yet its built into the side of a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. God's temple overlooked the whole city of Jerusalem.

A short time after this temple was built, it was destroyed. All that work and to lose it must have been devastating to Israel. Later it was rebuilt by Herod and even bigger this time. All in all, God only wants the best for His presence.

After the death and resurrection of Jesus, we became the new dwelling place for God's Spirit. First Corinthians 6:19, Paul tells us that we now are God's temple and the place where His spirit dwells. Think about the work that it goes into building this temple. It all begins as Psalm 139:13-14 says, "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are a wonder, I know that full well." He did his best work of design on mankind. The intricate detail that He put into us is amazing. With all the artificial organs and even cloning, I don't think man could ever have designed mankind the way God has. His plan was for us to live in a place of praise and wonderment of His glory.

Like the two temples that were built, we can destroy our bodies, not only physically, but with negative words, anger, unforgiveness, bitterness, resentment and evil talk. Especially what we as the Body of Christ can do to each other. I have to remember this is God's dwelling place and whatever I have or have done in my life that isn't pleasing to Him, I have to remove. Even in all of Solomon's splendor, nothing can compare to the beauty of the Lord. Solomon may have been a gifted designer, but God is truly the "Divine Designer."

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Smart Mouth or Wise Lips

2010-06-02T08:24:00.000-07:00

"Don't give me any of your lip, don't be a smart aleck, or don't you talk to me with that smart mouth", are just a few of the sayings I was reminded of quite often growing up. These sayings are used when someone is disrespecting someone in authority or is used when someone is a "know-it-all." I can remember seeing classmates talk to teachers with that kind of attitude and could not believe they could get away with it.

As we are going through the life of Solomon, we see that in his early years he was a man of wise lips. Throughout Proverbs he uses the term foolish and wise or righteous in contrast to one another. I'd like to say a smart mouth is the foolish one and the wise lips is the righteous one.

A particular proverb that I try to live by is "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." (Proverbs 15:1) Thumper says it like this in the movie Bambi, "If you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything at all." This is probably more familiar to most than King Solomon's saying.

What is it about the attitude in which we speak that can stir up anger. Unfortunately today because of so much written correspondence, for example email, the reader can get stirred up with anger because of a few words that did not translate well. Personally, I try to put a happy face at the end of many of my sentences so they don't get misinterpreted.

The first twelve verses in the book of James, chapter 3 talk about how dangerous the tongue can be. The book of James would probably be the New Testament's book of Proverbs. It too talks about wisdom and the foolishness of the tongue when it is not tamed. James 3:5 & 6 says "Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell."

I ask you today to reflect a bit how you speak to others. Do you speak to others as though you are always right and that you know-it-all? Or, do you choose your words carefully? Proverbs 17:27 says "A man (woman) of knowledge (knowledge is knowing what God is doing) uses words with restraint, and a man (woman) of understanding (knowing what God wants you to do about it) is even-tempered." Don't be a smart mouth. Instead be a person of wise lips.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - In A Dream is a Wish

2010-05-26T07:54:00.000-07:00

What is a wish? The dictionary defines it, "to want; desire." We find our daily reading this week in 1 Kings. The first two chapters we see the sibling rivalry between Adonijah and Solomon. A fight for the throne. Adonijah, decides for himself that he will become king over Israel. But, that was not the plan. Solomon was to become king. Instead, Adonijah's unwise aggressive action lead him down the road that lead to his death.

Solomon had grown up watching his father David lead Israel which had prepared him for the throne. But as soon as Solomon took that position, he cleaned house, doing away with many of his father's leaders. This way he could start from scratch. He knew the responsibility of this position was great and it was going to take much more than being a warrior and wealthy.

In 1 Kings 3, Solomon has married the daughter of Pharaoh in Egypt. This little compromise was Solomon's flaw. He kept every statute that his father kept, except that he offered sacrifices and burned incense in the surrounding hills of Jerusalem rather than at the tabernacle. One day, Solomon went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices. It was there the Lord appeared in a dream to Solomon, instead of while he was awake and offering his sacrifice. God did not agree with his sacrifices so instead came to him in a dream. In verse 4, the scripture says that God said to Solomon, "Ask for whatever you want me to give you."

This was Solomon's response beginning with verse 6, "You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and rigteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day. 7 Now , O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. 8 Your servant is here among the people you have chosen , a great people, too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distingquish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?" I'm sure Solomon was feeling heavy with the weight he now had to carry.

The Lord was pleased with what Solomon had asked for. Verse 11 God said, "Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, 12 I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. 13 Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for - both riches and honor - so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. 14 And if you walk in my ways and obey my statues and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life." Even though Solomon's sacrifices weren't pure to the Lord, his desire was and even more, Solomon was humble. The Lord honored that by giving him wisdom. Solomon was known all over the world for his wisdom. The benefit of this desire was great wealth and a long life. Then verse 15 says, "Then solomon awoke - and he realized it had been a dream." (1 Kings 3:11-15)

Last summer we did our study in Proverbs, the book of wisdom that Solomon wrote. In that we discovered that wisdom is not "what" but "who". Who is wisdom? Jesus. When Jesus is our desire, we now have a greater wisdom than even Solomon. The attributes of wisdom are knowledge and understanding. Knowledge is what Jesus is doing and has done. When we ask the Lord to help us make decisions, much like Solomon had to do when the two prostitutes came to him with their issue, it is the Holy Spirit that lives in us, who helps us to discern what is right and wrong. (1 Kings 3:16-28) Wisdom gives us understanding, which is knowing what Jesus wants you to do. Proverbs 2:10 & 11 says "For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. 11 Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you."

Unlike Solomon, maybe the Lord has not appeared to you in a dream and asked you what you wish. Instead, He gives us the opportunity to ask for wisdom, Jesus, while we are awake and concious. The promise of wisdom is a long life. The promise of Jesus is eternal life. With Jesus not only do we receive wisdom, which leads to prosperity and health, but also we have power and victory over death.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Help Wanted

2010-05-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

This past week as I've been reading 1Chronicles, David is now coming to the end of his life and giving instructions to his son, Solomon. He is helping Solomon with organizing his government officials as well as religious leaders. He is laying out the plans for the building of the temple. David's desire throughout his life was to build the temple for God's presence to dwell. Knowing that he would never see it come to pass, he wanted to make sure Solomon understood each detail and that it required participation. It was important for the Levites to partner with Solomon. I believe it was to give the Levites a sense of ownership, since it was their tribe who looked after the tabernacle. Unlike other kingdoms in the land that were built using slaves, this was a "family" project. When people work together on a project, it creates a unity and a connectedness. When people are called to a task with the same goal in mind, there is a natural bond that happens. It's like going on a retreat or to camp. At the beginning, you barely know your roommates and by the end it's hard to say goodbye because of the experiences you have shared have connected you spiritually.

First Chronicles 23 begins with this, "When David was old and full of years, he made his son Solomon king over Israel. ² He also gathered together all the leaders of Israel, as well as the priests and Levites. ³ The Levites thirty years old or more were counted, and the total number of men was thirty-eight thousand. ⁴ David said, "Of these, twenty-four thousand are to supervise the work of the temple of the LORD and six thousand are to be officials and judges. ⁵ Four thousand are to be gatekeepers and four thousand are to praise the LORD with the musical instruments I have provided for that purpose." (1 Chronicles 23:1-5)

That is a pretty large group of people just from the tribe of Levi that David is hiring to get the job done. This prompted something in my heart in regards to our participation in the body of Christ. Today many attend Church, but never participate in the community. Many Believer's live isolated and do their relationship with the Lord their way and in doing so, eventually walk away because they don't feel connected to the body of Believers. 1 Corintians 6:19 says, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price, therefore honor God with your body." If it took thirty-eight thousand men to work on building the temple of the Lord, then why do we, who now are a temple for the Holy Spirit, live our lives alone? Notice too that each had a specific job to do.

As we begin reading the Proverbs that Solomon wrote, we will see the importance of having advisers. Proverbs 15:22 says, "Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed." I see so many times as people are in their journey, they refuse to include others in on their process. God's plan for us is that we would become more like Jesus and in doing so, it requires others to help chisel away the rough places in our lives. Proverbs 27:17 says, "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

Today I would ask that you take some time to evaluate your life. Who partners with you in your journey? Who do you partner with in their journey? Are you committed to the building of the Body of Christ that the Lord has placed you in? Or do you just show up because you live your Christian life your way? Be truthful with yourself. This is between you and God, yet His plan is that you would be connected. He said in the very begining, "It is not good for man to be alone." (Genesis 2:18) Adam already had a relationship with God, but God knew Adam needed more. Living a life as a follower of Jesus requires help. Always keep your "Help Wanted" sign posted so you don't miss out on any relationship that God brings your way that will lead you to become all God intended you to be.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Bones to Pick

2010-05-12T09:50:00.001-07:00

"A bone to pick" is an expression often used when there is a disagreement or dispute that needs to be settled. That was the first thing that came to my mind reading this passage in 2 Samuel. The passage reads:

1 There was a famine during David’s reign that lasted for three years, so David asked the Lord about it. And the Lord said, “The famine has come because Saul and his family are guilty of murdering the Gibeonites.”

2 So the king summoned the Gibeonites. They were not part of Israel but were all that was left of the nation of the Amorites. The people of Israel had sworn not to kill them, but Saul, in his zeal for Israel and Judah, had tried to wipe them out. 3 David asked them, “What can I do for you? How can I make amends so that you will bless the Lord’s people again?”

4 “Well, money can’t settle this matter between us and the family of Saul,” the Gibeonites replied. “Neither can we demand the life of anyone in Israel.”

“What can I do then?” David asked. “Just tell me and I will do it for you.”

5 Then they replied, “It was Saul who planned to destroy us, to keep us from having any place at all in the territory of Israel. 6 So let seven of Saul’s sons be handed over to us, and we will execute them before the Lord at Gibeon, on the mountain of the Lord.”

“All right,” the king said, “I will do it.” 7 The king spared Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth,who was Saul’s grandson, because of the oath David and Jonathan had sworn before the Lord. 8 But he gave them Saul’s two sons Armoni and Mephibosheth, whose mother was Rizpah daughter of Aiah. He also gave them the five sons of Saul’s daughter Merab, the wife of Adriel son of Barzillai from Meholah. 9 The men of Gibeon executed them on the mountain before the Lord. So all seven of them died together at the beginning of the barley harvest.

10 Then Rizpah daughter of Aiah, the mother of two of the men, spread burlap on a rock and stayed there the entire harvest season. She prevented the scavenger birds from tearing at their bodies during the day and stopped wild animals from eating them at night. 11 When David learned what Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done, 12 he went to the people of Jabesh-gilead and retrieved the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan. (When the Philistines had killed Saul and Jonathan on Mount Gilboa, the people of Jabesh-gilead stole their bodies from the public square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hung them.) 13 So David obtained the bones of Saul and Jonathan, as well as the bones of the men the Gibeonites had executed.

14 Then the king ordered that they bury the bones in the tomb of Kish, Saul’s father, at the town of Zela in the land of Benjamin. After that, God ended the famine in the land. 2 Samuel 21:1-14 (New Living Translation)

In reading this passage, David and all of Israel is facing a season of famine. After three years, he finally decides to go to God. When he finds out it was from something that had happened during Saul's reign, he goes to make amends. He recovers Saul's and Jonathan's bones and puts them where they belong, in the tomb of his father. The place where the dead belong, buried. But not just in any tomb, the place where he should have been buried all along. The scriptures says that after all that was done, God ended the famine.

What I am trying to point out here is, how often do we neglect something that we should have dealt with when "it" was alive? Saul was supposed to give the Gibeonites some land, but instead his "flesh" got in the way and he decided to try and kill them off. Not part of God's plan. There was now a "curse" not only on Saul's family, but on the Israelites too because Saul did not follow God's direction.

When we make mistakes and make choices out of God's will, could this possibly bring a "curse" on our lives? (I think I've seen too many "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies.) I see people all the time forfeit a life of blessing because they refuse to "bury" the bones of the past. They refuse to settle that dispute in their heart and it leads them to a spiritual famine. Often times, others pay for our disobedience to the Lord, especially our family members. It says, in this case, it was seven of Saul's sons. Not to mention Rizpah who was a "family member" who grieved this loss. She guarded the bodies to make sure they stayed in tact.

Rizpah is like the loved ones in our lives who suffer from mistakes that we make. Personally, I know of people who carry around "unburied bones" of other family members that have been dead for years. It's a generational curse. It then becomes apart of the heritage of the family. Not something to be proud of. It brings a weariness and a lack of blessing. And they wonder why they can't seem to get that break through the need.

The scripture says that when David finally put Saul's and Jonathan's bones in the tomb of Saul's father, Kish, the "curse" lifted. The famine ended. We too need to bury those "bones" from our past. When we do we end the famine in our spirit. This gives us more opportunity for blessings to come.

John 10:10 says that Jesus came to give us "life" and "life" more abundantly. Not "death" more abundantly, LIFE. Jesus didn't leave any "bones" in his tomb, therefore, we shouldn't leave any bones in the "temple" where His Spirit dwells, which is in us.

Take sometime to examine your life. Have you been living in a spiritual famine? How long has it been? David waited three years to ask God. Have you asked God why and what is causing the famine? What bones are laying around that keep you from living in abundant life?

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Time Life Presents: The Psalms

2010-04-20T14:07:00.000-07:00

Does this sound familiar? "Enjoy 150 greatest hits all in one collection. The best of the 1440's - 580's B.C. Original songs as written by Moses, David, Solomon, Asaph and that ever so talented group, Sons of Korah." Sounds like some late night infomercial doesn't it?

Actually, the truth is, the book of Psalms is the greatest collection of worship ever written. We know that songs are poetry set to music. Over the last two weeks, the Psalms has been included in our chronological study of the Bible. We know David was a musician and he wrote poetry. David was probably the King of Worship (today we label artists, the king of pop, king of rock, etc.) if there had been a label. He wrote most of the Psalms. David definitely wrote from the emotion of his heart. There are Psalms of joy and victory as well as songs of confession or a broken heart. Much like music today. It's interesting that most of David's life, he spent fighting some kind of battle. Whether is was with another nation or within his own family, poetry was his expression of the situation. He was an emotional man.

Rarely do we ever think about the Psalms being set to music. Yet often when I read them, familiar worship songs come to mind. For example Psalm 84:1&2 "How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord Almighty! 2 My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh cry out for the living God." Do you recognize those lyrics? That song we sing today was written by the Sons of Korah. Or maybe you go way back to Psalm 8:9, originally written by David, that says, "O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!" Whose well-know voice suddenly shows up in your head? Sandi Patty maybe? A popular one we sing today is Psalm 106:1 and Psalm 107:1 & Psalm 136, which the author is anonymous says, "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever." Today, Chris Tomlin has taken this Psalm and set it to music that can be appreciated in our generation. I sometimes think that the harp David played was similar to music artists today who pick around on their guitars. Can you just imagine David sitting in his room on the edge of his bed, writing what he was feeling at the moment. I wonder if that is why in some of the Psalms he mentions his bed. Psalm 149:5 "Let the saints rejoice in this honor and sing for joy on their beds."

How many times can I go to the Psalms and find a song that meets me right where I am. Much like listening to the soft rock radio station that plays oldies. Maybe I haven't heard a song in years, but instantly it can take me back to a place and an emotion I felt. I believe that is God's purpose for this collection of worship. He was there when they were written and He wants to share them with us today. He wants to let us know that David had the same emotions then as we do now and experienced the same struggles and victories that we do today. I once heard that the reason there isn't any music to go with the Psalms is because God wants us to make the music relevant to us in our time of life, because the word of God's lasts forever. (Isaiah 40:8)

Today, God has given us song writers today who write music that is God inspired. But many of these songwriters go back to the Word of God and set new music to old words. These words that stand the test of time and can still speak life into our spirit. Take some time each day to read from this collection of God's greatest hits. The Psalms say the right thing, at the right time in your life.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Coming Clean

2010-04-12T22:12:00.000-07:00

I'm going to segway this week to the Psalms. I have been reading "The Narrated Bible" this time through and this past week was the story of David and Bathsheba. This is where Psalm 51 is inserted as it is David's prayer of repentance to the Lord for his sin. Something that always is highlighted for me in this passage is the issue of a "clean heart". Since we are at the beginning of spring, spring cleaning is on my mind. Especially under the current circumstances. It seems that I am cleaning the house more often. You see, the owner of our home is selling the house we live in and in doing so, people are coming through to look at it. What is really difficult for me is that I have never met these people and yet they are looking into the most private places, my closets.

The other day as a man was looking in my closet of personal things, it made me so self conscious of what he might find. This got me thinking about my heart.

David comes clean with God in Psalm 51. He was cleaning the closet of his heart. It begins like this, "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. 2Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin." Verse 7 continues with "Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." Verse 10 says, "Create in me a pure heart, O God and renew a steadfast spirit within me." The New Living Translation says it like this, "Create a in me a clean heart, O God and renew a loyal spirit in me." I like the words used in that translation.

David knew what he had done was wrong. Transgressions and iniquities are like the things we stash away in our closets that we can't seem to throw away. Transgressions are the wounds that happen when others impose their sin on us. Iniquities resemble that of a bruise, bleeding on the inside. The things we stash that are sinful acts that we hide from others that we never let go of. The hyssop that David mentions is what the Israelites used in Egypt to spread the blood of the lamb over the door frames so when the Lord passed over them they would not be struck down like the first born of the Egyptians. This was the symbol of freedom because it was after this Pharaoh let them go. They were finally set free from the bondage of Egypt. If we as Believer's today live by our spirit then Egypt would be like our flesh. David was so ridden with shame that the only way to be free from the bondage of sin was to confess. He knew only the blood could wash him white as snow. Because of the death of Jesus, his blood now covers us and washes us white as snow.

Much like these strangers who are looking in my closets, seeing my most personal items and even the condition I keep my closets in, I'm more eager to clean them out. What kind of person do I look like to them because of what is in my closet? If a stranger could look into my heart's closets, what would they see? Would they see shame, anger, bitterness, hate, unforgiveness, etc or would they see a woman who has the word of God hidden in my heart? You know in Deuteronomy, God says that is the only thing we are supposed to hide in our heart. Psalm 119:11 says, "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you."

I know I have things stashed away in my heart that don't belong there. Those things don't stay hidden for long. Jesus said in Luke 6:45 "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks." No matter what, the things in our heart will be exposed by what we say.

Today, I ask you to come clean with yourself. Allow the Holy Spirit to be your "Mr. Clean" and ask him to help you throw away those things that are stashed away and hidden that are not good. The things that even though you think are hidden, yet are what you talk about often. Open up those closets in your heart that carry bitterness, anger, hurt, guilt, shame, unforgiveness, etc. Do this, write down those things that you have stashed away on a piece of paper. Be sure to forgive others as well as yourself. Pray over them. Tear them up and place them in a trash bag and throw them away to never be picked up again. If we would do this regularly, we wouldn't live such heavy lives.

Coming clean comes at a price. Are you willing to let go of the junk that is cluttering your life? Or have you chosen to keep your heart cluttered with junk? Jesus paid the price for us on the cross. Think of him like the Salvation Army, take your stuff to him and leave it there.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - REALationship Recap

2010-03-31T09:15:00.000-07:00

A few years ago now, our women's ministry focused on friendships. The Lord gave me this word about the importance of relationships through the book of Ruth. I had the privilege of teaching this at our women's retreat that year. For those of you who were at that retreat, this will be a recap. For those of you who are new to our church family, this is the heart of our women's ministry that we call R.E.A.L. Women.

I have always thought Ruth's story was a nice story, kind of a Cinderella type story. But this time rather than look at it through the eyes of "the fair maiden meeting her prince charming," I read it this time as an example of an authentic relationship between women. I like to call it a "real-ationship." As I was reading it I discovered the four building blocks to a R.E.A.L. women friendship. R.E.A.L. being the acronym for respect, encouragement, accountability and love.

The first block being respect. In Chapter 1 verses 15-18 it says "'Look,' said Naomi, 'your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her.' 16 But Ruth replied, 'Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, bit ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.' When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her." Ruth obviously respected Naomi for the kind of life she lived. She respected her enough to want to follow her to a foreign land. In return, Naomi respected Ruth enough to allow her to go with her.

The second block is encouragement which is found in Chapter 2. Beginning with verse 2, Ruth says to Naomi, "Let me go to he fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor." Naomi said to her, "Go ahead, my daughter." 3 So she went out and began to glean in the fields behind the harvesters. As it turned out, she found herself working in the field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelech." This man Boaz was a relative of Naomi's late husband. Most of know the end of the story. If Naomi had not encouraged Ruth to go to the field to pick the up the leftover grain, she would have never met Boaz. I look at encouragement as a form of blessing. Naomi was giving Ruth her blessing by encouraging her to go.

The pillar of accountability is found in the second portion of Chapter 2. After Ruth returns from spending the day in he fields, Naomi says beginning in verse 19 "Where did you glean today? Where did you work?" Blessed be the man who took notice of you!" She again encouraged Ruth to stay close to him. All those questions are the stepping stones to accountability. One might think Naomi was being nosey, but if she hadn't asked those questions, she would have never known that Ruth had been working in Boaz's field, who was her close relative.

In Chapter 3, Naomi tells Ruth to dress up in her finest clothes and put on perfume. To go to the threshing floor and wait until Boaz falls asleep and lie down at his feet. I believe this is another example of respect. Respect requires trust. Ruth had to trust Naomi enough to do this. Personally, I don't know if I could have done that. It's one thing to get all dressed up, but to lie down at the feet of a man you barely know would seem a bit odd. Yet Ruth did not even question Naomi's plan. She responded in verse 5 by saying "I will do whatever you say."

The last portion of Chapter 3 is another time when accountability is found. After Ruth returns from the threshing floor, Naomi she asks her how it went and what happened? Like most of us women, we want details.

But Chapter 4 clearly speaks of the fourth pillar of love. After Boaz marries Ruth in verse 14 it says "The women said to Naomi: 'Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! 15 He will renew our life and sustain you in your old age. Four your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons has given him birth." Because of the real-ationship between these two women, not only one of them, but both of them were blessed far beyond their wildest dreams. Ruth found a husband and Naomi was now a grandma which I'm sure she never thought would come to pass since she lost both of her sons.

As I've thought about this for the past several days, I also thought about the idea of gleaning. I believe there is some hidden message there as well from God to us. Ruth was not an Israelite, she was a Moabite, a gentile. By allowing Naomi to lead her, who was an Israelite, Ruth found God and married an Israelite for a second time. But what I believe is symbolic here is the fact that after they had harvested the grain, she would go behind and pick up the left overs. It says she returned to Naomi with an ephah which is about 22 liters. Thats quite a bit of grain. Okay, stay with me here. Jesus referred to himself as the "bread of life". What is bread made from? Grain. Ruth didn't get the first round of grain, she got the left overs. By the time Jesus came on the seen, the Religious Leaders had been doing their jobs for so long, they missed "the bread of life." Jesus was giving the first portion to his people. So who got to receive the left overs when He wasn't recognized by the Pharisees? The Gentiles. It was after Jesus ascended to Heaven that the Gospel got out to the new group of people who wanted to hear about "the bread of life." Thus we now have Christians. When Jesus ascended to Heaven, he told the disciples to go and make disciples of all nations which is Jesus leaving the left over grain to feed the gentiles. (Matthew 28:19). To this day, people every where have the opportunity to glean from the life and death of Jesus.

Take some time today to think and pray about the real-ationships you have. Are they built on the foundation of Jesus and are the walls of respect, encouragement, accountability and love holding those friendships secure? God didn't mean for us to live our lives alone. God gave us the gift of relationships. Also, think about those relationships that are not yet built on Jesus, are you leaving some "grain" behind that they might taste and see that the Lord is good? When we are in healthy relationships, they help shape who we are. When we are in Godly relationships they keep us pressing to become more like Jesus.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - PG 13

2010-03-24T09:07:00.000-07:00

Disobedience, idol worship, a woman doing a man's job, deals, deception, murder, rebellion, lust, and violence are found in the book of Judges. This past week, as we began reading the book of Judges and all I can say is, it has the makings of a Hollywood movie. From the Israelites turning from God to Baal worship, Jael driving a tent peg through a man's temple, Gideon putting out his fleece and Samson, the man of strength yet weak in spirit, losing it all because of a woman. This book should have a rating of PG 13.

Judges has been known to be a graphic book. There was a story in Chapter 11 that was a bit disturbing to me. I read it a few times before and even noted in my Bible "be careful what you ask for." Starting in verse 30 and it reads like this: And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD : "If you give the Ammonites into my hands, 31 whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the LORD's, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering."

32 Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the LORD gave them into his hands. 33 He devastated twenty towns from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith, as far as Abel Keramim. Thus Israel subdued Ammon.

34 When Jephthah returned to his home in Mizpah, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of tambourines! She was an only child. Except for her he had neither son nor daughter. 35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, "Oh! My daughter! You have made me miserable and wretched, because I have made a vow to the LORD that I cannot break."

36 "My father," she replied, "you have given your word to the LORD. Do to me just as you promised, now that the LORD has avenged you of your enemies, the Ammonites. 37 But grant me this one request," she said. "Give me two months to roam the hills and weep with my friends, because I will never marry."

38 "You may go," he said. And he let her go for two months. She and the girls went into the hills and wept because she would never marry. 39 After the two months, she returned to her father and he did to her as he had vowed. And she was a virgin.
From this comes the Israelite custom 40 that each year the young women of Israel go out for four days to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite."

I don't know what this man, Jepthah, was thinking when he told God that whatever comes out of the door of his house he would give to God as a sacrifice. Now, I don't know if they had dogs and cats as pets in those days and possibly he was hoping his family pet dog (maybe he barked too much) would come running to him. The scripture says that he had no other children. So I wonder if he and his wife weren't doing so well and maybe he was hoping that she'd come walking through the door to greet him. I think that is why this story bothered me so much. What was he expecting to come through his door?

The story of Samson is quite a disturbing one as well. Here is another barren woman desiring a child. She conceives this child who is to be set apart from everyone else for God. He is to have no wine or unclean food and most of all, never to cut his hair. So what happened to Samson? A rebellious teen who is probably had such strict parents that he rebelled and did as he pleased. God gave him strength unlike any other and he abused his gift. It is possibe he was very prideful. The fact that he stopped at the lion carcass that he had mamed earlier with his bare hands and reached in, with the bees swarming, and ate the honey, tells me something was not right with him. (Judges 14:5-9) Would you eat honey out of a dead animal? Then he defiles his family by giving it to them to eat too. I wonder if they knew where the honey came from? Maybe his parents were too permissive because he was their only child and spoiled him rotten. Maybe they didn't know what to do with him. No Dr. Phil in those days. In chapter 14:1 & 2 says, "Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. 2 When he returned, he said to his father and mother, "I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife." Pretty demanding if you ask me. He intermarried, the very thing God had warned the Israelites about. Here is a Nazirite man who is supposed to be set apart, doing exactly what God had told him not to. Yet when he called on God to help him out of a bad situation, God was there. Then what does he do? He goes to Gaza and spends the night with a prostitute. Only to end up meeting Delilah who deceives him and as the scripture says, "nagged him day after day until he was tired to death" to tell her the secret to his strength.

I have to ask the question, what is the strength of my spirit? It must be like when my kids keep wearing me down about something and then finally after the third time, I either give in or put my foot down and say "no!" I do know that when I'm tired my spirit it tired and I find myself much more easily swayed. It says that Samson was asleep when Delilah tested what he said. Over and over she tested him and wore him down. Although he was physically strong, his spirit was weak. He abused his gift of strength from God for his own purpose. Jesus said that we are to pray and watch because the "spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. (Mark 14:38) In Samson's case it was just the opposite.

Finally the end of the story, after he's lost not only his strength, but his eye sight, which I believe is significant. Everything he did prior to this event, it was what he wanted because he "saw it". Now he was blind to everything and could only focus on his purpose as to why God chose him. This is why it is better we choose to humble ourselves before God sooner instead of later so we don't bring humilation on ourselves. Now Samson was ready destroy the Philistines that God had originally intended for him to defeat. He destroyed more Philistines that day than in all of his "strong" years. You see, no matter what, God's purpose will prevail, even if we mess it up. I think that is the moral of the stories in this book. We can learn a lot of lessons from the people in this book so we don't have to learn the hard way.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Hopelessly Devoted

2010-03-16T16:17:00.000-07:00

The book of Joshua has a special place in my heart. The Lord has used this book to speak to me many times in my life. It was especially so when we began praying in 1998 about moving back to California from Tennessee. This book has encouraged me so much, that my daughter's name is Jordanne because in order for the Israelites to posses their promise, they had to cross the Jordan River.

It seems this season as I am reading through the Bible, the Lord has been highlighting words and phrases that seem to stick with me all week. In this past week's reading through Joshua, the two words "devoted things" have been simmering in my spirit.

It all begins with God giving Joshua the plan on how they were to take the city of Jericho. A pattern that I see with God is that He is very specific with His plan and it is to be followed exactly. In taking the city of Jericho, God wanted the Israelites to dispose of everything there. Joshua 6:18 God is very clear that they are not to take for themselves any of the devoted things. It says, "But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble on it."

The Canaanites were completely rebellious against God. They worshiped pagan idols and were probably very materialistic. God told Joshua before entering Canaan that they were to destroy everyone and everything that belonged to the Canaanites in order for them to live peacefully there.

In chapter 7, Joshua and his army go out to fight the Amorites. Unlike the previous battles, the Israelites were losing. Joshua was so distraught that he fell face down before the Arc of the Covenant and asked God what was causing them to lose this battle? God's response was "Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. ¹² That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction. ¹³ "Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, 'Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: That which is devoted is among you, O Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove it. "(Joshua 7:11-13)

Achan, who was from the tribe of Judah, had taken some of the devoted things. Achan finally confesses to his sin. He says,"It is true! I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: ²¹ When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, ^f]">two hundred shekels ^g]">of silver and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath." (Joshua 7:20 & 21)

God told the Israelites that all the gold and silver, bronze and iron articles were sacred and were to be put into the Lord's treasurey. (Joshua 6:19) Achan had not only disobeyed God's command, but he lied and stole from God as well. Achen said he "coveted" those items and in doing so broke the Law that God had given.

I share this with you today by asking you what are your "devoted things" that you are keeping hidden. Although we live in a "nation under God", not everything in this land is "of God." These things we devote ourselves to will only leave us feeling hopeless. When we devote ourselves to things that are exalted above God then we are breaking the first commandment. Jesus said in Matthew 22:37 & 38, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' ³⁸This is the first and greatest commandment." It's not only material things we can be devoted to. We can be devoted to television shows, book series, music, social activities, etc. These things, especially when it comes to secular television, books and music feed our minds and spirits. Often these things are completely contrary to the Word of God. Ask yourself if God would be pleased at some of the things you watch, read or listen to. It seems the more I understand the Bible, the more sensitive I have become to things in the media, whether it's books, magazines, television or music. In verse 11, God said "they put them with their own possessions" which is compromise.

Chapter 7 concludes with Achan losing more than what he had taken. His whole family and all of his belongings were brought before Israel to the Valley of Achor (Achor being Trouble). There Achan was stoned to death and buried there. My understanding is his family was left there as well. Therefore, his mistake became their consequence.

Do you ever feel at times that you can never win the battles you are fighting? Does it seem as though the enemy has the upper hand when it comes to your physical life, and even your spiritual life? Maybe it's time to take an inventory of your "devoted things." The definitian of devoted is "zealous or ardent in attachment, loyalty or affection."

Take an inventory by asking the Holy Spirit to show you what things you might be devoted to. How difficult is it for you to do away with something that God might disapprove of? If it's difficult to let go, then maybe it is one of those "devoted things" in your life. I'm not saying that we are to be legalistic, but the bottom line is, are the things you are devoted to leaving you feeling hopeless or hopeful? God wants us to be devoted to Him and not things. He wants us to enjoy the good things in life, but not the things that will lead us to our own destruction. Whether it is individually or as the Body of Christ. Think about this, God allowed one man's disobedience to effect the whole nation of Israel. Romans 12:5 says that we being many all form the Body of Christ. When one of us is disobedient, it effects the rest of us. So together let us get rid of the "devoted things" that God does not approve of. We can be victorious by staying hopefully devoted to Him.

(Photo above is looking from the road the city of Jericho)

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - "Do" teronomy or "Do Not" eronomy

2010-03-11T09:53:00.002-08:00

I love the book of Deuteronomy. It is the final book that Moses wrote that sums up Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers. It is a shortened version of the "do's" and "don'ts" of the three other books. I noticed how often the words do and do not appear.

Towards the end of the book, Moses concludes with the blessings if you fully obey the law that has been given and it is so encouraging. It is found in Deuteronomy 28:1-14. It reads, "If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. ² All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God: ³ You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. ⁴ The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. ⁵ Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. ⁶ You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. ⁷ The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. ⁸ The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. ⁹ The LORD will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. ¹⁰ Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you. ¹¹ The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground—in the land he swore to your forefathers to give you.

¹² The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. ¹³ The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. ¹⁴ Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them. "It doesn't get more encouraging that that. If anything, this passage should ignite the enthusiasm to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

On the flip side, Moses then writes the consequences of what will happen. It only took 14 verses to explain blessing, but it takes 53 verses to explain the curse to come if any of the law is broken. Here is a sample of verses 15-19. "However, if you do not obey the LORD your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you: ¹⁶ You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country.¹⁷ Your basket and your kneading trough will be cursed. ¹⁸ The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. ¹⁹ You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out."

I want to encourage you to read the rest of chapter 28. It will open your eyes to as to why some of us Believers just can't seem to move into the blessings that God has promised. Little compromises here and there begin to sneak in. When we compromise we "curse our promise". God is pretty clear on His expectations of us on the obedience issue. Deuteronomy 22:9 says, "Do not plant two kinds of seed in your vineyard; if you do, not only the crop you plant but also the fruit of the vineyard will be defiled. " How many followers of Jesus tithe and then spend the rest of their money on things that are unpleasing to the Lord. Galatians 5:19-21 tells us not to be given to sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. As New Testament children of God, it is about inheriting the Kingdom of Heaven rather than the Promised Land.

I am as guilty as anyone on compromise. Those times when I told God that I couldn't tithe because my car payment was due or because I just bought a new outfit and if I tithed it would put my checking account in the red. Or allowing certain music and movies to feed my spirit.

The good news is that I can ask for forgiveness and my compromise will no longer bring curses into my life. But there is a consequence to my action and sometimes I have to live out the consequence before the promise can take effect.

I challenge you today to take an inventory of your life. Jesus died to break the curse of this world so we might walk in blessing. Ephesians 1 is the new Covenant version of Deuteronomy 28. It's about the spiritual blessings we have received. Take some time to read Ephesians 1and "do" be blessed!

R.E.A.L. Women's Devotional - By Appointment Only

2010-03-06T14:07:00.000-08:00

Over the past week we've been getting an understanding of what the requirements that God had for His children by giving them instructions on "cleaning up their act" so to speak. My understanding is that the book of Leviticus is an instruction manual for the Levites who were called to be the priests of the tabernacle. The book of Numbers was a counting of how many "kids" God had and then the subtraction of those who lacked faith. Deuteronomy is a recap of the law and the consequences to follow on obedience or disobedience.

As I have been reading this time around, something caught my eye in particular. The first time it was mentioned was back in Genesis 18:14. It says, "Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year and Sarah will have a son." Something about the phrase "appointed time" caught my attention.

Several times throughout Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, God uses the phrase "appointed time." You might even notice how often He appoints people throughout scripture. This says to me that God keeps an appointment book. He has a plan and He does not miss appointments. He tells us where He is going to be. If we want to be apart of what He's doing, we better show up ready for whatever He says to do. Psalm 37:23 says, "The steps of a good (good meaning righteous, in right standing with God) man are ordered (by appointment only) by the Lord. And He delights in his way." (NKJV)

What else I have discovered is that God does not go by our appointment books. He has the bigger picture in view as He did with the Israelites. If you have been reading these three books, you will see all of the requirements that needed to be instilled in these people in order to make and keep them holy. Obviously God knew ahead of time, this would be too difficult for man to uphold so He had to prep them for the final road to holiness which was through His Son, Jesus Christ.

A few years ago, it occurred to me as I was sharing with a friend who had been disappointed by a relationship, that maybe that relationship was not an appointment set by God. This is where the Romans 8:28 factor comes in to reschedule our appointments. As I was consoling her, I heard the Holy Spirit tell me to divide the word "disappointment" apart. In today's culture to "diss" someone is a form of rejection. Webster's definition says, to show disrespect. We all know what an appointment is, but the definition means, a fixed mutual agreement for a meeting. In the spiritual sense, our dissappointments are the times we've set the appointment and expected God to show up and He doesn't.

I am learning in my walk not to be so discouraged with my disappointments. I can't say that I have mastered the art of not being disappointed, but it is definitely something that has been brought to my attention. I try not to allow them to upset my whole life anymore. God knows not only your future and my future, but the future of all of mankind. I believe that God is setting up "appointed times" for us as well, just like He did for the Israelites. He set them up for the Israelites for the purpose of sending His Son the first time. Galatians 4:4 says, "But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, under the law,". Now He's setting us up for the purpose of sending His Son the second time. We have to make sure we live by God's appointment book rather than ours because Matthew 24:36 and Matthew 13:32 says, "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." Jesus says quite often through scripture to be ready (see Luke 21:34-36). The return of Jesus is by appointment only and I don't think we'll want to miss it.

R.E.A.L. Women's Devotional - All My Children

2010-01-27T13:49:00.000-08:00

Genesis is a book of snapshots of a family tree. A family that God chose. Love, romance, wealth, travel, kings, beautiful women, arranged marriages, infertility, shame, blame, murder, sibling rivalry (and lots of it), drunkenness, betrayal, deceit, fornication, incest, jealousy, and so on describe the people God chose to call His people in the book of Genesis. It sounds like the content you would find in a daytime drama. May I suggest this book could be subtitled All My Children? The book of Genesis seems to be the story of a very dysfunctional family line. Yet, God chose these people to be the family that his own son would be linked to. It wasn't God's intent for some of the choices Abraham's family made, but God did use it for His good. We can see by their example of living how important it is to live walking in the Spirit and not in the flesh.

As I read Genesis, it occurred to me that this book with all of it's drama was written with generations past and present in mind. God knew that even in the 21st century, we would still be struggling with these same issues. The fall of man begins as early as the third chapter. The book of Genesis is really an encouragement to us to know that no matter what kind of earthly family we come from, His ultimate plan is for us to be identified as children of God. Ephesians 1:4-7 says "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love ⁵he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— ⁶to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. ⁷In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace ⁸that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding." Think about that, it truly does not matter what kind of heritage you have come from, the bottom line is that God loved us so much that He wanted us to be apart of His family. For that reason, He sent Jesus, His one and only Son to become flesh and blood, so we could share this life and our eternal life together. (John 3:16)

We have all come from different families. Some might say their family is very dysfunctional and others might say they are very functional. Whatever kind family you have come from, know this, if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, you have a new family tree. One filled with honor and glory. You are now royalty and have a great inheritance. Paul says in Galatians 3:29, "If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."

Personally, I think the book of Genesis was really written for us to know that no matter where we come from, that God can use anyone to accomplish His plan. I do have to give Abraham's family the benefit of the doubt, they did not yet have the law to live by. To sum it all up, the book of Genesis is a reminder that way back in the beginning, man needed a Savior. I say all of this because even as followers of Jesus, we can get so caught up in our own drama that we forget that we are no longer to live by our flesh, will, and emotions, but are to live by the Spirit. Galatians 5 says it all. Jesus came to set us free, let us live that way because we are all His children.

R.E.A.L. Women's Devotional - A Stormy Forecast

2010-01-20T08:50:00.000-08:00

Out of the five day forecast, today was supposed to be the least amount of rain, according to the weatherman. Around 10:00 am, I decided it was as good a time as any to run my usual errands. The clouds began to roll in and with every passing hour, it began to get darker. Looking at the dark clouds overhead, I decided it was time to head home. I no sooner walked in the door and the drops began to fall.

I turned on the television and the Emergency Alert System flashed across my screen with a tornado warning. California is not known to have tornadoes. I listened to the weatherman, as the programming had been interuppted for the special announcement. Suddenly the winds kicked up and the rain came down hard. Next thing I know my patio was a disaster area. One of my potted trees had fallen over and dirt and mud was everywhere. I went outside to stand it back up. Moments later another one of my plants fell over and again dirt. As I was picking up the second plant, I noticed the soil at the roots was very dry. I thought about watering it the other day, but I didn't knowing we were going to get some rain.

The rain came down hard and the wind blew intently. Thunder and lightning soon joined this weather symphany. When I lived in Tennessee, I used to count the seconds between the lighting and thunder so I could tell how quick the storm was passing through. It lasted about an hour and soon the sun peered through the clouds.

Outside my front door, another tree had fallen into the walk way and had broken at the bottom of the trunk. I had to pick my kids up from school at that time and as I drove into the parking lot, I saw another tree that had not been able to weather the storm. It seemed as though now my eyes had been open to fallen trees. As I turned down a street near my home, an incredibly large pine tree had fallen bringing up the roots and dirt. It blocked a whole street. Then the Holy Spirit spoke to me using these trees to talk to me about the importance of getting into the Word and spending time with the Lord.

Ladies, as we step out in this season to read through the Bible, it is going to become an anchor that will sustain you in the times of the storms. You see the plant on my patio didn't have any water underneath the topsoil to weight it down when the wind came. Allow Jesus, the Living Water, to fill you up so you will never be so dry that you can't stand through a storm. (John 4:14) Do not depend on others to fill you up. You've got to do it yourself. Two of the trees that I saw were young trees and they were planted in the ground. They were not strong enough to stand up to the wind. But the large pine tree looked as though it should have had roots deep enough to keep it from falling over. Sometimes, we who have followed Jesus for a long period of time, look like we can handle it, but somewhere we stopped going deeper in our relationship with him, and often find ourselves unable to withstand the winds of life that blow our way.

Proverbs 10:25 says, "When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever." Proverbs 10:30 says, "The righteous will never be uprooted..." I want to encourage you today, to make sure you water yourself daily with Word of God. Continue to pursue the Lord that your roots may grow down into the soil of God's love and keep you strong! (Ephesians 3:17 NLT) Psalms 92:12 & 13 promises "The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; 13 planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God." We are His orchard.

The five day forecast calls for two more storms to pass through our region. Life's forecast may have a few storms headed your way, but know this, the Son is still shining on the other side of those clouds and He will breakthrough.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Don't Look Back!

2010-01-14T14:16:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things to do is to look at family photo albums. Recently I found myself watching videos of my kids when they were little. A blonde brown-eyed 4 year old boy dressed in his Buzz Lightyear jammies with a Bibleman cape and mask, running around fighting evil with his light saber and a toe-head, brown-eyed 2 year old girl, dressed in every piece of dress up clothing she owned, singing in front of the mirror. Looking back, those days seemed to be more simple, yet it was probably during one of the most challenging seasons of our life. We had just moved back to California to plant a church, we were living by faith financially and we were in the early stages of raising our children.

Reading the story of Lot and his family leaving Sodom and Gomorrah reminded me of the importance of why we should not look back. In Genesis 19, God is angry with the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The night that He was ready to destroy everything in those cities, he sent two angels to rescue Lot and his family. Think about how they must have felt when they are told to leave immediately.

Let's look at Lot's wife. Not much is mentioned about her. She doesn't even have a name. It's not recorded in scripture whether or not her homeland was either of those cities. What was she thinking when she is suddenly faced with a move? And a big one at that, they aren't sure where they are going to go, except to the mountains. Genesis 19:15-17 says "With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, "Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished." ¹⁶ When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them. ¹⁷ As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, "Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!" I'm sure Lot's wife was pretty angry and afraid at this sudden relocation. I wonder if that is why they were told to flee to the mountains so that they had a destination to focus on. Think about it, the mountains are unlevel ground and you have pay attention to what is in front of you rather than behind you.

Like any husband who see's his wife's grief and senses her wrath, he makes a compromise with the two angels. Genesis 19:18-21 says, "But Lot said to them, "No, my lords, please! ¹⁹ Your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can't flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I'll die. ²⁰ Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn't it? Then my life will be spared." ²¹ He said to him, "Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. ²² But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it." (That is why the town was called Zoar. )" If Lot had been obedient to the first command, he may have still had a wife.

The passage goes on to say, " ²³ By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. ²⁴ Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. ²⁵ Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. ²⁶ But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt." (Genesis 19:23-26) Why did she turn into a pillar of salt? As I read this, I wondered if she was a bitter woman. Have you ever over salted your food? As much taste as a little salt adds, it can also ruin a dish that has too much salt. I wonder what was going through her mind as she looked back. Was she filled with anger and resentment. Could she have been angry at the evil that had not only been going on daily, but even the fact of the events of that night with her husband offering her daughters to the men to be raped. Was she torn that she had to leave possibly the only place she'd ever known. Maybe she was mad at God that He didn't spare every family member. There are dozens of reasons as what Lot's wife was recalling in her mind as she looked back. Nonetheless, she disobeyed the command of the angels and therefore turned into a pillar of salt. She died literally a bitter woman.

Philippians 3:13 & 14 says, "Brothers (sisters) I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." I believe Lot's wife's story is a visual of why Paul tells us to press on. Don't stop in the town of Zoar when God has told you to go to the mountains. Do get stuck dwelling on the past, the things that truly are behind you now. Jesus is our focal point and we need to keep looking to him. Proverbs 4:25 says, "Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you.". So often I hear the phrase, "your best days are in front of you." Even if you had a life that was good, Ecclesiastes 7:10 tells us not to long for the good ole' days.

Personally, I must confess that I "retain a little water on some days, due to the fact there is too much salt in my system," meaning I sometimes look back. As much as I don't want to, or don't want to admit, I do. So many unanswered questions that may never have answers. Why do I continue to live turned around when clearly the Lord is telling me not to look back but to move forward. To go to the mountains and not stop in Zoar. When our spiritual life has taken in too much salt we can get stuck in the plains of life. Hmm, when we are in the plain days of life we think by adding salt we flavor it up. Instead, we end up over salting and can become bitter.

It reminds me of the worship song "Moving Forward." The chorus says this, "I'm not going back. I'm moving ahead. I'm here to declare, in You old things are made new. Surrender my life to Christ. I'm moving moving forward." I want to challenge us today to help keep each other accountable in this area of being too "salty." As sisters in the Lord, I pray that we will be like those angels of the Lord to each other and take each other by the hand and lead us to the "mountain" where the Lord wants to meet us. Just like He met Moses on the mountain top. So we may experience His glory not turn into a pillar of salt.

R.E.A.L. Women Devotional- A Healthy Start

2010-01-07T10:29:00.000-08:00

This past week as I have been watching Joyce Meyer and Beth Moore, they have been talking about beginning the year in balance. Balance by making sure their spiritual lives as well as physical lives are in equal balance. Both of these women begin with daily devotions and follow up with exercise. I like what Beth said about her morning routine, she concludes her devotions and exercise by bundling it all up with thanking the Lord for a healthy mind and body.

Joyce really got me thinking about something these past few days. She said one day the Holy Spirit brought her attention that she dwelt too much on her past and all the time the enemy had stolen from her childhood and all the regrets. She said the Holy Spirit told her that she needed to let go of that and realize that now her days are less ahead of her than what is behind her. That she didn't need to waste one more day on the past, but to enjoy each day. How often we waste a day or two or even weeks and months living depressed about what is behind us?

This week on a secular program I was watching, the doctor was commenting that most of his patients could actually be cured of most of their ailments if they would let go of unforgiveness. That most of the illnesses that he was dealing with had to do with the patient needing to release unforgiveness and by doing that naturally the patient would begin eating better because they would no longer turn to comfort food. Then if they would start an exercise routine they would lose weight and have more energy and less stress.

Today, the Lord reminded me of Psalm 119:32. It says, "I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free." The key word here being run, running not only in the physical sense, but in the spiritual sense. Being in pursuit of obedience in every area of our lives. Doing so will set our heart's free of the unhealthy stress.

I like to say that prayer is like strength training. Prayer gives us the strength to make it through the day. Much like lifting weights makes us stronger. Did you know that as we age, it is even more important to lift weights to keep your muscles strong. So many believer's live in spiritual atrophe because they don't pray enough. We are to pray continually. (1 Thess. 5:17)

Then a time of worship. Beth says she listens to worship music or upbeat Christian music during her cardio workout. I too listen to upbeat worship and Christian music while I'm on the treadmill or walking in my neighborhood. As we all know cardio activity strengthens our heart. Worship too strengthens our spiritual heart. It ties us into God's heart and this too helps us throughout the day. Too many Believer's have spiritual heart attacks because their hearts don't get enough worship exercise.

Lastly, healthy meals. A healthy meal of God's Word will keep you full the whole day. It will supply you with spiritual nutrients when you need them most. Don't be an anorexic Christian. I think sometimes Christians can be bolemic too. That would be what James 1:22 says about hearing the word, but not doing it.

I hope this year, we might look at Jesus as our personal trainer. That he wants to come along side of us and bring persepective, encouragement and balance into our lives. 1 Timothy 4:8 says, "For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come." We need a balance of spiritual fitness and physical fitness to accomplish all that God has prepared for us in our individual lives. Just like when Joyce Meyer realized she had less years ahead of her and chose to live from this time forward without regret and unforgiveness, to get her physical body healthy and her spiritual life strong. I pray whether you are in the first quarter of your life or the last quarter of your life, that all your days would be blessed. Moses concluded his life with these words to the children of Israel, "Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. ⁴⁷ They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess." (Deuteronomy 32:46 & 47) Here's to a new year and a new life.