Sunday in small groups we started a new session that focuses on the role of the church to teach God's word. The verse we talked about (which wasn't even in the video) is in II Corinthians 4:4 that says the devil blinds eyes so that some can't understand God's word.
We talked about how one of the main hindrances to some Christians reading God's word is either they aren't good readers or they don't understand what they are reading, so they give up. Reading anything is a struggle for some, so reading God's word is just not something they enjoy.
Let me be clear. Anytime we have a weakness, that is where the devil attacks. If we tend to be critical of others instead of showing love and compassion, the devil will point out every flaw of everyone we see and try to tempt us to judge rather than love. So if your weakness is reading and understanding God's word, the devil sure isn't going to sit back and let you easily understand what God is trying to show you.
So how do we deal with a temptation or struggle? We identify the source and call on God (who is bigger than any battle we will ever face) and ask him for help. You aren't stupid or worthless if this is where you struggle. The devil just knows if you get a hold of Gods word, his life changing Word, and grasp His love and promises for you, he won't have a chance to stop you. So you've got to learn to fight through it!
God is bigger than any struggle, even if appears to be natural instead of spiritual. Sometimes, we use our natural weakness as a crutch, an excuse to justify why God can't use us or why we will never be all God has promised. But the devil is a liar and God is able!
Don't give up, fight through the struggle! Because God's word is our firm foundation and there is no replacement. We've got to spend time in God's word, even if it's not easy.
Tuesday, March 27, 2018
Monday, March 26, 2018
Losing Heart
Ever been tired? Worn out? Done?
And if you are a stubborn one, like I am, who refuses to give up, we always find a way to pull ourselves up by the bootstraps, to muster whatever strength we can and keep going. Because we don't really have a choice. Because someone or something depends on us going on.
But maybe the reason we live in the cycles of strength and success and worn out and tired is because our priorities are wrong. Because we are so focused on ourselves and our way and our dreams, we forget why we can't lose heart.
It's not because the world can't go on without us or because no one else can do it to the standard we've set for ourselves and our lives and our ambitions. No, we must not lose heart for a reason much bigger than that. Gods ways are always big picture while our thoughts are stuck on us, the world we live in, how it affects what is important to us.
II Corinthians 4:1 says, "Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart."
The reason I am able to keep going when the kids are arguing all day and I mess things up at work is because it's not about me. God, in his great mercy, because he sees so much more in me than I do, has given me a ministry. Not any different than any other Christian, we all have a calling and ministry to love others, to be Jesus on earth. And because of this great ministry and responsibility, we cannot lose heart. There are people to love and seeds to be planted. We each have a job we have to do for His Kingdom sake.
And that is why we can't lose heart. Because we have been entrusted with a treasure in these jars of clay. A treasure that must be shared at all costs.
And if you are a stubborn one, like I am, who refuses to give up, we always find a way to pull ourselves up by the bootstraps, to muster whatever strength we can and keep going. Because we don't really have a choice. Because someone or something depends on us going on.
But maybe the reason we live in the cycles of strength and success and worn out and tired is because our priorities are wrong. Because we are so focused on ourselves and our way and our dreams, we forget why we can't lose heart.
It's not because the world can't go on without us or because no one else can do it to the standard we've set for ourselves and our lives and our ambitions. No, we must not lose heart for a reason much bigger than that. Gods ways are always big picture while our thoughts are stuck on us, the world we live in, how it affects what is important to us.
II Corinthians 4:1 says, "Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart."
The reason I am able to keep going when the kids are arguing all day and I mess things up at work is because it's not about me. God, in his great mercy, because he sees so much more in me than I do, has given me a ministry. Not any different than any other Christian, we all have a calling and ministry to love others, to be Jesus on earth. And because of this great ministry and responsibility, we cannot lose heart. There are people to love and seeds to be planted. We each have a job we have to do for His Kingdom sake.
And that is why we can't lose heart. Because we have been entrusted with a treasure in these jars of clay. A treasure that must be shared at all costs.
Thursday, March 22, 2018
Messy and Reckless
So I'm reading two books simultaneously, which is kinda odd for me, but this week they collided. Not because I wanted them to or because one of them led me to read the other. Because God wanted me to see something, to understand something differently. The two books are The Circle Maker By: Mark Batterson and Messy Grace By: Caleb Kaltenbach. The first is about prayer and how to pray God's purposes and promises and the second is about balancing grace/showing love with the truth of God's word about sin issues.
Let me start by saying my ideal world, life, work environment is pretty clean, organized, structured. I like things to have a clear beginning and end and work in boxes pretty well. As a women, who I'm told is more like spaghetti than waffles, I know that there are many parts of my life that connect to others, but it is definitely my preference for each thing to stay in its box, within the rules, organized and put together with a pretty bow. And within my little world, where my social circle is my church and my clientele is mostly ministers, that works pretty well for me. I'm able to thrive and do well in those circles. It's my safe place and it is pretty clean.
When I first starting feeling led to speak/preach/teach more I questioned my sphere of influence/who God wanted me to minister to and I was convinced that I was called to encourage Christians through sharing my experiences and the things God's shown me in his word. That too, was pretty squeaky clean and easy. Although it was a little nerve-wracking at first, I quickly found my groove and felt like I was being pretty effective where God had given me opportunity and influence.
But lately, in the past year, God has very clearly messed that all up. :) I've been challenged by God to see past myself and my safe space and really ask God to use me how he wanted to and not how I thought was easiest and cleanest. And he's opened my eyes and given opportunities I never would have had or sought out before. Opportunities to show grace in uncomfortable situations. To be a listening ear and not judge or condemn but just show God's love. To pray God's promises for someone else, going through struggles I have never had to deal with personally, and to bear those burdens as if they are my own until God shows up.
So I'm learning to pursue people like God pursues them. To be available and inconvenienced for the sake of the Gospel. It's messy. A bit chaotic at times. And it pushes me to be more like Christ. Like Christians should be. Not stuck in our happy circles but actually reaching out to people who are not like us and who we wouldn't normally befriend and becoming Jesus for them. Please don't misunderstand me to say I am on some "holier than thou" mission to add another trophy or medal to my wall. I'm learning to love in a totally different way than I'm used to. I know that people are God's heart so we have to be willing to get messy, to do things that don't make sense. Many times we fail to love without limit because we see our primary job as protecting the holy reputation of God. We forget that God has called us to love recklessly, like he loves us, without condition and qualifications. Before things are neat and pretty with a bow.
I firmly believe that God loves us all too much to leave us in our messes, but God will never get the opportunity to draw people to himself, to make them more like Jesus, if we don't learn to show messy grace. To love before they fit into our bubble and meet our expectations. A church full of people who are all the same is not reaching anyone. Actually, that probably means they are dying and have forgotten that "it's not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."
So I guess it's time to get messy and learn to love and show grace to those around us like God has done for us.
Let me start by saying my ideal world, life, work environment is pretty clean, organized, structured. I like things to have a clear beginning and end and work in boxes pretty well. As a women, who I'm told is more like spaghetti than waffles, I know that there are many parts of my life that connect to others, but it is definitely my preference for each thing to stay in its box, within the rules, organized and put together with a pretty bow. And within my little world, where my social circle is my church and my clientele is mostly ministers, that works pretty well for me. I'm able to thrive and do well in those circles. It's my safe place and it is pretty clean.
When I first starting feeling led to speak/preach/teach more I questioned my sphere of influence/who God wanted me to minister to and I was convinced that I was called to encourage Christians through sharing my experiences and the things God's shown me in his word. That too, was pretty squeaky clean and easy. Although it was a little nerve-wracking at first, I quickly found my groove and felt like I was being pretty effective where God had given me opportunity and influence.
But lately, in the past year, God has very clearly messed that all up. :) I've been challenged by God to see past myself and my safe space and really ask God to use me how he wanted to and not how I thought was easiest and cleanest. And he's opened my eyes and given opportunities I never would have had or sought out before. Opportunities to show grace in uncomfortable situations. To be a listening ear and not judge or condemn but just show God's love. To pray God's promises for someone else, going through struggles I have never had to deal with personally, and to bear those burdens as if they are my own until God shows up.
So I'm learning to pursue people like God pursues them. To be available and inconvenienced for the sake of the Gospel. It's messy. A bit chaotic at times. And it pushes me to be more like Christ. Like Christians should be. Not stuck in our happy circles but actually reaching out to people who are not like us and who we wouldn't normally befriend and becoming Jesus for them. Please don't misunderstand me to say I am on some "holier than thou" mission to add another trophy or medal to my wall. I'm learning to love in a totally different way than I'm used to. I know that people are God's heart so we have to be willing to get messy, to do things that don't make sense. Many times we fail to love without limit because we see our primary job as protecting the holy reputation of God. We forget that God has called us to love recklessly, like he loves us, without condition and qualifications. Before things are neat and pretty with a bow.
I firmly believe that God loves us all too much to leave us in our messes, but God will never get the opportunity to draw people to himself, to make them more like Jesus, if we don't learn to show messy grace. To love before they fit into our bubble and meet our expectations. A church full of people who are all the same is not reaching anyone. Actually, that probably means they are dying and have forgotten that "it's not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."
So I guess it's time to get messy and learn to love and show grace to those around us like God has done for us.
Saturday, March 10, 2018
Vision
God has been speaking to me in the past few weeks, you know since I finally got to a place still enough that I could hear him again. A lot of what he's been speaking is for me and not shareable, so I haven't blogged hardly any of it.
But today God showed me something through a song. That's pretty normal for me. Now, I am fully aware that songs are not Scripture , but sometimes the way something is worded in a song makes you think and directs you back to scripture that means something new and fresh that you hadn't seen before.
The song this time is called "I'm No Victim." Originally I hated the song. It felt like a personal anthem of sorts, someone trying to prove something or try to hard. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the song, just a feeling I got, probably tainted by my experiences. But as I listened some more (as I often do when I don't understand what the writer of the song is trying to say) something just clicked for me.
Some choose to stay victims of their circumstance. To play the "why me?" game and continue to declare how things aren't fair and how horrible things are. It is there in victimhood, that vision ceases. No wonder they can't move on. They have no where to go. No push, no forward looking thought or goal. They are stuck. All they see is their current status.
Or we become people of vision. When we choose to get out of that place (or not entertain those thoughts to begin with), God provides vision to push us on. Or maybe we get out of that place by pursuing vision. By asking God, "what next?, what do you have for me?"By refusing to stand still.
And when you get even a glimpse of God's vision, his purpose for you, it is motivation to press in. to move forward. Yes, it is much easier to become a victim than pursue God's vision, but it's the hard choice, the right choice that must be made if you are to live the abundant life that God provides.
Because without vision, people perish. Die. Stand still. Rot in stagnation. And that is not God's best for you. For me. For anyone.
In addition to looking forward, to seeking after what God's next assignment is, we must become people who care more about what God says about us than others. Because the victim needs everyone's approval, sympathy, but the visionary seeks the approval of only one (knowing full well that many around you won't understand).
But today God showed me something through a song. That's pretty normal for me. Now, I am fully aware that songs are not Scripture , but sometimes the way something is worded in a song makes you think and directs you back to scripture that means something new and fresh that you hadn't seen before.
The song this time is called "I'm No Victim." Originally I hated the song. It felt like a personal anthem of sorts, someone trying to prove something or try to hard. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the song, just a feeling I got, probably tainted by my experiences. But as I listened some more (as I often do when I don't understand what the writer of the song is trying to say) something just clicked for me.
"I'm no victim. I live with a vision."No one is immune from bad things happening to us. It's not "why me?" but more like "why not me?" The Bible clearly states that being a Christian doesn't mean life is perfect. That there is never a struggle or things get easy. Actually life keeps going on and rain falls on the just and unjust alike. And in the storm, you have a choice.
Some choose to stay victims of their circumstance. To play the "why me?" game and continue to declare how things aren't fair and how horrible things are. It is there in victimhood, that vision ceases. No wonder they can't move on. They have no where to go. No push, no forward looking thought or goal. They are stuck. All they see is their current status.
Or we become people of vision. When we choose to get out of that place (or not entertain those thoughts to begin with), God provides vision to push us on. Or maybe we get out of that place by pursuing vision. By asking God, "what next?, what do you have for me?"By refusing to stand still.
And when you get even a glimpse of God's vision, his purpose for you, it is motivation to press in. to move forward. Yes, it is much easier to become a victim than pursue God's vision, but it's the hard choice, the right choice that must be made if you are to live the abundant life that God provides.
Because without vision, people perish. Die. Stand still. Rot in stagnation. And that is not God's best for you. For me. For anyone.
In addition to looking forward, to seeking after what God's next assignment is, we must become people who care more about what God says about us than others. Because the victim needs everyone's approval, sympathy, but the visionary seeks the approval of only one (knowing full well that many around you won't understand).
"I am who he says I am. He is who he says he is. I'm defined by all his promises. Shaped by every word he says,"
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
First
Been disconnected from the Facebook world for a few weeks and it's been really nice. It's like the background roar has finally dulled and I can hear clearly again. I've chosen to give up Facebook for lent and really may decide this is a long term thing. Not giving it up completely, but for sure limiting it for me. There is nothing wrong with Facebook or other social media but I've definitely learned a few things while I've stepped away:
Our lives are busy but at least for me the chaos is not from the busyness but from the lack of stillness. Facebook for me was a big time waster. We are in this time where everyone has to be connected to everyone and we don't know how to just be. Every spare second we are on whatever social media checking to see what everyone is up to. Not a bad thing at all, but when you get used to the constant roar, you forget how to be still and listen. Obviously I can only speak for me, but the silence has been amazing. Allowing myself to just be has been very refreshing. Energizing almost.
I've missed somethings, like the initial news about the school shooting a few weeks ago. Had to ask BJ why the flags were at half mast. I had no idea. But I've also missed the drama. I don't need to know what everyone is doing at all times, who their arguing with or their opinion on everything. My mind has been able to be quiet, my soul feels relaxed and not rushed and it has allowed me to hear God more clearly. I have a natural tendency to compare, to critique, to have an opinion about everything. I don't normally share my opinion, but it can frustrate me especially when I feel like people are making poor decisions or are being irresponsible. Missing others opinions has been nice. Not that I want to be ignorant of the world, but let's face it: Facebook has become a venting zone. Not everyone obviously, but I like to fix things, so knowing there's an issue stirs me up, wanting to comment back or be the solution to the problem. And it's just not healthy for me.
I've also started journaling without restrictions. I know you'll think this is silly, but it is quite natural for me to compartmentalize things, especially my thoughts. To edit how I say/write what I think so that is sounds pretty. So my thoughts have been split into multiple places. Some things I've shared on facebook, some I've blogged about, some I've written down for personal consumption. Now that I'm putting all of that in one place, without real format or structure, it has been actually quite freeing.
Okay. Now that I've caught up, onto what I wanted to really share.
I have a new favorite song. It's not a new song, but still what's been going on in my heart for a week of so...
"Spirit of the Living God, Spirit of the Living God. We're leaning in to all you are. Everything else can wait."
And it challenged me. Is my life really showing God that everything else, my worries about life and family and kids, concerns about work and church is second to him? Everything else can wait. That He is really first. I know we say God is first, but is He? Or do I get distracted checking facebook status' responses when I am in the middle of prayer or reading my Bible? Or church? Am I listening intently because my heart of hearts wants to know Him more? Or do I waste time in front of the TV every evening until I fall asleep on the couch but am too tired to get up to pray when he asks me?
"Cause when you speak, when you move, when you do what only you can do it changes us, it change what we see and what we seek."
Do we want to be changed to see things as he does or are we quite happy? Content with how things are?
What are we seeking? Do we look for His approval or are we waiting for the people around us to pat us on the back and tell us "well done." If we get it from them, we won't get it from Him. That's what Scripture says. I want to be pleasing in his sight. I want Him to know He can depend on me and trust me to obey Him when he speaks and not be in a wind-tunnel, filled with noise and not hearing what he's saying.
So for now, the distractions are at least lessened (they never really go away all the way in this life) and I am able to focus on what He wants me to focus on and do what He wants me to do.
Your Kingdom come your will be done.
Our lives are busy but at least for me the chaos is not from the busyness but from the lack of stillness. Facebook for me was a big time waster. We are in this time where everyone has to be connected to everyone and we don't know how to just be. Every spare second we are on whatever social media checking to see what everyone is up to. Not a bad thing at all, but when you get used to the constant roar, you forget how to be still and listen. Obviously I can only speak for me, but the silence has been amazing. Allowing myself to just be has been very refreshing. Energizing almost.
I've missed somethings, like the initial news about the school shooting a few weeks ago. Had to ask BJ why the flags were at half mast. I had no idea. But I've also missed the drama. I don't need to know what everyone is doing at all times, who their arguing with or their opinion on everything. My mind has been able to be quiet, my soul feels relaxed and not rushed and it has allowed me to hear God more clearly. I have a natural tendency to compare, to critique, to have an opinion about everything. I don't normally share my opinion, but it can frustrate me especially when I feel like people are making poor decisions or are being irresponsible. Missing others opinions has been nice. Not that I want to be ignorant of the world, but let's face it: Facebook has become a venting zone. Not everyone obviously, but I like to fix things, so knowing there's an issue stirs me up, wanting to comment back or be the solution to the problem. And it's just not healthy for me.
I've also started journaling without restrictions. I know you'll think this is silly, but it is quite natural for me to compartmentalize things, especially my thoughts. To edit how I say/write what I think so that is sounds pretty. So my thoughts have been split into multiple places. Some things I've shared on facebook, some I've blogged about, some I've written down for personal consumption. Now that I'm putting all of that in one place, without real format or structure, it has been actually quite freeing.
Okay. Now that I've caught up, onto what I wanted to really share.
I have a new favorite song. It's not a new song, but still what's been going on in my heart for a week of so...
"Spirit of the Living God, Spirit of the Living God. We're leaning in to all you are. Everything else can wait."
And it challenged me. Is my life really showing God that everything else, my worries about life and family and kids, concerns about work and church is second to him? Everything else can wait. That He is really first. I know we say God is first, but is He? Or do I get distracted checking facebook status' responses when I am in the middle of prayer or reading my Bible? Or church? Am I listening intently because my heart of hearts wants to know Him more? Or do I waste time in front of the TV every evening until I fall asleep on the couch but am too tired to get up to pray when he asks me?
"Cause when you speak, when you move, when you do what only you can do it changes us, it change what we see and what we seek."
Do we want to be changed to see things as he does or are we quite happy? Content with how things are?
What are we seeking? Do we look for His approval or are we waiting for the people around us to pat us on the back and tell us "well done." If we get it from them, we won't get it from Him. That's what Scripture says. I want to be pleasing in his sight. I want Him to know He can depend on me and trust me to obey Him when he speaks and not be in a wind-tunnel, filled with noise and not hearing what he's saying.
So for now, the distractions are at least lessened (they never really go away all the way in this life) and I am able to focus on what He wants me to focus on and do what He wants me to do.
Your Kingdom come your will be done.
Thursday, February 8, 2018
Confidence
So if you know me, I would doubt that one of the words you would use to describe me is shy. I'm not the most outgoing person, but I always get a "yeah, right" when I tell people I'm an introvert. When I was younger, I was definitely more shy than I am now. I guess when you become a parent (especially the way I did) you don't really have the option of hiding in the corner any more. You have to suddenly deal with doctors and schools and teachers and there was definitely no easing in period for me. Because I'm the mom. I had to register my kids for school. I had to get them all up to date on shots and get them the help needed for whatever issues they were facing. I have had more teacher meetings than I'd care to deal with and have had to stand up for my kids. Because I'm the mom.
So there are certain realms of my life where I am definitely more confident than others. There are certain things that don't scare or intimidate me at all, like training others at work or even doing a little public speaking in that realm. Most of the time talking to clients isn't too bad either, because I've been doing this long enough to know my stuff (generally speaking) and I've learned it's okay to tell a client I need to look something up and they are usually okay with that. I'm not scared to lead worship or sing a special at church, been doing it my whole life. I'm not scared really at all with my church family who has literally known me since preschool. Playing piano doesn't worry or stress me out.
But there is one part of me that has hidden pretty well my whole life, until lately. That would be the outside part. I wouldn't describe my style as bad or outdated, but I've never put priority on physical appearance or being trendy cause being noticed for that was my biggest fear. I've never spent much time on me and really wanted to just disappear. I think when people know me, they don't look at me to judge my physical appearance. To them, I just look like Sandra. However, when I'm meeting people for the first time, I'm always afraid they are judging me. Because my skin isn't perfect (probably my biggest insecurity) or my hair isn't styled well or my makeup is bad. So I've been afraid to make an effort so that I am noticed or recognized physically. It's easier to be unnoticed than noticed for "doing it all wrong." But I've wanted to look at least put together and knew if I could get over the initial hump of making the change, I would be okay.
In December, thanks to Elisha, I took the plunge and started wearing lipstick regularly. I've always worn makeup (and have been asked more times than I can count if I ever wear makeup while wearing it, ugh!!) but hated having to reapply lipstick. I ain't got time for that. :) And since I took the plunge (with the help of Lipsense that I don't have to reapply all day long) my confidence has gone through the roof (thanks to ya'll ladies who keep affirming me when I post pics). I still am not sure I would call myself beautiful, but I can at least say I look nice and put together. More grown up and less low maintenance.
I posted this picture today on facebook and do you know what I saw? I saw wrinkles around my eyes and wrinkles at my smile line. Most people would try and hide that, but I saw that I was really happy. Pretty! Confident! Smiling all the way up to my eyes. I used to kid that I didn't smile because I didn't want wrinkles. But now, if the wrinkles mean I'm happy, bring 'em on!
Now the confidence on the outside can match the confidence on the inside! Thank you God for using a little makeup to make me feel better about myself. Ready to take on the world and whatever God has for me next!
So there are certain realms of my life where I am definitely more confident than others. There are certain things that don't scare or intimidate me at all, like training others at work or even doing a little public speaking in that realm. Most of the time talking to clients isn't too bad either, because I've been doing this long enough to know my stuff (generally speaking) and I've learned it's okay to tell a client I need to look something up and they are usually okay with that. I'm not scared to lead worship or sing a special at church, been doing it my whole life. I'm not scared really at all with my church family who has literally known me since preschool. Playing piano doesn't worry or stress me out.
But there is one part of me that has hidden pretty well my whole life, until lately. That would be the outside part. I wouldn't describe my style as bad or outdated, but I've never put priority on physical appearance or being trendy cause being noticed for that was my biggest fear. I've never spent much time on me and really wanted to just disappear. I think when people know me, they don't look at me to judge my physical appearance. To them, I just look like Sandra. However, when I'm meeting people for the first time, I'm always afraid they are judging me. Because my skin isn't perfect (probably my biggest insecurity) or my hair isn't styled well or my makeup is bad. So I've been afraid to make an effort so that I am noticed or recognized physically. It's easier to be unnoticed than noticed for "doing it all wrong." But I've wanted to look at least put together and knew if I could get over the initial hump of making the change, I would be okay.
In December, thanks to Elisha, I took the plunge and started wearing lipstick regularly. I've always worn makeup (and have been asked more times than I can count if I ever wear makeup while wearing it, ugh!!) but hated having to reapply lipstick. I ain't got time for that. :) And since I took the plunge (with the help of Lipsense that I don't have to reapply all day long) my confidence has gone through the roof (thanks to ya'll ladies who keep affirming me when I post pics). I still am not sure I would call myself beautiful, but I can at least say I look nice and put together. More grown up and less low maintenance.
Now the confidence on the outside can match the confidence on the inside! Thank you God for using a little makeup to make me feel better about myself. Ready to take on the world and whatever God has for me next!
Saturday, February 3, 2018
As In Heaven
These days my normal prayer has become "Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth, in me, in my family, in my church, as it is in heaven."
I know that means I may not get my way and things may not go how I planned or wished they would, but God is teaching me to be okay with that. Last night I started thinking about what "as it is in heaven" really means.
That means there is no opposition. No dragging of feet or complaining along the way. In heaven, God's will is always accomplished and accomplished quickly because there isn't a struggle. Because he has total control in heaven. So I started praying, God, don't let me oppose your will or stop what you are trying to do. Especially as I tend to do when I don't understand what is going on.
The other thing that seems to keep coming up is "It's not personal, it's Kingdom business." Kind of my new motto. Much easier said than done.
We live in a world where people are so self focused. We do what we want generally, and feel like we have a right to get even or get back if our feelings are hurt. Or even better, we feel if someone disagrees with us, it is a personal attack. There are no 2 people that agree on everything. We all strive to make the best decisions for ourselves and our families with God's help and really feel like others would obviously make the same choice because we are right. And we want everyone to agree with us so we can validate our stance or feel good about our choice. So when there is a disagreement, we feel like we have to confront it or debate it until we reach a consensus (until they agree with me, obviously :)).
But in reality, when we stop making everything personal, and focus on the task at hand, there is more unity. In the big scheme of things, many of our disagreements really don't matter. I'm okay if you disagree with me. I can still keep my opinion and you yours without either of us feeling like we are wrong or need to prove ourselves and our point. It just doesn't matter.
The devil wants us to take everything personally and create division, but in reality we are all individuals created to be different and that is okay. Different doesn't mean right and wrong, it means different. (Obviously I'm not talking about foundational Biblical issues, but most disagreements in the church and in the family are over petty things with no eternal value).
So here's where I'm at: I get frustrated at times with all the change and uncertainty, but I really am trying to be flexible. I really want God to have his way and lead me into whatever he has next. I don't want to be a hindrance to his plan or to the people around me, but just trying to live in love and forgiveness with my eye on the goal.
I know that means I may not get my way and things may not go how I planned or wished they would, but God is teaching me to be okay with that. Last night I started thinking about what "as it is in heaven" really means.
That means there is no opposition. No dragging of feet or complaining along the way. In heaven, God's will is always accomplished and accomplished quickly because there isn't a struggle. Because he has total control in heaven. So I started praying, God, don't let me oppose your will or stop what you are trying to do. Especially as I tend to do when I don't understand what is going on.
The other thing that seems to keep coming up is "It's not personal, it's Kingdom business." Kind of my new motto. Much easier said than done.
We live in a world where people are so self focused. We do what we want generally, and feel like we have a right to get even or get back if our feelings are hurt. Or even better, we feel if someone disagrees with us, it is a personal attack. There are no 2 people that agree on everything. We all strive to make the best decisions for ourselves and our families with God's help and really feel like others would obviously make the same choice because we are right. And we want everyone to agree with us so we can validate our stance or feel good about our choice. So when there is a disagreement, we feel like we have to confront it or debate it until we reach a consensus (until they agree with me, obviously :)).
But in reality, when we stop making everything personal, and focus on the task at hand, there is more unity. In the big scheme of things, many of our disagreements really don't matter. I'm okay if you disagree with me. I can still keep my opinion and you yours without either of us feeling like we are wrong or need to prove ourselves and our point. It just doesn't matter.
The devil wants us to take everything personally and create division, but in reality we are all individuals created to be different and that is okay. Different doesn't mean right and wrong, it means different. (Obviously I'm not talking about foundational Biblical issues, but most disagreements in the church and in the family are over petty things with no eternal value).
So here's where I'm at: I get frustrated at times with all the change and uncertainty, but I really am trying to be flexible. I really want God to have his way and lead me into whatever he has next. I don't want to be a hindrance to his plan or to the people around me, but just trying to live in love and forgiveness with my eye on the goal.
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