Tag Archives: Peace

There Are Giants in my Land – part four

I’m so confused about numbering this series. This is the fourth time I’ve written about this, but this is the third giant I’m talking about.
First I talked about giants,
then the giant of fear,
and then the giant of depression.

The next giant that I’ve had to battle is the giant of bitterness. Actually, that is the giant’s sugarcoated name. The real name is unforgiveness.

Unforgiveness is a party giant.
If you are living with the giant of fear, and someone has caused that fear, un-forgiveness comes along to party with.
If you are living with the giant of depression, and you are hurt by a lack of compassion, un-forgiveness comes along to celebrate.
If you’re living with the giant of anger, and you feel misunderstood, unforgiveness comes along to stir the pot.
Unforgiveness is the last one to leave the party, really enjoying the pity parties in particular!

But as Christians we don’t like to say that we struggle with unforgiveness, because that’s the big thing that Christians do, forgive! But if we hold on to irritations, frustrations, aggravations, and stir those up in the pot of our hearts, we call that bitterness.

Mark 11.25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

“when you stand praying, forgive, if you have odds against any.” That sounds like part of the Lord’s prayer.

Luke 11.4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.

The key isn’t it asking God to forgive us, but rather for us to forgive others.

Mark 11.25–26 that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

In everyone’s life there is something that seems to be unforgivable. This last week I watched the movie for the second time entitled “Amish Grace.”

When a gunman killed five Amish children and injured five others in a Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania schoolhouse shooting in October of 2006, the world media attention rapidly turned from the tragic events to the extraordinary forgiveness demonstrated by the Amish community. Through the eyes of a grieving mother, Ida Graber, and other devastated families, this movie explores the Amish’s astonishing reaction to the horrific shootings – of forgiveness and compassion.

A quote by Gideon Graber, “Hate is a very big, very hungry thing… with lots of sharp teeth. It will eat up your whole heart, and leave no room left for love.”

The only reason to not forgive is because of a lack of love. The opposite of love is hate or indifference.

!!!I need to get this book so that I can use it for the quotation!!!
Or I need to watch the movie again – pointing out that unforgiveness is a giant that I need to keep being reminded to take down!

Forgiveness is a choice.
This Giant is HUGE!
I started this post back in September or October, and I am closing it up(not finishing, you understand) on 12/21/2011.

Unforgiveness is a daily giant that at times it presents itself as a little imp…
self protection – “I don’t deserve to be treated that way”
boundaries – “he’s in my space, he’s not respecting my boundaries”
energy drainer – “I just don’t have it in me to keep letting this go”

The big things, anger, greed, jealousy – those are easier to see, and recognize the unforgiveness that hangs around after the fact.

To take down this giant, I am trying to recognize times that I make excuses to NOT let go of an irritation.
My goal is that I will stand in a mindset of forgiveness – so that irritations will not be an issue. Impossible you say? Maybe true, but aiming for the goal of Christ keeps me moving forward in living more and more like HIM.

He is my example of forgiveness:

Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.(Luke 23:34)

Out of Christ’s HUGE love, He forgave me of my HUGE debt – and for that, I am eternally grateful!

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
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Spiritual Walking Steps – #31 – With what shall I go?

BEFORE GOD’S INTERVENTION IN OUR LIVES – NOTHING TO OFFER

MOSES

And Moses said unto God, Who [am] I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? Ex 3:11

And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I [am] not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I [am] slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. Ex 4:10

ISAIAH

Then said I, Woe [is] me! for I am undone; because I [am] a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts. Is 6:5

GIDEON

And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family [is] poor in Manasseh, and I [am] the least in my father’s house. Judges 6:15

ZECHARIAH

Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” Lk 1:18

PETER

When Simon Peter saw [it], he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. Luke 5:8

PAUL

For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but [how] to perform that which is good I find not.Rom 7:18

AFTER GOD’S INTERVENTION –

1John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

Matt 19:26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Luke 1:37 For nothing is impossible with God.

THE DIFFERENCE?

And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Lk 1:35

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.Acts 4:13

Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.
Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord,
always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Eph 5:17-20

If ye love me, keep my commandments.
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
[Even] the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
John 14:15-17

But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.
John 15:26-27

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
Mark 16:15-18

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.
Matt 28:19-20

I have nothing – except to offer a broken and contrite spirit…and allow HIM to use me.
As Mary said:
Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. Lk 1:38

It’s only by yielding to the Holy Spirit coming upon me, and overshadowing me, that I can see fruit birthed from my life.(Lk 1:35)

Lord, may I live like my name, may I have a heart like Mary, in Jesus’ name.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi(Mary Christine)
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

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Battle Plan for Comparison Blues – Part 4

Battle Plan
An Antidote for Post Conference Blues or any Comparison Blues!

Every time I go to a conference, I come back with Post conference blues. I am so quick to compare myself and my children and my efforts with everyone else, and to take the talks terribly personally, that I am overwhelmed with my conviction, and am tempted to give up.

This year I recognized it a bit before going…with the issue of dress, and looks, and expected appearance. After we arrived at home, the blues hit again, and this time, I cried out.

Here is the antidote that God gave me: part 4

Now, I’m resting, and he’s strengthened me with all his truth, healed and united my heart, and filled me with peace.
Next he says:

Eph 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

Whew! That’s what I needed all along! I needed to quench those fiery darts!

Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation,

sort of goes with:

Ps 18:35 Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great.

I can’t SEE my salvation:

Hebr 11:1 (KJS) Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Eph 2:8)

But I know it’s real:

Hebr 11:6 (KJS) But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

I believe! And I know that He is the author and the finisher of my faith,

Phil 1:6 (KJS) Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform [it] until the day of Jesus Christ:
1Cor 1:8 (KJS) Who shall also confirm you unto the end, [that ye may be] blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
and now, he has me running in a race!
Hebr 12:1 (KJS) Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset [us], and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Now…into battle!

Eph6:17 and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

We did some spiritual housecleaning, with the help of Dr. Jim Logan’s book, Regaining Surrendered Ground . My husband and I prayed together, seeking the Lord about possible causes for the seeming curses in our family (Pr 26:2), and God graciously showed us things that we had not dealt with from our family history. After taking authority over these issues, and praying the prayer to regain the ground through the blood of Jesus we thought about the three main issues we’d been led to deal with. They fell under three categories!

1Joh 2:16 (KJS) For all that [is] in the world,

  1. the lust of the flesh, and
  2. the lust of the eyes, and
  3. the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

These, of course, hit the major three commitments we’ve all been taught, and are attempting to teach to our children.

I can tell you, after our prayer warfare this weekend, I can say with David:

Ps 18:37 I have pursued mine enemies, and overtaken them: neither did I turn again till they were consumed. 38 I have wounded them that they were not able to rise: they are fallen under my feet.

SUMMARY

If you are suffering from Post Conference(Comparison) Blues, please go through these steps…get before the Lord, and cry out! He will lead you into His peace, and He will prepare you for warfare, and remember:

Psal 98:1 (KJS) A Psalm. O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.
1Cor 15:57 (KJS) But thanks [be] to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

We don’t have to worry about the victory…it’s already won…we just have to walk in His steps…and trust in Him!

BACK TO PART ONE
BACK TO PART TWO
BACK TO PART THREE

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
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Naomi's Heart Mission

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

100 spiritual walking steps – 26 – an inconvenient truth

~I apologize, before hand, for the inconsistencies in this post, as I am using a speech to text program, and have only one hand with which to type. please give me grace for the mistakes.

Isaiah 28.9-10
9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? [them that are] weaned from the milk, [and] drawn from the breasts.
10 For precept [must be] upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, [and] there a little:

For many many years we have looked at this as the process for learning God’s will. Oddly, we had never paid attention to the context of Isaiah 28.
In verses 1-8, God condemns the pride of Ephraim. In the previous chapter, God condemns the iniquity of Jacob. Yet one chapter previous, in chapter 26, He called out those who are His people:

Isaiah 26.20-21 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.

The very verse that we have chosen and understood for learning the ways of God and His path for our life is surrounded with the context of God destroying the wicked.

Isaiah 28.13 But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, [and] there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

Really? Would a loving God send His word out to judge people?

Isaiah 55.11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it.

this sounds like a good thing

Hebrews 11.7 By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

how many of us teach our children that Noah’s Ark, that Noah’s life, that Noah’s faith condemned the world?

Barnes notes on the Bible,
He condemned the world – That is, the wicked world around him. The meaning is, that by his confidence in God, and his preparation for the flood, he showed the wisdom of his own course and the folly of theirs. We have the same phrase now in common use where one who sets a good example is said to “condemn others.” He shows the guilt and folly of their lives by the contrast between his conduct; and theirs. The wickedness of the sinner is condemned not only by preaching, and by the admonitions and threatenings of the Law of God, but by the conduct of every good man. The language of such a life is as plain a rebuke of the sinner as the most fearful denunciations of divine wrath.

The fault was not Noah’s, but those that chose otherwise:

Ez 33.5 They heard the sound of the horn but ignored its warning. So they are responsible for their own deaths. If they had taken the warning, they would have saved themselves.

so the danger in hearing the word and not obeying is this:

FALL BACKWARDS

Luke 9.62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Luke 17.32 Remember Lot’s wife!

what a set of warnings! And if that’s not enough, read James 1.6-8; 2Peter 2.20-22

BE BROKEN
by being in this curse, this is obviously not talking about a broken and contrite heart, as in:

Psalm 34.18 The LORD [is] nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

Psalm 51.17 The sacrifices of God [are] a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

this word broken is not attached to the word heart or spirit.

Matthew 21.44 And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

I have always understood Matt 21.44 to mean that if we fall upon the chief cornerstone we will have the broken and contrite heart that produces change. If we do not, that stone will fall upon us and “grind us to powder.” The Pharisees, whom Jesus was talking with, apparently felt the same way in the verses that followed.( Matt 21:45-46)

Isaiah said it this way, in a prior chapter:

Isaiah 8.13-15 Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and [let] him [be] your fear, and [let] him [be] your dread.
14 And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.

SNARED AND TAKEN
Strong words, scary results.
Moses taught to separate yourself from the ways of the world to not be snared by them.

Deuteronomy 7.25 The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire: thou shalt not desire the silver or gold [that is] on them, nor take [it] unto thee, lest thou be snared therein: for it [is] an abomination to the LORD thy God.

Deuteronomy 12.30 Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, “How did these nations serve their gods?” even so will I do likewise.

Psalm 9.16The LORD is known [by] the judgment [which] he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands.

Solomon warns us about being snared by our mouth:Proverbs 6.2; Proverbs 12.13

but the evidence of the greatest snare was Eve in the garden.

Genesis 2.17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

personally, I would like to point out verse 17 comes before verse 22, in which the woman was presented to Adam. I would love to believe that Eve if was just weaker, and therefore the whole responsibility for this great catastrophe falls on Adam. He was the one that got the word from the Lord!

But, and there is a huge but…. Her answer to the snake shows she was aware of the word of God.
Genesis 3.1-3

  1. Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
  2. And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
  3. But of the fruit of the tree which [is] in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 

Eve was aware of the word of God.
She stopped moving forward in her obedience, and fell backwards. There is no standing still in God’s walk.
She was snared by the very things that snare us all;

1John 2.16 For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

She was taken – not only in the definition of being taken, like tricked, but in the definition of being taken as an taken captive.

She knew the word.
She had walked with God.
She let go of the truth long enough to have it twisted by the father of lies.
She let down her guard. (she did not take advantage of the covering God gave her)
She was taken by the thought of fulfilling her pleasure rather than honoring her God.

Our lives are judged by the word of God.
Every person will stand before Him in judgment.
This is an inconvenient truth to those who choose not to walk in the path of righteousness.

Romans 1.18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed [it] unto them.
20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, [even] his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

The verses that follow in Romans 1 are quite sobering.
but what about those who have never heard?

Psalm 19
1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.
2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.
3 [There is] no speech nor language, [where] their voice is not heard.
4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,

There it is!” their line…” God speaks His word through His creation even if the written word is not available. I’m not going to go into how creation declares the glory of God, but no one will stand before God and say “I did not know.” Christian apologetics has some pages about proving the existence of God.

Romans 1.16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

If anyone reading this does not know how to fall upon the chief cornerstone so that they will not be crushed and judged harshly, I have great news! THE loving God provided a way, an ark, a path for deliverance.
God, in his great mercy, Who provided the sacrifice for Adam and Eve, Who provided the plans for the ark for Noah and his family, has provided the Lamb to pay the price for our sins.

Here are a few places to go for more information on how to get right with Jesus:

Fit 4 Heaven?
God’s simple plan
God’s plan of salvation by Chick

My desire with this study is that we will all study to show ourselves approved.

2 Tim 2.15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

As for me, I need to move from milk to meat:

1 Corinthians 3.2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able [to bear it], neither yet now are ye able.

Why couldn’t Paul give them meat? they were still carnal(1 cor 3:3)

Hebrews 5.12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which [be] the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.

I’m an older woman, mother of five, wife of 31 years, Christian of 42 years. By this time, I should be able to “eat strong meat”, and I am called by Scripture to teach younger women. Therefore, I have no business needing to go back to the first principles, but I should be walking in the meatier things of God. The first principles, of walking with God, should be habit, my first love should burn brightly and my life should be declaring the glory of God, just as Noah’s life judged the world.

Acknowledging and declaring God’s judgment against sin in the face of the “peace, peace” doctrine of today can make people angry. In the face of diversity and tolerance, and at the risk of being flagged as hate speech, I will declare that God hates sin, and if the sinner does not turn, judgment in the end, eternal hell will be their reward. Sadly, in our day, it is now illegal to preach God’s word against sins that can, that will, deliver people into eternal hell. In America, Christians no longer have free speech.

Romans 1.16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
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100 spiritual walking steps – 25 – at a crossroads

~I apologize, before hand,  for the inconsistencies in this post, as I am using a speech to text program, and have only one hand with which to type. please give me grace for the mistakes.

Have you ever been at a crossroad?
I mean, we’ve had big crossroads,

are we going to sin, or choose Jesus?

but I’m talking about more specific things to ourselves.

Like for me, I’m being convicted about what I put in the Temple of God.
Understand I’ve been convicted before, but this time it’s like I’m at a crossroads, before it was just stuff to work on while I was walking down the road headed towards being like Christ.

Now, it’s like there are some things that if I hold onto them I will have gone down the wrong road. None of them are “sin” in the eyes of most, or in many interpretations from the Bible. These are things specific to me, between me and my Savior, Jesus Christ.

I have several things at this point that God is holding up in front of me, and it’s like I can’t go forward with him unless I drop these things.

One is about headcoverings. this comes from first Corinthians 11
Another is wearing dresses. this comes from first Timothy 2
then there’s the food I eat.

1Cor 3:17If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which [temple] ye are.

Actually, it’s all about how I treat the temple God.

These could be a legalistic issues, but for me it’s something the Lord is working in my heart for many years. What is the struggle? why do I have a problem? Am I…

  • sitting on the fence?
  • regretting my hand to the plow?
  • wondering how much is worth sacrificing?

I’ve heard the teachings that first Corinthians 11 is for the social issues of the day. well, specifically, first Corinthians 11….

I can’t even separate the verses about headcoverings without separating the verses about Christ being the head of the church,or man is the head of the woman, or God is the head of Christ. 1 cor 11…..can you?

what does this mean?

John 15.10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.

OR

John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

OR

John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

I put my hand plow, I don’t want to turn back.
I’ve been sitting on the fence for way too long.
How much is worth sacrificing for the One who sacrificed His life for me?

can I give up everyday ice cream?
can I wear a scarf on my head?
can I wear dresses and skirts?
Is that too much to ask from someone who bought me with His blood?

I’ve done it before, and quit because it bothered others.  It didn’t line up with their interpretation of the Bible.  They felt my life, my practices, were judgments on them.

Is that really my problem?  No I don’t want to be a stone around the necks of those who have not studied the Scriptures enough to stand on their own.  But does that mean I compromise what God has put in my heart?  Or does it come down to the 10 virgins, and I’m giving up my oil to those that did not gather enough for themselves?

Like I said, I am at a crossroads with things the Lord has put on my heart, and my understanding of Scriptures.
My crossroads is this,

are you going to obey what I have shown you?
yes or no?

the bottom line is, am I going to say yes Lord, and trust others to Him?
Oh yeah, one question I’ve been asked by those who I have shared this struggle with is, what does Jim say?
Jim likes me wearing headcoverings
Jim likes me wearing dresses
Jim would like me to eat healthy

So then, the other crossroads, am I willing to give up”fitting in” to please my husband, and obey my God?

As I write this out, I’m shaking my head. By God’s grace, I will walk out my specific commandments with courage, with grace, with peace and with out condemnation or fear of what others might think.

and today, on Facebook, from my friend Pam Dodson, I read this quote

“When you are arguing against Him you are arguing against the very power that makes you able to argue at all.” C.S. Lewis

there’s really nothing else to say.

 
Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
Or ‘like’ me!

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Battle Plan for Comparison Blues, part 3

Battle Plan
An Antidote for Post Conference Blues or any Comparison Blues!

Every time I go to a conference, I come back with Post conference blues. I am so quick to compare myself and my children and my efforts with everyone else, and to take the talks terribly personally, that I am overwhelmed with my conviction, and am tempted to give up.

This year I recognized it a bit before going…with the issue of dress, and looks, and expected appearance. After we arrived at home, the blues hit again, and this time, I cried out.

Here is the antidote that God gave me: part 3

After I got quiet, and confessed my sins, asking God to tear down all those strongholds, He started to build towers of truth with the past piles of scriptures. As I settled down, He took me back to Ephesians 6:

Eph 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

He has an armor for me….I just have to take it up….I’m not even sure I have to put it on…just to accept that he has it for me, and through HIM, I can withstand the evil day, and another version says:

Ephe 6:13 (DBY) and, having accomplished all things, to stand.

If I take up His armor (might look like a cross!), through Him, I can accomplish all things! AND stand! Reminds me of walk and not be weary, run and not faint. The Blessed man of Ps 1 chose where to walk, stand and sit…and God promises to enable me to stand, walk and run! IF I take up His armor, or His cross…and follow Him.

Psal 18:31 (KJS) For who [is] God save the LORD? or who [is] a rock save our God?
32 [It is] God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect.
33 He maketh my feet like hinds’ [feet], and setteth me upon my high places.

Youngs’ Literal Translation says:

Psal 18:33 (YLT) Making my feet like hinds, And on my high places causeth me to stand.

So, now that He has me standing, ready to tear down high places and strongholds, then he prepares me for battle!

Ps 18:34 He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.

(Now that’s more strength than I really have!!)

Here’s the battle plan:

Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with TRUTH,

While I wasn’t leaning on the truth, I was subject to all types of lies.

Phil 4:8 (YLT) As to the rest, brethren, as many things as are true,

This is the FIRST thing to be meditating on! And I was allowing myself to listen to lies, to compare myself with others, and I was falling.

Ps 18:39 says: For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.

This is the truth! And it is a truth that brings strength. Where there is weakness, He can be strong, if I let Him! If I don’t wallow in the weakness, but rejoice!

2Cor 12:9 (KJS) And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

So, surround myself with His truth…that’s building towers of truth! Truth that specifically attacks the lies that the enemy is shooting at me. Jesus is truth….The Truth, so I just need to abide in Him (oops, that’s another message! 😉

Next step:

Eph 6:14 b and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

I even could check my thought life against the breastplate!

Phil 4:8… whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things.

I had not kept my thought life set on God, and I had believed lies. Therefore I had worried, taken thought (wrongly) and I was not in faith.  Hebr 11:6 (KJS) But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: and Roma 14:23 (KJS)… for whatsoever [is] not of faith is sin.

I had to confess my sins to God, for not believing in Him, and ask Him to ” Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me . ” Psal 51:10 (KJS) and to
” Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name. I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart : and I will glorify thy name for evermore.” Psal 86:11-12

I needed God to heal my heart (under the breastplate) and cause me to be right with Him again!

The third step is:

Eph 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

I needed to be prepared with peace! Phil 4:7 is a precious gift…peace that passes understanding!
By resting in Him, trusting in His promises, He also promises:

Ps 18:36 Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, that my feet did not slip.

All the promises come flooding back. He promises to

  • lead me,
  • guide me,
  • make my way perfect,
  • be a lamp unto my feet and
  • a light unto my path,
  • hearing a voice behind me saying this is the way walk ye in it, and especially
  •  Ps 23…His rod and His staff they comfort me as he leads me all through the beautiful places, the dark and scary places, on into the banqueting table in the presence of mine enemies!

What a comfort to rest in His hand…

“’tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, just to take him at his word, just to rest upon his promise, just to know ‘thus saith the Lord'”

Now, I’m resting, and he’s strengthened me with all his truth, healed and united my heart, and filled me with peace. I have to tell you about the next step in part four!

PART FOUR

BACK TO PART ONE
BACK TO PART TWO

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment! Or ‘like’ me! Or follow me with the RSS feed.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

there are giants in my land – part three

~It would seem that part three should be the third giant, but it’s only the second. I explained the giants in number one, and discussed the giant of fear in number two.

The second giant that has overshadowed my life is the giant of depression.

Many people think that the opposite of depression is happiness. Happiness is based on what happens around you, and joy is based on your Jesus relationship.

There is a simple circle that brings this truth to life.
Jesus came that we may have joy

John 15.11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and [that] your joy might be full.

In the presence of the Lord there is fullness of joy

Psalm 16.11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence [is] fulness of joy; at thy right hand [there are] pleasures for evermore.

The joy of the Lord is our strength

Neh 8.10 : for [this] day [is] holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

We can do all things Christ Jesus who strengthens us…

Phil 4.13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

…Because Jesus came that we might have joy

John 16.24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

So the bottom line is, if I’m depressed, where my dwelling?

Several years ago I wrote a post called “The Oil of Joy”, and that was the beginning of my battle with the giant of depression. The giant of depression had been around for quite a while, but this is when I started to learn how to battle. Here it is.

Joy is a choice. This is what God was telling me.

With my past experience with abuse, which plunged me into deep depression, medically declared not recoverable, as well as a mother with Bi-Polar/Manic-Depressive, and a daughter diagnosed as the same, as well as suicides running through the family spirit….Joy has been an elusive concept at times. I don’t take joy for granted. I respect the warning signs of depression.

It’s a choice? None of the above was a choice!
What choice do I have?

Psal 16:6 (KJS) The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant [places]; yea, I have a goodly heritage.
7 I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.
8 I have set the LORD always before me: because [he is] at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence [is] fulness of joy; at thy right hand [there are] pleasures for evermore.

I can choose to trust in the Lord, look at what He has done for me, seek His counsel, hearken to His words, bless Him, set Him before me, and to stay in His presence, at His right hand.

Isai 61:3 (KJS) To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

I can choose to go to Him. He is glorified when I allow him to give me the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise of the spirit of heaviness…He wants to have the glory of being my joy! He knows that I am mourning, and has prepared a solution for it…before I was even conceived!

Hebr 12:12 (KJS) Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;

My hands hang down when I am discouraged, my knees are feeble when I am afraid…..and then Lord says:

Nehe 8:10 (KJS) Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for [this] day [is] holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

He is my strength! If I let Him be my joy…then I will be strong..in Him!

2Tim 1:7 (KJS) For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

He can calm my mind…when I am depressed, I do not have a sound mind…I am fearing…and that is not of Him! If I ask, He will give me the mind of Christ…and renew my mind. (Phil 2:5, Rom 12:2) He tells me to

1Pet 1:13 (KJS) Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

Last week, I was overcome with discouragement…when all in the house were sick or not up to par, and the plan wasn’t working, and there was so much to do. I had finally, taken a walk with the Lord…and had started to pull out of the dumps…but even the work of Saturday, the hugeness of it, without really even touching what I needed to get done for school brought me to my knees in tears. I went to my prayer closet (bathroom) and cried. Where is the joy? And He gently reminded me that joy is a choice…a choice of where I spend my time, where I place my heart, where I walk, and with whom I talk. In HIS presence is fullness of joy! I had been too busy doing what I thought He wanted me to do, that I hadn’t been with Him.

When I was marching around the house, thinking on the sins that were attacking our family, I had great joy…..from the presence of the King.

My prayer is(Acts 17:27-28) That in Him I would live, and move and have my being. That I would walk after the Spirit (Rom 8), (Gal 5:16-25) and live in the spirit-

Gala 5:25 (KJS) If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

This is part of the Big Plan that God has for my family…

Jude 1:24 (KJS) Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present [you] faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
25 To the only wise God our Saviour, [be] glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

it was some time after this post that I changed my signature Bible verse to Psalm 63.7

Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I learned that if I abide in the secret place of the most high and dwell under the shadow of the Almighty(Ps 91), nothing can keep me from singing.

I have written about the power of music to quiet demons in one’s head.

David played for Saul to quiet his demons. 1 Sam 16.23

God inhabits the praises of his people.  Psalm 22.3

Psalm 100 gives step-by-step how to abide in the Lord and in his joy with singing.

  1. A psalm. For giving thanks. Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
  2. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.
  3. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
  4. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
  5. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
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Or follow me with the RSS feed.

Barbs Drawing

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Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

there are giants my land – part two

~editor’s note: while recovering from arm surgery, I am using voice to text software to write my blog.  There may be some strange words or phrases that I missed.  Please be patient me.  ~Christi

I touched on one of the giants in my opening post.
my life has been greatly overshadowed by the giant of fear.

  • fear of monsters in the dark
  • fear of rejection
  • fear of abandonment
  • fear of anger
  • fear of failure
  • fear of success
  • fear of large groups of people
  • fear of dying in fire
  • fear of men
  • fear of man
  • fear of competition
  • fear of leaving my home
  • fear of getting lost

I’m sure I am missing some. Many of these fears go back to fear that came from the “monster in the dark”. I could list these almost, in a tree of fear that grew out of trust being betrayed.  But the point is, once this giant fear entered my life, it had permission to reproduce many variables.

The Bible doesn’t really talk about many variations of fear.

  • fear of God
  • fear of man

The ratio, is quite interesting.

Prov 9.10 The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy [is] understanding.

Job 28. 28 And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that [is] wisdom; and to depart from evil [is] understanding.

Psalm 111.10 The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do [his commandments]: his praise endureth for ever.

Proverb 1.7 The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of knowledge: [but] fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 15.33The fear of the LORD [is] the instruction of wisdom; and before honour [is] humility.

Prov 29:25The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.

In just this selection, it is 5 to 1 for the fear of the Lord.  I’m not going into what the fear of the Lord is, just the fact that if were going to fear anyone we should fear the Lord.

Psalm 91 lists many things that dwelling with God will protect you from.

  • snare of the Fowler
  • noisome pestilence
  • terror by night
  • arrow by day
  • pestilence in darkness
  • destruction at noon day
  • evil
  • plagues

Psalm 91.11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

The rest of Psalm 91 tells why God would do this, and if Psalm 91 isn’t enough to fight off your giant of fear, God gave us Psalm 27:

Psalm 27.1[[[A Psalm] of David.]] The LORD [is] my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD [is] the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

In fact, the whole Bible is full of words of truth that tear down strongholds.

2Cor 10.4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.

Another of my favorite verses about fear is this:

2 Tim 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

When someone is standing up to the giant of fear, 2Tim 1.7 is the perfect stone to throw.  What fears are not covered by power, love, and a sound mind?

God in his great mercy and wisdom, knows that in this world there will be fear.  Adam and Eve, with the first sin, were afraid to see God. Sin separates us from God, which separates us from his love, and replaces it with fear.  Separation was never God’s plan.

God intended for us to dwell in the secret place of the most high, and to live under the shadow of the Almighty.

God intended for us to say “[He is] my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.”

God never intended for us to dwell in fear.  Therefore, he has already taken down this giant, and all we have to do is speak the truth, embrace the truth, walking the truth, and rejoice in the victory that is ours through Christ.

When the giant of fear comes around, we can put the stone of Psalm 91 or 2Tim 1.7 into our Gospel sling and speak the truth in Jesus name, just as David did with Goliath:

David replied to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today the LORD will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! 1 Sam 17: 45-46

As we shout the truth to the giant, God will guide the stone to slay the the giant.

Reaching into his shepherd’s bag and taking out a stone, he hurled it with his sling and hit the Philistine in the forehead. The stone sank in, and Goliath stumbled and fell face down on the ground.

I thank you Lord, that you have given us the tools we need to take down the giants that attack us.  It isn’t armor that doesn’t fit, it isn’t swords that are too heavy, but they are weapons that You created specifically for us. As I said in my previous post, The weapons of our warfare are not carnal… And we do not war against flesh and blood.(2 Cor 10:4,Eph 6:12)

1 John 4:4 Greater is he that is in me then he that is in the world.(paraphrased)

 

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment!
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Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

 

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!

There are Giants in My Land

In 2006, the Kendrick brothers brought us the movie “Facing the Giants”
In that same year, Max Lucado wrote Facing Your Giants.
Years ago, Jim and I heard a talk about Goliath and his four brothers.
We also learned about how to conquer 5 giants in the Advanced Seminar through IBLP.

In 1 Samuel 17, a shepherd boy named David, came to the army of Israel to see how things were going. His brothers were in the Army. Saul was the king and the Philistines were taunting and ridiculing Israel.
David, a boy of simple faith, asked why no one was taking charge over this giant. He was ridiculed. He was taunted. His brothers accused him of being a busybody. When King Saul heard the words of this shepherd boy, he called him to his side. David, full of faith, said “let no man fear this giant, for I will go out and meet with him.”

Of course, all of these hardened soldiers including Saul, looked at the shepherd boy and said “you can’t do this”. David, having trusted the Lord to slay the lion and the bear as he protected his flock, knew the same God would deliver this giant into his hands.

The king tried to dress him just like everybody else in the Army. The armor was too big, the sword to heavy, and David had no experience with them. David said “let me use the tools that God has trained me with”. Saul was at his wits and. This Philistine was terrorizing the whole nation of Israel. If this little guy had an idea, let’s try it. What’s the worst thing that could happen?

So, David went out, as he had done so many days before in the keeping of his father’s sheep. As he crossed the brook he knelt down, and picked up five smooth stones. He put them in his shepherd’s bag and made sure his sling was ready to use.

Five stones.
Why five stones? David knew Goliath had four brothers, or sons. Five giants total. David was prepared to fight all the giants.

As the story goes, David took one stone and put it in his sling, and God directed that stone straight to the most vulnerable part of the giant’s head. And the giant Goliath fell! Little David was a hero! The whole army was energized, morale was restored, and the pride of Israel had been defended. Hooray!

But what about David? He didn’t become King anytime soon. What was this giant that David slew?

In the teachings that Jim and I heard many years ago, we were told the meaning of the names of Goliath and 4 other giants that followed David throughout his life. At this moment I can’t find any meaning of the names of the giants in the Bible. When I heard the teaching, each giants’ name represented some spiritual challenge in the life of David. When he was young, and full of faith, he picked up five stones, five stones, that could have taken out all five giants while he was young. For whatever reason, David only slew Goliath that day. Later in his life, one of the last giants almost slew him. It would be good to slay the giants in our youth. If we don’t, they will keep coming back.

The point of these teachings, the point of the movie, the point of the book, is, what giants am I facing? What giants are in my land?

FEAR
My whole life has been overshadowed with fear. My childhood had hidden, scary, nightmares going on. because of real monsters, I was terrified of the dark. In my adulthood, I have had to face those fears. It would have been nice if it was only one giant of fear. It seems, that if it’s one giant, he has many, many tentacles.

2 Tim 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

If God didn’t give me a spirit of fear, who did? Was it my abuser? Could my abuser “give me a spirit of fear”? Many who suffer abuse blame the abuser for is their spiritual makeup. That spiritual position keeps them under the thumb of the abuser, and they cannot embrace the freedom of forgiveness. What the abuser did was wrong, illegal, ungodly, horrific, traumatic, but not able to permanently affect, and especially not destroy our spirits.
The opposite of God is not an abuser.
In fact the opposite of God is not Satan.
Satan is our enemy, and he often seems to have more power over us than God does.
That’s because Satan pushes while God invites.
The weapons of our warfare are not carnal… And we do not war against flesh and blood.(2 Cor 10:4,Eph 6:12)

1 John 4:4 Greater is he that is in me then he that is in the world.(paraphrased)

Back to my point, as a child, my spirit was molded by the horrors to which it was exposed. But when I came of age, and when I became aware, I was free to choose God’s gift of love, power and a sound mind rather than the life draining dungeon of fear. Jesus Christ gave me the keys the dungeon.

If you have not watched the movie “Facing the Giants“, I greatly suggest that you do.
At the inspiration of my Savior Jesus Christ, and with the encouragement of my dear husband, Jim, I am going to be reading the book “Facing your Giants” by Max Lucado.

And I will listen and listen and listen to this glorious song:

Here is an option WITH the lyrics – Voice of Truth by Casting Crowns.
Let’s listen to the voice of TRUTH!

 

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

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100 Spiritual Walking Steps – #23 – Stuck in the Middle

In Pilgrim’s Progress, there is a point where Pilgrim is faced with two lions ahead on the path. He later learned that they were chained, and if he walked ‘smack dab in the middle’ they could not touch him.
A similar thing occurs when he is going through he valley of the shadow of death…if he stays right in the middle of the path, he will not fall to the left or right and end his journey.

I was thinking of a commercial with Two chips Ahoy cookies – “Squeezed in the middle”
then I looked up the old song “Stuck in the middle with You” – by Stealers Wheel. Wierd music video…but then again, it’s a weird song!

But the verse that was stirring up these middle thoughts was this:

Zephaniah 3:17 The LORD thy God in the midst of thee [is] mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.

Isn’t that BEAUTIFUL?

The LORD – First…one has to know Who is their LORD…and this promise is made to those that call Yehovah LORD.
Thy God – Second…you can have many lords over you…but this Lord is GOD – meaning ruler, judge, divine one.
IN THE MIDST OF THEE – Abiding within…

Rev 3:20 – Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

We have to invite Jesus in…within….within the midst of our lives…smack dab in the middle!

As we abide IN Him – He abides in us:

John 15:5 I am the vine, ye [are] the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

John 15 has much about abiding…and consequences for not abiding.

My thought was about being in the midst…God being in the midst of ME…and the prerequisite that I choose to be in the midst of HIM…such as in Ps 91:1 –

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most high, and abideth under the shadow of the Almighty….

It’s a choice…and with this choice, the Lord God – the Almighty Creator of Heaven and Earth and all that there is….

shall rejoice over thee with joy
He will rest in His love
He will joy over thee with singing

It makes my heart sing to think that this is what my Father in Heaven wants of me…that THIS is what would bring Him joy…and singing. He wants to be in the MIDST OF ME AND MY LIFE!!!

Is Mighty….The Lord thy God in the midst of thee IS MIGHTY…

1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

This verse is a mighty spiritual warfare verse…and the key is IN US. The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty!

I pray that each person reading this will make sure that they have asked Yehovah God, Yeshua Christ, and the Holy Spirit to dwell smack dab in the middle of their hearts…and that from that day forward, we would choose to dwell smack dab in the middle of His secret place…in His throne room, where His joy abounds, and we are given strength through that joy. Then, we will have the ability to face the trials of the day with JOY.

Stay to the middle of this straight and narrow path…so that when we come to our final destination, the dirt and grime from the world on our left and right will be minimal, and more importantly, we will not fall prey to the lions that try to pull us off our path.

1 Pet 5:8-9 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

I’d love to hear what you think – please leave a comment! Or ‘like’ me! Or follow me with the RSS feed.

Barbs Drawing

Naomi's Heart Mission

Help a child in need. Check out Naomi’s Heart Mission or Compassion International. The life that changes will be your own!