Footprints

Psalm 37:23 (NLT) The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.

I grew up in the Midwest at the base of Lake Michigan.  Winters there were cold and the snow was often deep.  I remember one winter when I was about 10 the snow was up to my waist.  My little sister was only 3 at the time.  In order for her to “play” in the snow she had to walk in the footprints my brother and I made. If she tried to go off the path we created she would get stuck or get lost as the snow was almost over her head.

The Psalmist tells us in Psalm 37:23 that the Lord directs the steps of the godly.  How often have we prayed something like this, “Father lead me today.”?  In this Psalm we see that God is already leading the way.  Our prayer should be more like, “Father help me to walk in your footprints today.” 

Why, if He is directing our path, is it so hard for us to follow in His footprints?

I once saw a mother duck swimming across a pond followed by her ducklings.  When she got to the shore she climbed out of the water and the ducklings did likewise, however, once on land one little duckling waddled slower than the rest.  I wanted to hurry him along behind his mother because on his own he was helpless.  As I watched, to my horror, a seagull swooped down and plucked that poor defenseless little thing up and began to fly away.  As it flew, other seagulls began to tear at the duckling trying to get it for themselves. 

I know this is an awful story; however, hold on and its importance will soon become clear. 

John 10:10 (NLT) The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

I want to dig into John 10:10 and evaluate the difference between the thief’s purpose and God’s purpose.  Here Jesus is speaking to his disciples.   These were men who lived, moved, and had their being with Christ.  They knew him better than anyone in that day outside of his mother.  What was he trying to tell them?

We cannot look at just John 10:10 but must look at it in the context of the entire passage, John 10:1-10.  In my Bible this passage is entitled: The Good Shepherd and His Sheep.

John 10:1-10 (NLT) “I tell you the truth, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber! 2 But the one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. 5 They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t know his voice.”

6 Those who heard Jesus use this illustration didn’t understand what he meant, 7 so he explained it to them: “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them. 9 Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures. 10 The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

Observations from John 10:1-9:                                                                                      

A. Jesus is the Good Shepherd.

If there is a good shepherd then there must be bad shepherds.  Jesus describes just such bad shepherds.

John 10:12-13 “A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will abandon the sheep because they don’t belong to him and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock. 13 The hired hand runs away because he’s working only for the money and doesn’t really care about the sheep.” (NLT)

The Word tells us that God will never leave us for forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6).  When the situations of life get hard our shepherd will not abandon us because He cares for His sheep!

B. Anyone who comes into the sheepfold by anyway other than the gate (Jesus) is a thief. 

There are many Bible teachers/preachers today.  We need to be careful to watch their fruit and see if they are truly speaking for God or if they are speaking for the enemy.  Knowing the Word is one way to ensure that we can identify those false teachers.  Spending time in prayer and listening to the voice of God will give us another tool for identifying such false teachers.  Anything which is said that does not align 100% with God’s Word is false!

C.  Jesus’ sheep know his voice.

In each of our lives there are many voices clambering for our attention. They can be the voice of a parent, spouse, child, friend, coworker, pastor, sibling, or even our own voice.  We can rest assured that one voice which speaks the loudest is the voice of the enemy.  His voice can come from without or within.  He loves to plant thoughts in our heads that sound so convincing that we often feel guilty for having them even when we don’t act on them. 

His voice can come from outside as well.  He is in the habit of using men to do his dirty work.  He even uses unsuspecting believers.  Have you ever just “lots it” and let someone “have it” with your words?  In that moment you were being used by the enemy to harm the other person and ultimately to harm yourself.  Trust me I am preaching to myself here as well.  I have done this more times than I care to remember.

We must learn to hear the voice of the Father and to distinguish it from the voices around us.  We do this in the same way we distinguish false teachers from godly teachers; we read, study, meditate on, and memorize the Word.  We pray and learn to listen to the voice of God.  We must weigh everything we hear on the scales of God’s Word.  Does it “balance out” with what we read in the Word?  If not, it is not of God!

D. The Shepherd leads the sheep.

David gives us a great picture of the Good Shepherd in Psalm 23.

Psalm 23:1-4 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

David is telling us that God will provide for all our needs.  He will take us into times of rest.  He will provide refreshing for our soul.  He will guide us in the right paths (it’s His reputation on the line).  Even when things get dark and the enemy presses in on every side we can rest in the comfort of his presence.  His rod can scoop us up when we fall down.  It can give us a nudge on the hind end when we are wandering off.  It can beat down the enemy when he is closing in on us. 

Throughout the history of mankind it has never been the shepherd who failed in leading the sheep.  He has always faithfully led the way; the issue has been on the part of the sheep.  We have failed over and over to follow in his footprints. This can be seen throughout the Bible and even in recent history.  Look at where our nation came from and where we are today.  It is not because God has not been leading, but rather, that we have not been following!

E. Sheep follow where the shepherd leads.

When a shepherd leads the sheep out of the sheepfold and into the pasture land the sheep are ready to go because they know food and water will be forthcoming.  They follow the shepherd because he has established a relationship with them and they know they can trust him.  He has “proven” himself, if you will.  

My question to us then is this: Who has proven Himself faithful and true more in the history of mankind than God?  No one!  Yet, even as believers we often find it difficult to follow His lead.  Why? 

Let’s look at John 10:10 to find the answer.

John 10:10 (NLT) The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

The answer is simple: The thief is out to steal, kill, and destroy.  We struggle to follow the Lord’s footprints because:

1. The enemy is constantly throwing roadblocks in our path.  We often have to swerve to miss obstacles he leaves in the way.  These may come in the form of:

a. Greener pastures (i.e. a person who treats us better than our spouse treats us).

b. Greater opportunities (i.e. a better paying job – even if the hours and longer and we have to miss church sometimes).

c. Greater fulfillment (i.e. our job/ministry might be moving slowly; we might not be seeing the results we want quickly enough so we look for another job/ministry where the dividends, so to speak, are more immediate (instant gratification)).

While this list is non-exhaustive by any means it gives us an idea of the kinds of road blocks the enemy throws in our path.

2. He tries to wipe out the footprints so we cannot see them. 

When rescuers are searching for someone who is lost in the woods, for example, they look for footprints, broken branches, pieces of hair, fabric, etc.  They are looking for anything that can reveal the direction the missing person traveled. 

We, like the rescuers, need to look for the footprints and clues the God leaves for us to follow.  These clues might be as simple as a rightly timed word from a caring friend.  They may include a prophetic word spoken over us.  They might even be our “intuition” or “gut-feeling.” 

The Holy Spirit will speak to us each in the manner in which we “hear” or learn best.  Some of us are visual learners and He might speak to us through dreams and visions or we might open the Word to read and a word or phrase might appear to jump off the page.

For the auditory learners among us He will use His still, small voice in our heart/mind.  Additionally, we might hear a sermon or teaching and the Lord emphasizes one particular part in our hearts and minds. 

For the kinesthetic learners He might mix it up and use both auditory and visual clues.  The clues might even be experiential. Some of them can even come from our everyday life experiences.    

The enemy, remember comes to steal; he tries to remove the footprints and clues, which leads us to the next point: distractions.

3. He sends distractions in our way every day. 

We know that many of the footprints and clues are found in the Word and through prayer.  If the enemy can distract us we might miss some of those footprints and clues.  Distractions come in many forms.  We must learn to keep a watch out for them.

Many distractions are external, originating from outside of us.  When we set aside time to spend in the Word and prayer the enemy will throw in major external distractions.  Maybe the doorbell will ring or someone will call, a member of our family will need our help at just that moment.  As we prepare to read or pray we will see the dirty dishes in the sink or the dirt on the floor.  The neighbor’s dogs will bark unceasingly.  These distractions are common.  There are things we cannot control that work to take our focus off of finding the footprints and clues. 

Some distractions are internal however.  These originate in our minds and we must learn to stop them in their tracks before they run away with us and cause us to miss the path.  If none of the external distractions work, the enemy will plant thoughts in our minds (sometimes we do this to ourselves without his help). We will remember something we need to say to our spouse or children or remember something we forgot to pick up from the store.  We will begin planning dinner or thinking about our date night.  We will think about a sick friend and wonder how he/she is feeling.  The list is limitless. 

I guarantee you that distractions will come the key is stopping them as soon as we recognize them.  How do we do this you might ask?  2 Corinthians 10:5 gives us the answer. “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” (NASB)

The task is two-fold:

1. We destroy everything that raises itself against the knowledge of God.  This is critical.  The way we stay in step with what God is doing and where He is leading is by knowing Him.  Hosea 4:6 says this, “My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me. (NLT)  We cannot possibly follow God’s leading and stay on course if we do not know Him.  We must stop the distractions or we will be destroyed by the enemy!

2. We take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.  We must make keep our thoughts focused on the task at hand, getting to know God more; hearing His voice and finding the footprints and clues He is laying out for us. 

I begin each of my quiet times (times of prayer and/or Bible reading – which may or may not be quiet J) with a pray inviting God to speak to me and shutting the enemy down before he can start.  James 4:7 tells us: So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (NLT)

This verse contains two promises we can hold onto.  First, when we humble ourselves before God, coming to Him in prayer or Bible study He will be there.  James 4:8a, “Come close to God, and God will come close to you.” (NLT)

Second, if we resist the devil he will flee.  Webster’s online Dictionary defines flee as: to run away from.  I want us to really look at this definition; to run away from. How often do we picture the devil running away from us?  Be honest.  I can’t say I’ve dwelt on it much, but James is telling us here that if we resist the devil, he will flee.  Why, because when we resist we are not resisting in our own strength. 

Zechariah 4:6b It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. (NLT)  When we resist it is really the power of the Holy Spirit resisting through us.  If we stay close to God, borrow His strength and resist, we can defeat the enemy every time.  I wanted that duckling to hurry up and get close to his mother because I knew that she could defend him from the seagulls.  What he lacked in his own strength and size, his Momma more than made up for.  With her at his side he was unstoppable.  The same holds true for us.  With God on our side; who? I ask, can stand against us? 

Finally, part of avoiding the distractions is keeping up the pace.  It is not only important to following in His footprints, but we need to stay close to Him as well.  We need to keep up with Him as He leads us. We cannot become complacent as we follow. Just like the duckling I watched, we are helpless without God.  We cannot defend ourselves from the attacks of the enemy any more than that little duckling could defend himself from the gull.   And like the duckling we will be plucked up and pecked at by the enemy if we wander away from the protection of our Father.  He will never leave us; however, far too often we walk away from Him to follow our own desires and lusts. 

We often get lazy or “busy” and fail to make/take the time to spend in His presence.  We begin to make excuses for why we miss church or Bible study groups. We begin to hang around friends from our past who are not believers (which could be fine if they are not our primary source of fellowship and we are not tempted to participate in sinful or compromising behavior while with them).  

Let’s all be honest here.  We find time to do what we want to do! We must desire intimacy with God more than anything else.  If we are to walk in His footsteps and keep on course we must spend time in His presence.  We must keep the pace and not fall back.  Stragglers are easy prey for the enemy!!

Standing in a Rocking Chair

A friend of mine recently posted a story on Facebook that touched my heart and through which the Holy Spirit spoke to me.  I want to share it with you.

His little girl loves her rocking chair, however, like most toddlers can’t be left unattended while rocking or she will stand up in the chair.  On this particular day as he watched her rock, he had to remind her numerous times not to stand up.  At one point she turned herself upside down in the rocker.  As you would expect the rocking tipped forward so her head was almost to the floor.  Realizing she was about to fall head first to the floor caused her to react in two ways: first she grabbed the arms of the chair in a death grip; second, she cried out, “DADDY!” Of course Daddy came running and rescued her before she was harmed.  He then held her to reassure her that she was safe and loved.

I want to make some basic observations from this story then dig into the Word to look at each one from a Biblical perspective.

Observation 1: The rocking chair is both safe and unsafe.

Observation 2: The temptation to stand or sit incorrectly was strong.

Observation 3: When things went wrong she held on and cried for help.

Observation 4: Daddy was there to rescue and reassure her.

Let’s dig in…

1. The rocking chair here represents our life on this earth.  We live in a fallen world.  When we live our lives according to God’s plan we can find safety in Him.  However, when we choose to live life as we see fit and obey the lusts of our flesh we will find life both difficult and even dangerous. 

I want to add a disclaimer here: Even believers must face trials, struggles, and often dangers. John records for us the Words of Christ when he was talking to his disciples about leaving them.  In John 16:33 (Jesus tells them), “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. (Then he warns them) Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. (Finally, he encourages them) But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (NLT)

For the believer the dangers of this life can all be faced with bold confidence in the fact that we are not walking through them alone. 

Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” (NIV) Here God is admonishing His people (us): A. To be strong and courageous. B. Not to be afraid. C. To remember that He is with us and He will never leave us or forsake us.

Webster’s online dictionary defines strong as: not mild or weak.  It gives the following antonyms for strong: delicate, feeble, frail, weak, weakling, wimpy. 

Webster’s defines courageous as: brave, showing courage (the ability to do something that you know is difficult or dangerous).  Antonyms for courageous: coward, cowardly, fainthearted, fearful, gutless, weak hearted.

God is telling us to walk courageously.  Not to shrink away from the challenges and dangers we face, but to face them head on, remembering the He is with us and He will never leave us alone. 

Like the rocking chair, life can be both safe and unsafe depending on whose path we are following.  If we are walking hand in hand with our Savior, then even in the midst of the storm we are safe and sound because our God is walking with us and is our protector and strength.

Psalm 46:1-2 God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.

2. Temptation is a very real and it exerts great pressure on our lives. 

We see the power temptation wields all the way back in Genesis 3. When Satan came to Eve he: A. Pointed out how beautiful the fruit was. B. He caused her to question God’s Words. C. He told her that God was holding out on her.

The enemy has not changed his tactics in all these years.  When he begins working on us through temptation he begins by pointing out how good the sin looks.  He will point out how much “better” our lives will be if we only try it.  He will draw our attention to others who participate in the particular sin he is pushing on us; however, he will only show us the “good” side of their experience.  He will work on us until we really believe we can’t live without it. 

Another tactic he uses is twisting God’s Word.  In Genesis 2:16-17 we read, And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

Then in 3:1 we read, “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 

The serpent took God’s words and twisted them just enough to sound right.  He will do the same thing in our life if we are not grounded in the Word.  We must be people of the Word. We must read, meditate on, and memorize the Word.  If we don’t we will not know if what we are hearing is truth or lie. Remember, half-truth, even three quarters truth is not truth at all!

Psalm 119:11 (NIV) I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

The third tactic the enemy uses against us is to make us feel like we are missing out on something.  I am sure we all know an unbeliever whose life looks blessed.  No matter what they do they make money, they have good health, the own a big house, etc.  We see the way they live and if we are honest we might have even asked the Lord why, when we are trying to walk according to His path/ Word we struggle with the very things they seem to have in abundance. Again, we only see the “good life” they appear to have; we don’t see the inner struggles and pain.

This is a scheme of the enemy.  If he can get us to focus on what we “don’t have” or what someone else does have, he can get our eyes off of Christ.  When our focus is off of Christ, getting us to fall into sin is not far off. 

1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV) No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

We must LOOK for the way of escape. It is always there but we have to be intentional in our walk with the Lord and purpose each day to look for the way out of every temptation that the enemy tries to throw at us. 

We also have this promise in 1 John 2:1 “My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous.” (NLT) Even when we fail to find the way out and give into the temptation, Jesus himself pleads our case before the Father.  He reminds his Father that we are “the righteousness of God in Christ.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

3. When things go wrong we must hold on and cried for help.

We can hold onto the promises of God in every circumstance we face. Hebrews 10:23 (NLT) Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.  2 Corinthians 1:20 (NLT) For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.

A few examples:

A. God will provide for our needs. Philippians 4:19 (NIV) And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

B. We can be healed. Isaiah 53:5 (NIV) But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

C. We don’t have to live in fear.  2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT) For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.  John 4:18 (NIV) There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

We can cry out to God for help in our time of need.

Matthew 8:23-27 (NLT) Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. 24 Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 26 Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. 27 The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him.

When we are in the midst of the storm we, like the disciples, can call out to Jesus and He will calm the storm. 

4. Our Father will be there to rescue and reassure us.

Isaiah 41:10 (NLT) Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

1 Peter 5:7 (NLT) Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT) Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

The next time you see a rocking chair, remember: The world can be a dangerous place, temptation is very real, however, God always provides a way of escape when we face temptation, when things go wrong we need to hold onto the promises and cry to our Father for help, and He will be there to rescue and reassure us!! 

New Year, New Beginnings

Revelation 21:5 (NLT) And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!”

As the book of our lives 2016 opens I want to encourage us to look for the NEW THINGS. 

If 2015 was a great year and you had a record number of successes then you definitely have something to be thankful for.  However, you cannot begin this year basking in last year’s victories.  Any athlete will tell you that a winning season doesn’t mean less hard work and practice in the next season, if anything it means more. 

From a spiritual perspective this might mean a commitment to deeper intimacy with Christ, a more consistent prayer life, a deeper hunger for the Word, daily crucifying our flesh and its desires and walking in obedience to the Word. 

From a physical perspective it might mean eating less or healthier foods, committing to exercise, spending more time outside and less on the couch watching T.V.  

From an emotional perspective it might mean investing in relationships and/or forming new ones; spending more time enjoying life rather than constantly worrying about how to survive life.  It might mean breaking off some relationships that are causing more harm than good in our lives. 

If 2015 was a difficult year and your failures far outnumber the successes you have something to be thankful for as well.  2016 is a new beginning.  We cannot wallow in the past failures and walk into this year fearful of repeating last year’s mistakes.  We must focus on the New Things.  Like I’ve stated above, we must focus on our spiritual, physical, and emotional health.  We can bounce back or get up for the first time in a long time if we work to improve all areas of our lives.  And friend I have good news for you, you don’t have to do it alone.  If we are willing to place our lives into the hands of our Savior and follow His leading, He will walk us into the greatest year of our lives.

He is making ALL THINGS NEW!!!!

Immanuel Revisited

Isaiah 7:14 “All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).”

What does “God with us” mean for us today?

Last December I wrote a study entitled Immanuel.  This year I want to revisit the topic of Immanuel from a more personal perspective.  I pray this blesses you as you think about “God with you” today.

As I was praying this morning I began to reflect on Immanuel with me.  I want to share some of those reflections with you. 

A. Immanuel keeps His promises

To begin I want to share an Immanuel moment from Scott’s life.  4 years ago while Scott was in his prayer time he heard the voice of God telling him that “next year” he would have a son.  Scott hid this Word in his heart and waited.  A year later I became pregnant.  Scott boldly announced that we would have a son. Upon further inquiry he told me that God had told him about our son the year before.  

When I went to my first prenatal appointment we were blessed to have a Christian doctor.  We told her our story and she began to get excited with us.  I was 44 at the time and that alone was a risk factor for many potential issues.  During her exam she discovered a huge blood clot in my cervix.  This ruptured causing a huge amount of bloody mess.  She was a resident and needed to go confer with her supervisor.  After the door closed we heard her crying in the hallway.  She had been so excited with us only seconds earlier, now she was certain I was miscarrying. 

After conferring with her supervisor we were rushed to the hospital for an ultrasound.  As we sat in the waiting area, I held Emma’s hand (she was 13 at the time) and reassured her that everything was ok, while inside I was crying out to Immanuel, reminding Him of His promise to Scott. 

The ultrasound revealed a strong heart beat and everything looked normal.  With much relief we went home rejoicing!  Over the next few weeks we had a few more scares with unexplainable bleeding; however, as you know Samuel was born on December 4, 2012.  His birth was not without its own share of complications, resulting in an emergency C-section; however, Immanuel had kept His promise!!

Deuteronomy 7:9 (NLT) Understand, therefore, that the Lord your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands.

B. Immanuel provides

I had a high risk pregnancy with Samuel.  I had advanced maternal age, gestational diabetes, and high blood pressure.  These factors coupled with increasing pain caused me to really begin praying for release from God’s call to our teaching jobs at Mesilla Valley Christian Schools.

To back up a bit, for about three years both Scott and I had felt a tug on our hearts to be in full time church ministry.  We had been working with the youth at our church and I had been ministering to women.  We had prayed over that time but hadn’t felt released from MVCS.  So when I got pregnant this seemed like a perfect time to change careers.  An additional confirmation that this was the time for a change came when the school told Scott that due to budget constrains his hours were being cut back to 6 hours per week in the fall.  After much prayer we felt God releasing us and telling us to begin seeking Him about our future ministry in earnest. 

Scott has two Master’s degrees and we assumed that it would be easy for him to find a job in one of those fields.  Sitting here today after 3 ½ years I can tell you that obviously God had other plans.  Scott has applied for 1000+ jobs.  God hasn’t opened the door for any of them. 

God has provided Scott with two part time jobs and our family with a part time job to help pay our bills.  We have never gone without food, clothing, utilities, phone, etc.  Every month God miraculously meets our needs and even our wants sometimes.  My kids are not lacking anything they need.  Our life style is not the same as it used to be, however, we are closer as a couple and a family then we were before.  We have learned that “things” are not really important and are enjoying DIY a lot. 

I won’t act like I have never worried about our needs being met, however, after 3 ½ years I can honestly say those times are few and far between.  And when they do come it is not because God has not provided or I even think that He won’t provide, no, they come when I try to figure it out on my own.  When I try to “help” God figure things out I begin to worry and if this goes unchecked it ultimately leads to fear. 

                                                                                          

The Scripture tells us:  And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19 (NLT))

It also says: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV))

Over these past few years Immanuel has consistently provided for all of our needs and when I take my cares to Him in prayer and allow Him for figure it out I have peace that no one, the devil included, can take away.  Immanuel always provides!

C. Immanuel opens doors

As I have already said, Scott and I felt called to full time church ministry.  We love working with youth and I feel called to minister to women.  Over the years we have ministered in these areas in our local church.  When we left MVCS we were looking to move away from New Mexico.  We assumed that we would find a position as senior pastors or youth pastors and I would work in the women’s ministry department (positions that were already established). 

In October 2014 Scott was hired by a contracting company to be a lay chaplain at Yakima Training Center in Yakima, WA.  Because we thought we were moving we began attending a church pastored by our adopted parents/mentors so our children (and usJ) could spend as much time with their Pop and Geema as possible before we left New Mexico. However, dDue to the government shut down, the contract fell through and we were left with a house full of boxes and no job.  That door was definitely closed.

God had a plan.  In January of this year our pastor returned home from his Christmas trip to Alaska.  He told us that He felt God was telling us to seek Him for what to do now.  We had been waiting on the Lord, per His instructions at the beginning of our journey (leaving MVCS).  Now we were instructed to seek for what to do “now”. 

We both began to pray and God told me to begin Eleutheria Ladies Fellowship.  I was hesitant to begin because I still thought we were moving away from Las Cruces.  I hated to begin something then have to drop the ball, so to speak, by leaving.  However, after putting it off for two weeks I really felt God telling me to get moving.  I knew that if He opened the door He knew what He was doing.  I met with our pastor and he was both supportive and enthusiastic about this ministry.  He told me the church was behind me as would support me in any way necessary, but that I was to follow God’s lead and that the church would not dictate how the ministry was to be run.  This was liberating for me, as I had never ministered in a position where I could “be me”.  I have always ministered in positions where I had to “fit” in the mold already set by someone else. 

So in February ELF was established. It has been exciting to see ladies come together and let their guards down; to be vulnerable before each other and God.  We have seen God perform miracles when we prayed, we have grown together as a group and I have watched individual ladies (myself included) change, becoming more like Christ. 

While I was breaking ground in women’s ministry with ELF, God was speaking to Scott about establishing a youth ministry at our church.  He wrote up a job application and submitted it along with his resume to our pastor.  After much discussion he was brought on the church staff as Youth Pastor.  This ministry too is grass roots.  Our beautiful pastor’s wife has been heading up the youth of our church for a number of years and doing a wonderful job! However, it has recently been a Sunday morning class with no additional meeting time.  Add to that, she also teaches the younger children on Sunday mornings as well so her time is divided. 

Scott has established a Sunday night youth service in which we dig deep into the Word and work on discipleship with our young people.  We are seeing lives changed and our young people learning what it means to be a disciple of Christ. 

1 Thessalonians 5:24 (NASB) Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.

Immanuel opens doors where He leads.  He who calls us is faithful!! 

These reflections are only the tip of the iceberg of all the things God has done in our lives over these past few years, however, they give a bit of insight into who Immanuel is in our lives.  I want to challenge you today to reflect on who Immanuel is/has been in your life in 2015.  Maybe you can make a list of all the ways He has been “God with you” and then take a few minutes to thank Him for His faithfulness.  If we are honest with ourselves He has always been there and come through for us.  It may not have been when or how we thought it should have been but Immanuel has never failed us once!!!  Isaiah 9:6 “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”  Immanuel, God with us!!!!

Great Expectations

Luke 18:27(NIV) Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”

I recently heard a friend say that she needed to lower her expectations.  That got me thinking about expectations in general. 

Often we have expectations for ourselves that are way too high and our failure to reach them leaves us feeling unhappy and miserable.  Or perhaps we have such low expectations for ourselves that we reach them with no problem but walk through life feeling unfulfilled and dissatisfied with our life.

We might have expectations for our children. Maybe we want our children to perform in a certain way, get all A’s, excel in a sport, play a musical instrument, or attend a certain college.  If we were honest we all have some of these in the back of our minds, however, the reality is that there may be a good reason why our children cannot meet these expectations.  Possibly they were born with a handicap or learning disability.  Perhaps they are not coordinated enough to play sports. They might enjoy painting or drawing rather than music.  Or maybe they feel drawn to technical/trade school and don’t want to attend college at all. 

In each of these situations we might need to lower or change our expectations to meet the needs, abilities, passions, or desires of our children.  We might feel disappointed, however, because we love them and want what is best for them we will willingly (hopefully) provide them the opportunities to see their desires and goals come to pass even if it is not what we envisioned for them.   

Another area of expectations is with our spouse.  This is an area where the enemy works overtime.  He tries to convince us that we deserve better than we are getting from our spouse.  He draws our attention to other people and how they treat their spouse or others.  He tells us we would be better off looking somewhere else to find our needs met or our desires fulfilled. 

Sometimes our expectations are too high in our marriage as well.  We need to look honestly at our spouse and his personality.  Are the things we expect within the realm of his personality or are we expecting him to become someone he is not?  Are the things we expect personal preferences or are they really important to the functioning of our home and better for our relationship? Could we meet our own expectations that we place on him? Are we meeting his expectations? 

The list of areas where we might have unfulfilled expectations can go on:

1. Parents

2. Siblings

3. Employers

4. Co-workers

5. Church

6. Pastor

7. Friends

8. Etc….

I want us to focus on one final area where we have expectations: God

Our theme verse Luke 18:27 tells us that nothing is impossible with God.  Yet as believers we often have very low expectations of God.  Yes, we receive the gift of salvation provided for us by the death and resurrection of Christ, sometimes we pray for healing or for God to get us out of a jam, we may even say we believe God will provide for our needs, but what do we really expect from God?

The Bible is full of promises God has made for those who believe.  Do we really believe them?  Do we expect God to stand by His Word?  Do we believe we can claim the promises and see them fulfilled?

I. The Promises (not an exhaustive list!! J)

A. God hears us and answers when we pray according to His will.

1 John 5:14 (NIV) This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.

B. God will supply all our needs.

Philippians 4:19 (NLT) And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.

C. God has good plans for our life.

Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT) For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

D. God will keep us from falling (giving into sin, walking away from Him, living for our flesh).

Psalm 37:24 (NLT) Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand.

E. God’s power will come through for us.

2 Corinthians 12:9a (NLT) “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.”

F. God will take care of us.

1 Peter 5:7 (NLT) Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

G. God will help us escape/ overcome temptation.

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

H. God will give us good things, withholding no good thing.

Psalm 84:11 (NLT) For the Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.

I. God will direct our path.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT) Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

J. God will help us succeed.

Proverbs 16:3 (NLT) Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.

K. God sees our needs and is prepared to meet them.

Matthew 6:31-32 (NLT) 31“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.

II. Expectations vs. Faith

How often do we pray but not really believe our prayer will be answered?  We say we believe because that is what a Christian is supposed to say, however, when we look deep in our hearts our faith is weak.  This is due to low expectations.  We know God answers the prayers of some people, but we don’t expect Him to answer our prayers.  We wish He would, however, wishing and faith are two different things. 

If we believe God is who He says He is we will expect Him to keep His Word.  If we truly expect God to fulfill His promises we will have faith to believe that our prayers will be answered. 

III. Great Expectations

While we might need to lower our expectations of ourselves and others we need to increase our expectations of God; placing our faith and confidence in the One who is Faithful and True!

Numbers 23:19 states: God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? (NIV)

God has never failed to fulfill His promises.  We can read the Bible cover to cover and never find one instance where God failed His people.  I promise you that if you expect God to keep His Word, He will.  He is not going to ruin His perfect record by failing you!!

Finish the Job!!

1 Samuel 17:51 Then David ran over and pulled Goliath’s sword from its sheath. David used it to kill him and cut off his head.

In 1 Samuel 17 we read about Goliath, a giant, who stood over 9 feet tall.  Goliath was a Philistine, a nation of people who were enemies of the Israelites; God’s people. 

1 Samuel 17: 8-11, 16 Goliath stood and shouted a taunt across to the Israelites. “Why are you all coming out to fight?” he called. “I am the Philistine champion, but you are only the servants of Saul. Choose one man to come down here and fight me! 9 If he kills me, then we will be your slaves. But if I kill him, you will be our slaves! 10 I defy the armies of Israel today! Send me a man who will fight me!” 11 When Saul and the Israelites heard this, they were terrified and deeply shaken. 16 For forty days, every morning and evening, the Philistine champion strutted in front of the Israelite army.

Goliath taunted the army of Israel day and night.  The Israelites were afraid of him and hid behind rocks and in their tents whenever he came out.  There was no one in all the Israelite army who was willing to go up against this giant. 

As 1 Samuel continues we read that Jesse sent David to visit the camp of the Israelite army.  David took provisions for his brothers and gifts for their commanders.  He was to check on his brothers and then to take word back to Jesse.

As David was talking with his brothers Goliath came out.  When the Israelite army saw him they ran in fright.  Those standing near David began telling him how Goliath came out every day asking for someone to fight him and defying the armies of Israel. After inquiring about the reward to be paid to the one who fought the giant and being taunted and ridiculed by his brothers, David was taken to King Saul.  He told the king that he would fight Goliath. 

1 Samuel 17: 32-37 “Don’t worry about this Philistine,” David told Saul. “I’ll go fight him!” 33 “Don’t be ridiculous!” Saul replied. “There’s no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win! You’re only a boy, and he’s been a man of war since his youth.” 34 But David persisted. “I have been taking care of my father’s sheep and goats,” he said. “When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock, 35 I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. 36 I have done this to both lions and bears, and I’ll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the armies of the living God! 37 The Lord who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!”

It is important to note here that David is not relying on his own strength but on the strength and faithfulness of God!!

We know from reading further that David went up against Goliath with 5 smooth stones he picked up from the brook and a sling shot.  After hitting the giant in the head with a stone and knocking him unconscious, David finished the job. 1 Samuel 17:51 says, Then David ran over and pulled Goliath’s sword from its sheath. David used it to kill him and cut off his head.

In our lives we all face giants. We may face giants of worry and fear, giants of sin and bondage, giants of doubt and discouragement, giants of pride and self-centeredness, giants of anger and bitterness, etc.  Whatever the giant, the reality is this; Christ has paid for our freedom.  He has made the way for us to live free from the bondage of the giants the enemy sends to attack our lives. 

Often we are able to knock the giant down and receive momentary relief.  We often try to defeat the giant through our own strength and will power.  These are temporary fixes and will not bring us the freedom Christ paid for. 

We must be like David and once the enemy is knocked down we must cut off his head; relying on God’s strength and faithfulness not our own strength!!

Let me give an example: If the giant we are facing is worry and fear then we must learn to take our thoughts captive. When worry and fear rear their ugly head we must refuse to give in to their lies and deception.  We have an entire Book full of promises about God’s ability and desire to provide for all our needs and to take care of us.  There is not one thing that we face or one thing the enemy can throw at us that God cannot or will not see us through. 

If we choose each time to resist the enemy’s lies we can cut the head off the giant of fear and worry, if however, we choose to dwell on the lies and begin to try to figure things out for ourselves we give the enemy power in our lives and the “knocked down” giant will get up and fight against us again.  He will try to trap us and hold us in worry and fear.

Another example, if God is dealing with us about our thought life (a huge giant in many believers’ lives) and what we put before our eyes (i.e. movies, books, T.V. shows, etc.) then we must learn to take every thought captive and we must rid our home and our lives of everything God reveals to our hearts.  If we do and we refuse to continue watching and reading things that negatively feed our thought life, we cut the head off of the giant.  If however, we have a few favorite movies, books, or T.V. shows that we continue to hold onto and watch, justifying them for any reason, we have only momentarily knocked down the giant and he will rise again to re-bind our hands and feet in his chains of bondage. 

The only way to be totally free is to make a clean break from those things that feed the giant in our lives.  The awesome thing about this is that we never have to do this in our own strength. 

Philippians 4:13 (NLT) tells us, “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”

In Zechariah 4:6 (NIV) God told Zerubbabel, “‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.”

Whatever giant you are facing today, let us be like David and cry out to God and ask Him for His strength to resist the enemy.  Believing Him for the strength to not only knock down the giant but to cut off his head as well.  Stop feeding the giant and cut off his head!!

I Am Righteous

Romans 1:18-3:20 describe for us the fallen, helpless condition of mankind.  There is no hope or any way man can redeem himself from the curse of the law.  Romans 3: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Romans 3:21-26 shows us the way for mankind to become righteous and will be our primary text for this study. 

Romans 3:21-26 (NLT) 21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. 22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet God freely and graciously declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, 26 for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.

I. God’s Righteousness (vs. 21-23)

A. Jesus is righteous – 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV) God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

B. God revealed His righteousness through Christ - Galatians 4:4 (NLT) But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law.

C. God’s righteousness comes to us through faith – Romans 3:22a (NLT) We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. We trust, meaning we put our confidence in Christ to forgive our sins, make us right with God, and to give us the power to live in faith. 

D. Righteousness is offered to all –Romans 3:22b And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.  Settling our account (justification) with God is offered to everyone.  No distinction is made between Jew or Gentile, rich or poor, educated or uneducated, bond or free.  All are offered this amazing gift.

E.  No one is righteous apart from God - Romans 3: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. James 2:10 (NIV) For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. Romans 3:10 (NIV) As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one.”

II. God’s Grace (vs. 24-25a)

A. Justification - Romans 3:24-25 (NASB) being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;

Webster’s Dictionary defines justification as: the act, process, or state of being justified by God; the act or an instance of justifying:  vindication.

Justification means to acquit, or to put in the right, to declare righteous. It is the opposite of condemnation.

The picture here is of sinful man being guilty and standing before the righteous judge.  We deserve the death sentence, eternal separation from the Holy God, however, when we come with repentant hearts, God applies the payment made by Jesus on the cross and pronounces us “acquitted!” We are justified (just as if we never sinned) because Jesus took our place and carried our sin upon Him on the cross. 

B. Grace - God justifies sinners “as a gift of His grace,” not because of who they are or anything they have done. (Sermon Central: GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS THROUGH FAITH IN CHRIST by Dennis Davidson)

C. Redemption - to ransom or to pay the price to free slaves or prisoners of war. Mark 10:45 (NLT) For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 

Jesus already ransomed all mankind, however, it is man’s choice whether to renounce sin and accept that ransom or not. 

Born in 1954 in Los Angeles, California, Patty Hearst is the granddaughter of William Randolph Hearst, founder of the Hearst media empire. On February 4, 1974, at age 19, Patty Hearst was kidnapped by members of the Symbionese Liberation Army. Not long after, she announced that she had joined the SLA and began participating in criminal activity with the group, including robbery and extortion. Hearst was captured by the FBI in September 1975, and the following year, she was convicted of bank robbery and sentenced to 35 years in prison. (http://www.biography.com/people/patty-hearst-9332960)

Her father paid millions of dollars for her release. The ransom had been paid and Patty could have escaped but she did not want to escape.

III. God’s Righteousness Demonstrated (vs. 25b-26)

The cross was a public demonstration of God’s righteousness.  Jesus went to the cross to pay the ransom for sinful, guilty man.  The sins of all who had/will ever live needed to be paid for.  Throughout the ages, man has reaped what he sowed, however, from the beginning no one had ever received the full punishment for the sins they committed.  God was not condoning their sin; He was waiting for the appointed time, the death of Christ on the cross, to demand the payment for the sins of all mankind.  

Christ’s death paid for past, present, and future sins.  None were left out.  His death was the once-for-all payment required by our holy, just God. 

IV. Conclusion

To be made righteous, all that is required of us is to believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior; to accept His free gift of salvation and redemption.  The ransom has been paid, our freedom assured; the choice is ours.

We, as born again believers, are righteous in God’s eyes.  Our penalty has been paid.  When condemnation rears its ugly head, we need only point the enemy to the cross and the moment we received Christ’s free gift of salvation and he has to slither away because he has no leg to stand on (pun intended! J)