WEDNESDAY WEEKLY WORD...don't let your knees buckle!

Have you ever tried to withstand a heavy burden of guilt?

 There are two things about guilt that you can count on: 1. We ALL have plenty to feel guilty about. 2. We CANNOT get away from it.

PROVERBS 20:27 "The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all the innermost parts of his being."

Solomon is saying that you and I have a conscience that cannot be turned on and off. Having guilt is one of those things that if left unaddressed, it just grows and grows. We cannot tuck it away and hope that it will fade from our memory and our spirit.

Have you ever had a fear of no return?

The biggest factor in feeling this way is unresolved guilt. We all have it. We regret something we said (or didn't say)! We feel guilty about how we did something (or because we didn't do something)! In last week's YOUR OPINION MATTERS POLL, I asked the readers about this:

"Do you have guilt about something?"
1. 55% of those voting said, YES, for something I said!
2. 33% voted and said, YES, for something I have done!
3. Another 33% responded, YES, for something I should have done!

Unresolved guilt is good for only one thing ... to grow and grow and grow. When we allow this to happen, it leaves us feeling hopeless and burdened down. This is exactly where the enemy would like to see us remain.

David struggled with his own kind of guilt:

"For my iniquities are gone over my head; as a heavy burden they weigh too much for me. My wounds grow foul and fester because of my folly. I am bent over and greatly bowed down; I go mourning all day long." (Psalm 38:4-6)

Our shoulders are not wide enough to carry the load of feeling guilty. In New York City, there is a statue of a Greek god, Atlas. The statue weighs 2 tons and it depicts Atlas carrying the entire heavens on his shoulders as his punishment for having defied Zeus. But if you look carefully at the statue, you will see that while his shoulders are broad and he appears very strong, his knees are buckling under the immense weight of the universe on his shoulders.

This is exactly how guilt affects our lives - it is beyond our ability to carry. There is only one place that is wide enough and strong enough to hold our guilt and that is at the foot of the cross. His shoulders are broad enough, wide enough and His knees will not buckle. He holds the world in His hands ... what's alittle more weight for Him?

"Dear Lord - Forgive me for holding onto things that I know I shouldn't. Forgive me for not always doing the right things, not saying the right things and not doing the right things. I know that your blood cleanses me, so I am asking you today to remove the guilt that I feel and restore my soul! From this day forward, I place my words, my actions and my life in your hands, have Your way, I pray! AMEN"

It's time to put the bib up!

Can you imagine what it would be like if babies never grew, but just stayed babies?

Life as we know it would be very strange. As we drove down the highway, we would look over and see a little one driving their big wheel down the road with their baby bonnet on. In the break room at work, fellow employees would be drinking a baby bottle instead of a coca cola. At McDonald's, there would be no big Macs or jumbo size fries ... only Gerber selections, such as peaches or sweet potatoes or applesauce!

That would be crazy, wouldn't it? You would seriously be concerned about your baby if it did not grow. And so would everyone else around you ... they would wonder what was wrong with your baby, why isn't it growing?

If this is true physically, why then do we not seem as concerned with our spiritual growth?

Some Christians who have served the Lord for many years are still doing the same things they did years ago. The signs of their infancy are still intact. Instead of growing up and moving onto to "Big girl/boy" things, they are still nursing on spiritual milk. Milk, for the Christian, is learning about the basics of Christianity. (Who God is, What He has done for us)

A healthy, growing infant will not be satisfied with just drinking milk.

 Eventually, it becomes not satisfying, not enough to keep them full. A growing Christian needs to move past the milk and begin to chew on some meat. The milk will only satisfy for awhile, it is the meat of the Word that will allow us to grow up alittle bit. We need to have something to chew on, not just swallow, we need the deeper truths of God's Word.

"Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." –Hebrews 5:13-14

Physically, our bodies eventually stop growing. But Spiritually, growth is never ending until we are called to our eternal home. There will always be something to learn from God's Word which in turn will give us new ways to trust Him. When we delve into His deeper truths, we no longer need the pacifier.

If we are still doing the same spiritual things we did a year ago, it may be time for us to grow up alittle bit! I'm ready to put the bib away, how about you?

Laced with Grace...getting across the monkey bars

Today I have shared a devotion over at LACED WITH GRACE!

It is entitled, "Getting across the monkey bars"....

"When I was a young girl, my favorite thing to do on the playground was climbing on the monkey bars. These metal bars always seemed to fascinate me. It was a challenge to me to see how long I could hang by my arms or legs. On days that I felt really strong, I would see how quickly I could cross the bars, moving one hand after another until I had crossed to the other side. Usually by the time I reached the middle section, my"...CLICK HERE to read the rest of this devo!

The storm is coming!

Here in the south, we are in desperate need for rain.

It seems like it has been so long since we have had a good old rain storm. Usually we do not like it to rain, it keeps us from doing all of our favorite things like being outdoors and going for a brisk walk. But rain is good, and it is needed for things to grow. Things like the farmers field, the trees, the flowers, the grass.

Rain is good.

How many times do we look at the storms in our personal life as a bad thing?

Face it, none of us like to endure the storms, the troubles, the hardships. Sometimes it is difficult to see past the clouds, but it is in these moments, that God showers down His love, His grace and His compassion upon us. Even though we don't like the storm, we need the storm so we can grow in Him.

His rain is refreshing!

THANKFUL THURSDAY...do I have to go to church?

I have a friend that has fallen into that old familiar trap that so many Christians fall into. They get busy with kids ballgames, work seminars and yearly vacations and find themselves attending church services less and less.

At first, it is just an occasional Sunday, then it is 2 Sundays out of the month and before long, it is a rare occasion to attend church, maybe at Christmas and Easter. It is not a deliberate action, but something that is a slow fade. It is gradual and like my friend, it is almost unnoticeable (to them), but very noticeable to others.

I love what Billy Graham says:

 "Being in church no more makes you a Christian than being in a garage makes you a car."

Even though church attendance is NOT what makes you a Christian,  I believe that attending church will nurture you and grow you as a Christian! Attending church serves a three-fold purpose to help us to grow in our faith:

1. To worship with other believers.
2. Church is a place of Christian fellowship.
3. Church is a place where we can use our gifts in service and ministry.

HEBREWS 10:25 "not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching."
 
We can worship God anywhere.
 On the lake. From our recliner. Out on the golf course. But not attending worship service with like believers causes us to miss out on encouraging others, and others being able to encourage us. While you do not have to be in church to be a Christian, there is certainly a "void" when you are not there.
 
You don't HAVE to go to church, but why wouldn't you WANT to?
 I am thankful for the opportunity to worship my Lord with my brothers and sisters in the Lord ... for me, it is like "dress rehearsal" for what is to come in our eternal place of worship!
 
Please join your grateful heart with ours over at THANKFUL THURSDAY! Stop over at LYNN'S, she is our gracious hostess this month. See you over there!
 

WEDNESDAY WEEKLY WORD...Who is in charge?

We have all seen athletes on television getting all pumped up before competing against their opponents. In fact, some athletes carry their "greatness" alittle too far. To stir up excitement they pound on their chest or bounce up and down. All of this is to get the adrenaline of the fans going and to psych themselves up for a winning match!

Recently, I read a story about a boxer who was doing all of that, but got alittle too "psyched" up as he punched himself in the face. The self-inflicted blow cracked the boxer's jaw and the second blow broke his nose and put him down for the count. How unfortunate for this athlete, that he was carried away on a stretcher before his opponent ever stepped foot in the ring.

Many of us go through life doing exactly what this athlete did. Often times it is the self inflicted pain that we cause ourselves that creates the most damage. The biggest self-inflicted blow that strikes us the feeling of fear...

"For what I fear comes upon me, and what I dread befalls me."  -JOB (Job 3:25)

We all have the capability of sabotaging our own lives if we allow our fears to determine our destiny. Fear can lead to self-inflicted blows that we may never be able to recover from. Fear can also leave us feeling discontented or restless with life.

RESTLESSNESS IS THINKING... "I am not in charge!"
Worry often comes from the fear of not being in control, it leaves us feeling restless. Restlessness is perhaps one of the best words I can think of to describe our generation. Looking around at our culture, it appears that we are a nation that is bored, restless and desiring to be in control of every aspect of our lives.

In last week's YOUR OPINION MATTERS POLL, I polled the readers the following question, "What brings you contentment?" The top 3 answers were:

1. 91% voted and said that knowing God is in control brings contentment.
2. 41% responded and said having a loving family brings contentment.
3. 33% voted that knowing their kids were being taken care of brought them contentment.

I was so pleased that the majority of votes declared that contentment comes from God! I read a poll in a NEWSWEEK edition asking Christian teens this question:

"Can a good person who does not share your religious beliefs attain salvation or go to heaven?"

68% of the voting Christian teens said YES they can!
Let that set in for a minute...2/3 of teenagers being raised in church believe that there is NO significant difference between their own faith and other religions. What has happened in our world that "what we believe" and "what we do" is now two separate worlds? I would guess that it goes back to that boxer who caused self-inflicted wounds to himself, like him, we all want to be in control. We want to be in control of what we do, what we say and what we believe.

If we let someone else get into the ring with us, somehow, we surrender our control. But the truth of it is, without God in the ring with us, we cannot win. We are already defeated.

MATTHEW 11:30 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

God will require some things of us when we surrender our lives over to Him. He may require us to give some things up and He may require us to step out of our comfort zone. But when we submit everything to Him and place our lives under His control, we are no longer restless athletes but content ones.

"Jesus did not come to earth to teach Christianity, He is Christianity. Remove Jesus from the equation and Christianity collapses." -Josh McDowell

Who is in control of your fight ... You or God? Make sure He is in the ring with you!

Shadows are scary

Last night in the middle of the night, I heard a rustling noise. It awoke me from my dead sleep, as I looked across my dark bedroom I noticed a shadow over in the corner. I couldn't quite make out what the shadow was... was it something I had left there? or was it someone hiding in the corner? My imagination went wild and I found myself frozen in time for a second.

Shadows can be so deceiving to us!

Shadows always appear larger than life. Think about it...when you see your shadow in front of you out on the street, doesn't it reach far beyond your actual size? Those things in life that can seem so threatening always appear bigger than they are in reality.

PSALM 23
"The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows. Surely goodness and loving kindness will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

When I turned on the bedroom light I saw that the shadow was exactly that ... just a shadow! It only appeared to be something it was not, but the light gave me a different perspective. When we apply His light to our circumstances, our perspective can change. Many times it is in the valleys (or the shadows of life) that we come face to face with God. It is in these moments that we just don't talk about God...we talk to God!

Shadows may seem scary.
God's light will always illuminate His goodness and kindness. All the days of our life!

and this has been a piece of my heart today;