So I stand and watch you walk by,
the thoughts in my mind I try to hide,
I know the past can never be redone,
so I'll have to let go of what I've made
in my mind,
I'll bury it all in a grave, marked to say
"The things that I once thought". #goodbyetovainimaginations
Vain Imaginations...We are warned to fend them off, we are warned to keep ourselves from getting caught up in vain imaginations. But how often we do?! I think the 'World' encourages 'Vain imaginations'; It encourages thinking things that aren't based on reality, but instead, the way we 'feel'.
Feelings can't always be trusted, but it all depends on what they are based upon. If feelings are based on obedience and surrender to God, then God can use them to guard us, but if they are based on our own 'vain imaginations' or 'flesh' then they can get us into trouble.
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the the pulling down of strongholds) 5 Casting down imaginations, reasoning, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled. 7. Do you look on things after the outward appearance? 2 Cor 10: 3-7
Do you ever imagine something so well that you think it is real? We human beings have a tendency to get ourselves in a lot of trouble because we believe that aren't true. Sometimes we hope for things that will never be, or should never be, but there's something inside that makes us desire what 'we can't have' or the impossible. Sometimes this is just stirred by rebellion, other times I wonder what it is caused by...The Bible says in Proverbs 13:12 that 'Hope' deferred make the heart sick...It's true. You see I don't know what goes on in every person's head, but I know for a fact that some of us have a tendency, to imagine things, believe in their significance (believe things, people, offers are as we imagine them) ... we hope and hope, that things will turn out, or we will happen as we imagine, but it's nothing more than getting caught up in vain imaginations...and having our hope deferred.
We are warned in the bible to guard our minds and hearts...When we imagine things, get caught up in our dreaming, and base the future on 'things we imagined' but not 'the will of God' we set ourselves up for a emotional let down. We weren't designed to believe or hope for things that won't come to pass. It's because we let our fleshes lead the way, it's because we let ourselves become attached to our own ideas for our lives, relationships, etc...that we come to ruin.
A lot of times we let our own desire/ 'vanity' lead the way. Not that everything that we hope for that doesn't turn out, is based on unnatural desires, or 'bad' things, but the fact is... anything that isn't surrendered to God, is vanity. Your thoughts, your hopes, your dreams, your goals, your relationships...if they aren't surrendered to God, they are vanity...And so, as Solomon realized in His book of Ecclesiastes:
I said in mine heart, Go to now, "I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure; and behold this also is vanity....
In Ecclesiaties2: 4-9 Solomon expresses how he was successful, and did many 'great' things for himself. Kind of like some of us; we go to college, buy a house, land a good job, find a mate...But Solomon realized that in the end, that it all was 'vain' to base his life on.
And in chapter 10 verse 14 he says "A fool...also is full of words: a man cannot tell what shall be; and what shall be after him, who can tell him?"
If we cannot tell what shall be, why is it we put our hope so much in things that are uncertain? And usually, we put our hope in things that is our vanity. Not that we cannot have desires, not that we shouldn't want good things...but they are vain if we 'live' for them, before putting Christ first. I think anyone who isn't willing to place his life in the hands of Christ, not only clings to vanity, but puts his hope in vanity. This is where man puts his trust in 'Vain' Imaginations, before putting it in God himself.
Even those of us who say 'we give our lives to the Lord to do with them as he sees fit', even those of us who say 'we surrender our past, present, and future to Him'...we tend to get do exactly the opposite and put our faith in vain imaginations, or our own reasoning, or our own desire for vanity. Nothing, my friends is a holy desire, if it comes before God Himself, or 'His' will.
A lot of times we put our hope in things that aren't even feasible, or beneficial. Thank goodness, we have a God who watches over us, and is 'gracious' towards us. He is merciful, and faithful, even at times when we get distracted by the world and it's offers. What is important though...is that we come to realize 'what it is we are putting our hope in'. If we are putting our hope in things that for our own glory...or putting our hope in things, or 'going hard' after things, people, jobs etc...and then ask God to 'bless' it, after we have 'already' set our heart on it...it's kind of like an oxymoron.
People have the wrong view on God's Commands... God's will... and 'Surrender'.
They would rather not hear about finding their purpose in Christ, because frankly it just seems too 'ariy'. It's not what they want to hear...and they don't understand it.
I mentioned that some folks have the wrong view on God's commands. For example; a lot of teens have the wrong view on 'their own parents' commands. Now, not everyone has 'perfect' parents, but we must realize that 'God' 'is' the 'perfect', 'most awesome' 'parent'. He's not fallible, not ever changing in His love and desire for You, and He wants to you be full of 'Joy', 'Peace', and the overwhelming sense of 'belonging' to Him. He doesn't want you to feel like an orphan, and he doesn't want you to act like He isn't the 'inventor' of 'cool', because He is! The Lord has 'plans' for You. His plans aren't always what we imagine, because His plans are based on 'His' 'will'. It's God's 'will' and 'purpose' for You, to be a light in the darkness. It's God will and purpose for you, to not only draw closer to Him, but to become completely dependant, and fall in love with Him.
Many of us would rather live for our own vanity. What we don't realize is that vanity means (vapor)....Our vanities are passing away, here one day, and gone the other. Everything in life fades away, except the love of God. We are living for things, and pushing God away from consuming us, because we want to live for our 'vain imaginations', before all else. We have made gods, idols, out of our own plans for our lives, and our own hopes.
What we don't understand is that the only way to truly 'live' and 'be inwardly satisfied' is to be consumed by God's love. This is a great purpose of our lives. We do not live until we experience Love. God is love, and love comes from God. And until we realize that we only truly 'live' by surrendering to His love, will continue to live vane lives that revolve around ourselves...Vapor lives, that will not survive us after we are dead and gone.
It is all too common for us to plan things, imagine things, hope for things, that aren't reality, or God's perfect will..and then blame Him for not making our plans succeed. We set our selves up to fall down. How? We do not let Him lead us each step of the way. We place our hope in our dreams, before we place our hope in the Lord. We believe in our own ability, more than we believe/Trust God. We don't trust Him with our lives, because we think we are being faithful to our goals or dreams, when in reality we are failing to live our Creator's will for our lives. A lot of times our own imagined fantasies, are more real and legit to us that the truth. Which is why we fight for them, at times against God. When in reality, God is trying to hand us something better, but we want what we have put our hope in, that which we don't realize will only defer our hope, and scar us with disappointment.
There is so much Joy, inner peace, and contentment to be found in a live totally dependant on God...if we put our hope in God, and place our faith in Him first; we will not let our hope be abused.
Also I know I mentioned that some folks don't have the proper view on God's commands, and Surrender. These are big enough topics to make separate blog posts about, but I will just start up on what I meant...
I know people, and meet people that wasted their lives away on 'vain imaginations'. They believed the world or the world's way could offer them the fulfillment that they desired, and trust me, none of them, who knew the truth didn't land up scared in some way. I feel bad for so many of the people out there, especially youth, who grew up without knowing or believing the truth, and so they set their hearts up to be broken, they bodies to be soiled, their hopes to be rotted. God tells us the right way to go in all things in His word, but there are some things that it does not say 'right out' this does not mean, that God has not showed us the good way to go about doing things, and living, so that we will not set our hearts on vain imaginations, or things that will only make our hope defer.
A lot of times we place our hope in vain imaginations, when we do not trust, or live according to the will of God, or by the wisdom He has given those around you to council you. God tells us the right way to go, and gave us commands in scripture....SO that we will be blessed, healthy, fruitful, prosperous!! In life it's always a choice between...the 'bad' and the 'good', the 'good' and the 'best'. Sometimes we think that that we are wise because we aren't living a life of sin, but this doesn't mean that we are always choosing to live in the fullness of what God would have for us...because lot of times we let our own impatience, and desire lead us in settling for mediocre, when we could have 'the best'. But we can only have 'the best' through Christ.
If we put our hope in our own ability, we will realize that we let ourselves down. If we put our hope, faith in other people, we will come to realize that people can also let us down. If we put our hope in dreams, or earthly desires, we will realize that some things are less certain than we imagine, and that nothing can fill the place of Christ. We may think we know what we want, and that that will fulfill us, but the truth is we resort to vain imaginations many a times, we go back to searching for things we shouldn't, because we have an emptiness inside that only God can fill up. We tell ourselves that's not it, it's because we were made to have what we desire, but truly it's because our hearts want something to pursue, to pursue something that will fill us, something that is worth placing our hope in, something that can take us to places greater than we see around us, something or someone that will make us feel more than a merit less soul. We want purpose, we want to fight for something, we want to imagine something that is greater than what we already have, we want a fulfilling relationship...and none of this is wrong, because honestly, what we want is something we overlook, something that we've been offered, but yet many of us look to replace...
Jesus.
Yes.
He is.
What you want.
What you need.
Proverbs 13:12 ~ Hope deferred makes the heart sick...but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Let's stop setting ourselves up for deferred hope. Let's instead put our faith, hope in God himself. Because He is what we really need most.
See how Solomon sums his book up:
in chapter 12: verse 8, he says "Vanity of Vanities...all is Vanity"....
But He concludes thus:
12:13 'The End of the matter; all has been heard, Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of Man'....
We must be willing to 'surrender' our thoughts to God...We must not only, 'say' that we give our lives to Him, but we must not let ourselves get caught up in a worship (continual pondering) for what we want, when God tells us not to. The fact is we do this with things that is not God's will. We try to run our own lives, and we place our faith in things that have not be established or approved by God for our lives. We not only place our faith in things that are not reality, or beneficial possibility, but we let our own impatience, or flesh lead the way, and our imaginations soar without holy restraint. We must be willing to give our imaginations, our dreams, and our desires up to God.
God wants us to place our faith and hope in Him. He won't let us down. 'Seek Him'. Also, seek He will give you the desires of your heart; because the heart that seeks after God, puts Him first, and God will give Him the other things, because He knows they aren't what He 'serves'. Consider, that some of the things you may desire, that you feel God hasn't helped you attain, or given you, may be because the only reason you are seeking God, is to receive them. God wants to be 'God', in your life. Above your hopes, above your dreams, above your relationships, above yourself.
Don't let your hope be deferred!
The Lord knows those who put their Trust In 'Him'.
If He's first, you aren't ever missing out. Trust Your life to Him,
He knows what will be the very 'best' for you!
He loves you.
And that my friend,
is not a 'vain imagination'.
Photo
Friday, January 13, 2012
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
The Choice: When Passions Go Dim and Hearts Grow Cold Part 1
There's a lot of different choices we can make in life; but this blog post is particularly about a 'certain' choice....
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Discovering God....
So this title for a book popped into my head and onto paper. I don't know whether or not it was inspired by something I've read or what, but I think it would be a great name for a new book ;)
"Discovering God amidst a world of Doubt, Apathy, and Disillusion."
So...maybe I'll start blogging for this.
"Discovering God amidst a world of Doubt, Apathy, and Disillusion."
So...maybe I'll start blogging for this.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
The Courage to Change: Jesus is Your 'Friend'
Friendship is wonderful. There is really nothing to be compared with it. Friendship is special.
People motivate us in many ways....and for me, Friendship...It's a big motivator.
I suppose most of us understand the feeling of donating either time, money, attention, care, on someone other than ourselves. Perhaps you are the the kind of person that gives even more, who dons love, and the qualities that love produces such as compassion, long suffering, patience, and servitude...
How are you motivated by friendship? Everyone wants a good friend. Someone they call talk to about the matters of their heart, and feel safe with. Someone they can laugh with as well as cry with. Someone they can be serious with, and yet be silly with. Someone to whom they can be themselves around, and will love them for who they are. Someone who they can love, make happy, and lend a hand to as well. As much as everyone wants someone who will love 'them'...I believe deep down inside, everyone wants someone whom they can 'love', and 'give' to. Someone they can give of themselves to. Of course there are those who are more on 'wanting to be given to' side, and then there are those who lean more to the 'wanting to give' side. But both are ends of the same string.
Love ignites more Love. When you love someone, they almost can't help but love you back. Maybe not always to the same degree, but 'Love' does stir something in most anybody. You love someone..watch them grow...watch them become more confident, more encouraged...Love is what makes Friendship even more special than just having common interests. Love makes friendships last.
Personally, I think that most of the horrible friendship breakups are because there was a lack of love somewhere in the equation. Although there are circumstances where people change, or friends drift into different relationships with each other, some beneficial, some not. Some friends remain walking with you the same pace, the same path. They are like life long friends. There are those that pop out, and then pop back in, because although they may not be 'extremely close' they do still consider you a friend and care about you. Life is busy that's all.
There are different types of so called "friendships" that people create to be sure. But a true friend is really someone who cares about you, shares with you, and prays for you. A true Friend is someone you can count on, someone who is faithful. Friendship is a broad topic, so much can be mentioned. So much can be discussed. Good friendships, Bad 'friendships...It could fit in several blog posts to be sure.
By now this might not seem to par with what I've been mentioning but, I have this question, and it is this: 'How much do you dedicate, donate, give, to those you love?' Your: "Friends".
Sometimes I feel like we can get to carried away with friends (other people) and our relationships with them, that they become like idols. Have you ever considered how much time and thought you give to friends? Don't get me wrong, friendships are good, and they are necessary...but sometimes they get out of hand. They consume us. We begin to give too much to other people, the time we should be giving to Christ perhaps? We let other people determine our level of joy. This is not how God would have it. Other People are a big happiness factor...but they should never determine our "Joy" before Christ.
If some relationship, some friendship you are in, has caused you to take your eyes off of Christ, and/or has stolen your joy...you should probably reconsider the direction of the relationship...
Joy and Liberty are two things that we should never consider as things we get by other people. Joy and Liberty have both already been bought for us, by the blood of Christ. He has died for us, and He has risen for us. We are to be Joyful, and derive our joy from the Lord...we must not let the enemy dampen it. Liberty is what we have by Christ, we are free in Him! we must not let others determine our liberty. Yes, there are times when the Christian is held captive, but in his heart, his is free, and he must still shine the light of the Lord.
You may wonder; "What is wrong with putting so much into a friend?" After all, everyone needs someone to give to, and someone who will give back". Yes true...But when it gets overboard is when your best friend, the one you love the most, are willing to give the most to, is not Jesus Christ but _____________.
Jesus wants to be Your Best Friend. No one else is as Faithful as Him. No one else is more loving, more caring, more compassionate then Him. No one else has given so much for you, and no one else likes you better for who you are. There is no one else who sees You like He sees you. There is no one else who hopes the best for you like He does. And there is no one else who will do for You what He can and will do for you. Why? Because Jesus is the Ultimate Friend. Not only because He 'can' be, but because 'He' is. In his heart there is not yesterday, but today...for If you desire him, every day you are in the best of friendships.
The best thing is, Jesus is the same...yesterday, today, and forever. His love for you is strong, and not changing with the tide. He desires you, He wants you, and He welcome you. I can't say I'm not doing my own changing, because that wouldn't be honest. That last part especially, that Christ is welcoming me to draw near to Him is a different concept. He is not hiding for me to find Him, not locking the door, and giving me a treasure map instead...but He is always present.
There is more to being Friends with God than what our human understanding tells us. I've been thinking that in order to get closer with God, I must do certain things. And I know some of these things would be beneficial, but God is calling each of us to give our love to Him, in the ways that we individually show it. Not everyone gives gifts to show that they are thinking about someone, or they love them. Some do. But just because someone doesn't always give gifts doesn't mean that they love less, they may just have another way of giving their love. As long as they do.
Some people give creative gifts to God to pour out their love for Him. They write songs, they play instruments, kind of like King David...some paint pictures...some do not creatively show their love for the Lord. This does not mean they love the Lord less....Now, there is truth that not everybody knows how to be a true friend to the same degree...in such a way, not everybody has the same relationship with the Lord. We all differ.
But the fact is, no matter who we be, we need to be focusing on God more. We need to make Him the center of our Universe. We need to sweep our the other cares, and the idols we place before him, we need to set Christ back where He should, and wants to go. He loved you first. Remember that. And so it is, we love others, 'because', he first loved us.
Lord, I pray that we would care deeply about others, and be true friends. Show us what friendship really means. But teach us not to let friendships determine our livelyhood. May be remember that it is by You that we move, live, and have our being. I know that you want us to care for others, so that we may make differences in their lives. And I know that you search all hearts. But, Lord I just pray that we would draw even closer to You. That we would be in awe of You. That we would look at Your sacrifice on the cross, and we would look to your ressurection, and would realize that that is what should motivate us the strongest of all.
Forgive us for when we are destracted. Lord, I know that you realize, even more than I realize right now that we are not yet face to face. And until that day, we are not so close as to touch your hands your side....one day we will be face to face, one day you will walk with us, talk with us, and we will hear your voice like running waters, and run into your arms, and let you swing us around. We do not have that yet.
You know that we are yet awaiting that. You are awaiting your bride groom. You are awaiting your dear friends. Until that day Father I pray we would keep prospective. You would teach us how to have a friendship with You, and realize that you truly are our friend. For there is a Friend closer and truer....and It is You.
People motivate us in many ways....and for me, Friendship...It's a big motivator.
I suppose most of us understand the feeling of donating either time, money, attention, care, on someone other than ourselves. Perhaps you are the the kind of person that gives even more, who dons love, and the qualities that love produces such as compassion, long suffering, patience, and servitude...
How are you motivated by friendship? Everyone wants a good friend. Someone they call talk to about the matters of their heart, and feel safe with. Someone they can laugh with as well as cry with. Someone they can be serious with, and yet be silly with. Someone to whom they can be themselves around, and will love them for who they are. Someone who they can love, make happy, and lend a hand to as well. As much as everyone wants someone who will love 'them'...I believe deep down inside, everyone wants someone whom they can 'love', and 'give' to. Someone they can give of themselves to. Of course there are those who are more on 'wanting to be given to' side, and then there are those who lean more to the 'wanting to give' side. But both are ends of the same string.
Love ignites more Love. When you love someone, they almost can't help but love you back. Maybe not always to the same degree, but 'Love' does stir something in most anybody. You love someone..watch them grow...watch them become more confident, more encouraged...Love is what makes Friendship even more special than just having common interests. Love makes friendships last.
Personally, I think that most of the horrible friendship breakups are because there was a lack of love somewhere in the equation. Although there are circumstances where people change, or friends drift into different relationships with each other, some beneficial, some not. Some friends remain walking with you the same pace, the same path. They are like life long friends. There are those that pop out, and then pop back in, because although they may not be 'extremely close' they do still consider you a friend and care about you. Life is busy that's all.
There are different types of so called "friendships" that people create to be sure. But a true friend is really someone who cares about you, shares with you, and prays for you. A true Friend is someone you can count on, someone who is faithful. Friendship is a broad topic, so much can be mentioned. So much can be discussed. Good friendships, Bad 'friendships...It could fit in several blog posts to be sure.
By now this might not seem to par with what I've been mentioning but, I have this question, and it is this: 'How much do you dedicate, donate, give, to those you love?' Your: "Friends".
Sometimes I feel like we can get to carried away with friends (other people) and our relationships with them, that they become like idols. Have you ever considered how much time and thought you give to friends? Don't get me wrong, friendships are good, and they are necessary...but sometimes they get out of hand. They consume us. We begin to give too much to other people, the time we should be giving to Christ perhaps? We let other people determine our level of joy. This is not how God would have it. Other People are a big happiness factor...but they should never determine our "Joy" before Christ.
If some relationship, some friendship you are in, has caused you to take your eyes off of Christ, and/or has stolen your joy...you should probably reconsider the direction of the relationship...
Joy and Liberty are two things that we should never consider as things we get by other people. Joy and Liberty have both already been bought for us, by the blood of Christ. He has died for us, and He has risen for us. We are to be Joyful, and derive our joy from the Lord...we must not let the enemy dampen it. Liberty is what we have by Christ, we are free in Him! we must not let others determine our liberty. Yes, there are times when the Christian is held captive, but in his heart, his is free, and he must still shine the light of the Lord.
You may wonder; "What is wrong with putting so much into a friend?" After all, everyone needs someone to give to, and someone who will give back". Yes true...But when it gets overboard is when your best friend, the one you love the most, are willing to give the most to, is not Jesus Christ but _____________.
Jesus wants to be Your Best Friend. No one else is as Faithful as Him. No one else is more loving, more caring, more compassionate then Him. No one else has given so much for you, and no one else likes you better for who you are. There is no one else who sees You like He sees you. There is no one else who hopes the best for you like He does. And there is no one else who will do for You what He can and will do for you. Why? Because Jesus is the Ultimate Friend. Not only because He 'can' be, but because 'He' is. In his heart there is not yesterday, but today...for If you desire him, every day you are in the best of friendships.
The best thing is, Jesus is the same...yesterday, today, and forever. His love for you is strong, and not changing with the tide. He desires you, He wants you, and He welcome you. I can't say I'm not doing my own changing, because that wouldn't be honest. That last part especially, that Christ is welcoming me to draw near to Him is a different concept. He is not hiding for me to find Him, not locking the door, and giving me a treasure map instead...but He is always present.
There is more to being Friends with God than what our human understanding tells us. I've been thinking that in order to get closer with God, I must do certain things. And I know some of these things would be beneficial, but God is calling each of us to give our love to Him, in the ways that we individually show it. Not everyone gives gifts to show that they are thinking about someone, or they love them. Some do. But just because someone doesn't always give gifts doesn't mean that they love less, they may just have another way of giving their love. As long as they do.
Some people give creative gifts to God to pour out their love for Him. They write songs, they play instruments, kind of like King David...some paint pictures...some do not creatively show their love for the Lord. This does not mean they love the Lord less....Now, there is truth that not everybody knows how to be a true friend to the same degree...in such a way, not everybody has the same relationship with the Lord. We all differ.
But the fact is, no matter who we be, we need to be focusing on God more. We need to make Him the center of our Universe. We need to sweep our the other cares, and the idols we place before him, we need to set Christ back where He should, and wants to go. He loved you first. Remember that. And so it is, we love others, 'because', he first loved us.
Lord, I pray that we would care deeply about others, and be true friends. Show us what friendship really means. But teach us not to let friendships determine our livelyhood. May be remember that it is by You that we move, live, and have our being. I know that you want us to care for others, so that we may make differences in their lives. And I know that you search all hearts. But, Lord I just pray that we would draw even closer to You. That we would be in awe of You. That we would look at Your sacrifice on the cross, and we would look to your ressurection, and would realize that that is what should motivate us the strongest of all.
Forgive us for when we are destracted. Lord, I know that you realize, even more than I realize right now that we are not yet face to face. And until that day, we are not so close as to touch your hands your side....one day we will be face to face, one day you will walk with us, talk with us, and we will hear your voice like running waters, and run into your arms, and let you swing us around. We do not have that yet.
You know that we are yet awaiting that. You are awaiting your bride groom. You are awaiting your dear friends. Until that day Father I pray we would keep prospective. You would teach us how to have a friendship with You, and realize that you truly are our friend. For there is a Friend closer and truer....and It is You.
Friday, November 25, 2011
The Courage to Change: Praise & Thanksgiving
Here in America we celebrate a holiday called 'Thanksgiving'. We cook a big turkey, make mashed potatoes, and have pumpkin pie. A lot of folks though, don't really understand the title of this day of feasting. I hear a lot of people calling it "turkey day" instead. People have forgotten how to give Thanks. The word promotes 'want', 'desire', 'lust', and 'greed'. We have forgotten how to give thanks, and some of us have even forgotten, 'what' Thanks is. We are taught to want more than we have. If we search even deeper, we would find that by 'instinct', we want what we do not, or cannot have. It's a part of the sinful nature of man.
I think it is rather ironic, that the day after "Thanksgiving", is called "Black Friday", and it is a day of want, want, want, greed, greed, greed. Everyone wants what is on sale, even if they don't really need it.
The US has forgotten the meaning of "Thanksgiving"....And we have forgotten the reason for giving Thanks.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 ~ In everything give thanks: for 'this' is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1 Chronicles 16:34 ~ O Give thanks to the LORD; for He is good; for His mercy endures for ever.
Psalms 18:49 ~ Therefore will I give thanks to you, O LORD, among the heathen, and sing praises to Your name.
Psalms 30:4 - Sing to the Lord, O you saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness.
Psalms 30:12 - To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you for ever.
Why do we give Thanks? We give thanks firstly, because we are blessed. What greater gift have we been given than eternal life? What more moving gift have we been given than the death of Christ in our place for sin? You see...According to the law and sin...you most likely wouldn't even exist right now. But, Christ bore the penalty for your sin on the cross. He also rose again in order to be a victor over not only sin, but death its self. Do we not have something to be Thankful for?? Why do we all live as if we are still under the law? We whine over this, we whine over that. We doubt, we cry, we panic. We fear everything will crumble right under our feet. We fear life, we fear death, we fear every breath. Why? I think a lot of it is because we do not give thanks. And we do not believe that God is in Control.
"In everything give thanks...How do we do that? Obviously, there are hurdles in our lives that we don't always feel thankful for. There are people in our lives that sometimes we would rather see punished than give thanks... even when they hurt us. We would rather cry ourselves to sleep, sit in misery, or scream out that we are dissatisfied. We see giving thanks as a fantasy, of some sort of 'pretending' to not see the circumstance as it really is. This is not true. Giving Thanks is not a cop out, or refusal of reality. If anything it is the opposite. Read the rest of the Scripture..."In everything give thanks: for 'this' is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."
Give Thanks in everything 'not' because it is easy, not just in the times you have everything that you want. But also in the times you are going through the worst trials. Give Thanks, Praise God...through 'everything'. For it is 'the will of God' that as His child, you do so. When we give thanks to God, even when we are experiencing hell fire; when we praise the Lord, even when we don't feel like it...We surrender our pity, our pride, our situation to God, and a proclamation that "We trust Him", and we realize that in order for things to get better, we must think on what is good, and not get caught up in pessimism and doubt.
If we do not praise God in our storms, we get caught up in our pain. We think on it, mull over it, all the way to depression. Those who do harmful things to themselves are the fruit of those who did not 'give thanks, or praise God' in everything. My friends, we no longer have to be under the law of guilt, or sorrow. Jesus Christ has paid the penalty for our sins, and those of others. Giving Thanks even in the hard things, is almost the same as the concept of 'loving those who spitefully use you'. It's like 'praying' for those, who abuse you. God wants our hearts not to be tied down so tightly to this earth. In reality, He wants us to live lives in the light of Liberty.
Stop being in bondage to your pain, or to the lies of others...Give God praise in all circumstances. He is worthy of your consideration, of your honor, and of your worship. Only when we surrender our pain, our sin, our relationships, our concerns to God will we begin to change. It's by making the decision to Worship Him, even in the hard times of our lives. Choosing to cling to our pain, our hurt, our guilt...is not only prideful, and selfish...it is detrimental to our selves. God knew we would experience trials, and tribulations. He knew that the world's and other peoples' sin still would have their arrows, that bring hurt, and pain etc.
Life was not fair to Christ, so it is not fair to us...But Christ has left us an example, and He has told us that it is God's will that we do not let sin, or it's fruit overtake us. It is alright to be angry. But do not stay angry over night. It's alright to feel sorrow, Jesus cried...but do not let sorrow steal your Joy away in serving the God of Liberty and Consolation. God wants us to live in the world, but not 'of' the world. Those of the world, who do not know the Christ, have no hope when bad things happen. Do not be like the heathen who have no hope. Do not ignore Christ and the healing He can bring. Remember, His is in You, and you are in Him. You are not your own, nor are you ever 'alone'. When people hurt you, they hurt Christ in You.
When you are guilty, ask for forgiveness and move on...Christ has died for You. Christ has Risen. Christ is with You. This is enough to give thanks for. Let Christ give you peace, even in the fires of life. The fruit of the Spirit, proves that love, peace, long suffering...are not supposed to be seasonal. Sometimes it may be hard to see God in the bleak moments of life. It may be hard to pray for those who are rude to you. It may be almost impossible you think to love those who have hated you...But listen, every time you choose to love instead of let hate eat you up, every time you let your focus go on a God, who is: FOREVER good, gracious, holy, loving, just, powerful, and merciful you do yourself a giant favor, and you do others a giant favor.
You save yourself from letting evil, sin, and injustice win. It's similar to what I was mentioning in an earlier blog post, on offenses. People can harm you, bad things can happen, mistakes take place, but if you let them consume you in thought, attitude, and reign over your living you let them win over you. Only believing the truth, praying or praising God...will set you free from not only hatred, bitterness, but lies and brokenness etc, etc!
* * * * *
I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise will be continually on my mouth. My soul shall boast in the LORD; the humble shall hear and be glad. Magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together! I sought the LORD and he heard me and, and delivered me from all my fears.They looked to him, and were ashamed. This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps round about them that fear Him, and delivers them. O taste and see that the LORD is good!; blessed is the man that trusts in him. O fear the LORD you his saints; for there is no want to them that fear Him. ~ Pslam 34: 1-9
* * * * *
Come all ye creation! Come praise the Lord for His Goodnes! He is Forever Faithful, He is Forever Good. Come all ye sinners, come all ye saints, come all ye broken, fearful, and faint.
Come praise the Lord for His Mercy. His Love endures Forever.
Focus on Christ. You are His child. Everything else should get second dibs. You belong to Jesus, and he has sacrificed all for You. Focus on His goodness today, give Him what He deserves. When you let other things, your circumstances, other people's wrong doings, your own wrong, completely 'consume' you, you are pushing Christ aside, and living as if He is not all that He has proved to Be. Live in the Liberty of Jesus, Praise Him! You have so much to be thankful for...Try and focus on the good things.
Jesus has given you in your life. And Praise Him in your storms as well. He is Faithful, and He is True.. Taste and See! that the Lord is Good!
Lay everything else down before His feet.
Lay Um Down - Music Vid version
http://youtu.be/3PN-BMHi5L8
Lay Um Down - w/ Lyrics bellow
http://youtu.be/k1QMmWlOmEQ
I think it is rather ironic, that the day after "Thanksgiving", is called "Black Friday", and it is a day of want, want, want, greed, greed, greed. Everyone wants what is on sale, even if they don't really need it.
The US has forgotten the meaning of "Thanksgiving"....And we have forgotten the reason for giving Thanks.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 ~ In everything give thanks: for 'this' is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1 Chronicles 16:34 ~ O Give thanks to the LORD; for He is good; for His mercy endures for ever.
Psalms 18:49 ~ Therefore will I give thanks to you, O LORD, among the heathen, and sing praises to Your name.
Psalms 30:4 - Sing to the Lord, O you saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness.
Psalms 30:12 - To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you for ever.
Why do we give Thanks? We give thanks firstly, because we are blessed. What greater gift have we been given than eternal life? What more moving gift have we been given than the death of Christ in our place for sin? You see...According to the law and sin...you most likely wouldn't even exist right now. But, Christ bore the penalty for your sin on the cross. He also rose again in order to be a victor over not only sin, but death its self. Do we not have something to be Thankful for?? Why do we all live as if we are still under the law? We whine over this, we whine over that. We doubt, we cry, we panic. We fear everything will crumble right under our feet. We fear life, we fear death, we fear every breath. Why? I think a lot of it is because we do not give thanks. And we do not believe that God is in Control.
"In everything give thanks...How do we do that? Obviously, there are hurdles in our lives that we don't always feel thankful for. There are people in our lives that sometimes we would rather see punished than give thanks... even when they hurt us. We would rather cry ourselves to sleep, sit in misery, or scream out that we are dissatisfied. We see giving thanks as a fantasy, of some sort of 'pretending' to not see the circumstance as it really is. This is not true. Giving Thanks is not a cop out, or refusal of reality. If anything it is the opposite. Read the rest of the Scripture..."In everything give thanks: for 'this' is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."
Give Thanks in everything 'not' because it is easy, not just in the times you have everything that you want. But also in the times you are going through the worst trials. Give Thanks, Praise God...through 'everything'. For it is 'the will of God' that as His child, you do so. When we give thanks to God, even when we are experiencing hell fire; when we praise the Lord, even when we don't feel like it...We surrender our pity, our pride, our situation to God, and a proclamation that "We trust Him", and we realize that in order for things to get better, we must think on what is good, and not get caught up in pessimism and doubt.
If we do not praise God in our storms, we get caught up in our pain. We think on it, mull over it, all the way to depression. Those who do harmful things to themselves are the fruit of those who did not 'give thanks, or praise God' in everything. My friends, we no longer have to be under the law of guilt, or sorrow. Jesus Christ has paid the penalty for our sins, and those of others. Giving Thanks even in the hard things, is almost the same as the concept of 'loving those who spitefully use you'. It's like 'praying' for those, who abuse you. God wants our hearts not to be tied down so tightly to this earth. In reality, He wants us to live lives in the light of Liberty.
Stop being in bondage to your pain, or to the lies of others...Give God praise in all circumstances. He is worthy of your consideration, of your honor, and of your worship. Only when we surrender our pain, our sin, our relationships, our concerns to God will we begin to change. It's by making the decision to Worship Him, even in the hard times of our lives. Choosing to cling to our pain, our hurt, our guilt...is not only prideful, and selfish...it is detrimental to our selves. God knew we would experience trials, and tribulations. He knew that the world's and other peoples' sin still would have their arrows, that bring hurt, and pain etc.
Life was not fair to Christ, so it is not fair to us...But Christ has left us an example, and He has told us that it is God's will that we do not let sin, or it's fruit overtake us. It is alright to be angry. But do not stay angry over night. It's alright to feel sorrow, Jesus cried...but do not let sorrow steal your Joy away in serving the God of Liberty and Consolation. God wants us to live in the world, but not 'of' the world. Those of the world, who do not know the Christ, have no hope when bad things happen. Do not be like the heathen who have no hope. Do not ignore Christ and the healing He can bring. Remember, His is in You, and you are in Him. You are not your own, nor are you ever 'alone'. When people hurt you, they hurt Christ in You.
When you are guilty, ask for forgiveness and move on...Christ has died for You. Christ has Risen. Christ is with You. This is enough to give thanks for. Let Christ give you peace, even in the fires of life. The fruit of the Spirit, proves that love, peace, long suffering...are not supposed to be seasonal. Sometimes it may be hard to see God in the bleak moments of life. It may be hard to pray for those who are rude to you. It may be almost impossible you think to love those who have hated you...But listen, every time you choose to love instead of let hate eat you up, every time you let your focus go on a God, who is: FOREVER good, gracious, holy, loving, just, powerful, and merciful you do yourself a giant favor, and you do others a giant favor.
You save yourself from letting evil, sin, and injustice win. It's similar to what I was mentioning in an earlier blog post, on offenses. People can harm you, bad things can happen, mistakes take place, but if you let them consume you in thought, attitude, and reign over your living you let them win over you. Only believing the truth, praying or praising God...will set you free from not only hatred, bitterness, but lies and brokenness etc, etc!
* * * * *
I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise will be continually on my mouth. My soul shall boast in the LORD; the humble shall hear and be glad. Magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together! I sought the LORD and he heard me and, and delivered me from all my fears.They looked to him, and were ashamed. This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps round about them that fear Him, and delivers them. O taste and see that the LORD is good!; blessed is the man that trusts in him. O fear the LORD you his saints; for there is no want to them that fear Him. ~ Pslam 34: 1-9
* * * * *
Come all ye creation! Come praise the Lord for His Goodnes! He is Forever Faithful, He is Forever Good. Come all ye sinners, come all ye saints, come all ye broken, fearful, and faint.
Come praise the Lord for His Mercy. His Love endures Forever.
Focus on Christ. You are His child. Everything else should get second dibs. You belong to Jesus, and he has sacrificed all for You. Focus on His goodness today, give Him what He deserves. When you let other things, your circumstances, other people's wrong doings, your own wrong, completely 'consume' you, you are pushing Christ aside, and living as if He is not all that He has proved to Be. Live in the Liberty of Jesus, Praise Him! You have so much to be thankful for...Try and focus on the good things.
Jesus has given you in your life. And Praise Him in your storms as well. He is Faithful, and He is True.. Taste and See! that the Lord is Good!
Lay everything else down before His feet.
Lay Um Down - Music Vid version
http://youtu.be/3PN-BMHi5L8
Lay Um Down - w/ Lyrics bellow
http://youtu.be/k1QMmWlOmEQ
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
The Courage to Change: Lies & Doubt
Lies. They tare us apart, they crush us, the consume us, they deter us.
Lies. We believe them and they take us over, they trigger our reactions, they make us change for the worse. Lies. Those things you thought you would never believe, those little whispers you thought
you never listened to. Lies.
Lies are built upon false evidence, lack of understanding, lack of wisdom, lack of reason, lack of love. Lies are one of Satan's best weapons against us and our faith. What a person believes, no matter who they are, no matter what religion they are, or where they grew up, determines their lives. Discover what a man believes, and you will get an understanding as to what you can expect or not expect of him. Search inside and realize what it is you believe, and you will be able trace how it determines your actions.
There is no man that does not believe in something. In order to be agnostic, you must first believe that God doesn't exist. What you believe determines not only how you react but who you will become. Every story, every character, can be an example of this, whether fictional or historic. What a man believes, or 'thinks' to be true or not true, determines how he will act.
Today as I was pondering disbelief, I realize that certain things I have entertained in my mind, certain doubts, are actually 'lies' that I have believed. And I have believed not only these doubts, but the major lie that says 'there is no way out of the doubts'. I have come to the understanding that if I am doubting anything, it means I do not believe it, therefore I am either basing that belief on either a truth or lie.
If a person does not believe that the Bible is true, he will not account to the reality of sin. He will sense that something is 'bad', but he will not have reason to condemn it. In such a cases a landslide takes place... this is how Countries crumble, this is how Empires are formed. Evil becomes nothing more than a point of view, or an opinion of the individual. Humanism begins to break through the ground and spread forth all over. If a person does not believe in the reality of the devil, and lies he will fall prey to every lie, and base his theology on every false hood speakable. Do not let doubt have a grip in your life, not in any area.
Let your view on the Bible, crumble from truth to fiction, and you loose grip on reality. Let lies root and they will try and take you over. People believe all sorts of lies. They believe that nothing is worth while in life if they are not successful, if they are not married, if they do not have a girl friend...they believe that it is alright to kill children, that it is not sin to have sex outside of marriage...they believe that they are really another gender than they were born as, and that homosexuality is acceptable and good. People believe lies such as 'they aren't pretty', 'they aren't loved', 'they will never change'. Almost any problem you may have, or any change you want to make, comes down to ridding yourself of lies, and breaking your ties to them.
I sometimes wonder how this is possible, because I give lies too much power, because at times I believe the 'lie' that 'lies are more powerful than my will'. I must instead believe that Jesus has more power than any lie that I may believe. That He can free me, and fill my mind with the truth. I must not put my faith in my own power either, I must put my faith in the Lord. The fact is, If I am in Christ, no one can snatch me out of His hand. Satan would like to pull down the shades, and make me think I am alone, lost, and helpless, but it is not true.
I like to think of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie, where Lucy believes the lie that she is not pretty, or special, and bases her actions on that lie, even to the point of stealing a spell to make her look like her older sister Susan. I think this is a powerful example, because she wakes up as in a dream and looks in the mirror and she is her sister Susan. She opens the mirror like a door, and exits to an outside party. There she meets up with her two brothers. She asks where "Lucy" is. And the brothers both do not know who she is talking of, and say there is only three of them....Lucy doesn't exist.
Lucy wakes up out of this dream and looks in the mirror to see herself standing there, Aslan, the Great Lion comes beside her and speaks to her, and asks her why she has doubted that she is beautiful the way she was created. Lucy realizes she has been believing a lie.
Other examples can be found in almost every single piece of literature you can pick up. I like to use movie examples, but recently I've been studying the "classics" of literature, and finding they are perhaps some of the greatest examples of the power of belief, and lies. Especially, when you take a look at the lives of the Authors themselves, it is really insightful.
Pride and Prejudice, Frankenstein's Monster, Red and Black, I'd say any of the well known books you can pick up, no matter the time period, author, or genre...they all are not only the story of a character who believes something that motivates him in some way, but the Author who writes out of the sack of his own, painting words and ideas with his theology and with what he himself believes. We are most quite aware of 'wordview', every artist is a prophet of his or hers worldview. And you, may or may not be a prophet of your worldview if you are isolated, but you are a product in many ways, of what you believe.
I am a bit amazed at some of the lies I have believed, I realize that I have been affected by them, even though I didn't consciously receive them. It was more like, the lies had seeped in without me realizing it. I must say that most of lies I have ever believed, are not ones that anyone else told me, but ones I told myself. Can you relate? No one perhaps has looked in your face and told you "You are Ugly", but you believe it none the less. Perhaps no one has ever said to you "I do not love you", but you cannot help thinking you are not loved. What scares me the most is the fact that the enemies lies can get away with, and doubt can get away with leading a person, even when they're void of statements, reason, facts, or proof!
Lies are the basis for Fear and Doubt. Fear is "false evidence appearing real", which means 'fear' is really a 'lie' that one believes and wraps ones emotions around. Doubt is quite similar, only doubt is a lie that one wraps their intellect around, rather than their emotions. I challenge you to break free from the lies that you have believed. You have to want to do it though. You must be brave. Do not believe the lie that says "you are not brave", and "you will never be"...For once step over the red line of fear, doubt, or pride and prove that the lie is mere lie after all. Earlier on I blogged something about "Offenses".
"Offenses" are usually the breeding ground for lies. If you are offended by someone, whether you are hurt by them, back bitten by them, or yelled at etc.. these circumstances, incidents, are perfect atmospheres for the planting of lies. If someone hurts you, for example you may believe the lie that says "everyone will hurt you", if someone treats you wickedly you may believe the lie that "everyone will treat you wickedly". What lies have you been believing? Have you been believing that perhaps your sin is unforgivable? Have you been believing that God isn't real? Have you been believing that you are all right in our relationship with God, but you are really pushing Him away?
In my opinion Pessimism can be the produce of a mix of fear, pride, and doubt. Severe Pessimism is usually the fruit of a lie that has been believed by the individual. Sadly, a lot of us believe lies and base our actions and lives around them. Many do not realize they are even doing so. Most do not realize that when they believe something, whether they believe something is true or not, their belief, is leading their lives. May I say...that we all need to surrender our beliefs to God. We need to surrender our beliefs, not only the ones of Him, and of Others, but also of ourselves. We need to hand over our fears, hand over our doubts, and in doing so, kill the lies.
A lie is not powerful if we do not open our hearts to believe in it. Lies attach our intellect, and they attack our emotions. We must be careful to guard our minds and emotions. May we put on the whole armor of God. Ephesians 6:10-20 The Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, The Sandals of the Gospel, the Shield of Faith, the Helmet of Salvation, the Sword of the Spirit... so that we may fend off the darts of the evil one. Believe that you are God's. Believe that You are in Christ, and He is in you, and that you are in His care. Do not store up marks against God. One of the surest ways to entertain lies is to make a list of all the bad things people do against you, or make a list of all the times God has not answered you in the way you think He should have, and hold this list against your faith, the love of God, or the love of others.
If you foucs on all the bad, you will overlook how much of the good has passed by your head. That is why God says to focus on what is Good, what is pure, what is praise worthy, to seek out these things, and to dwell on them! He wants you to be filled with what is good, so that instead of dwelling on offenses, (the breeding ground for lies) that you would dwell on 'the good' (the breeding ground for faith). If you dwell on the good, your head and heart will be lighter, and you will be stronger in harder times. You have been given ample opportunity to dwell on what is good, and all the good that God has done for you.
What will you choose? will you think on the good? or sit in the puddle of gloom and fester lies? Do no such thing! The Lord says, "I am God, and there is no other. Forget not the hand that saved you, nor the love that is stronger than death". If you choose to let fear, doubt, lies consume you, you are letting them take the throne where God should be sitting in your heart, because God has saved you from having to stay in the dark anymore, and He has proved His love for You.
Do not let anything consume you but Him.
Are you letting lies rule you? What or who, is your Master? Fear? Doubt? Pessimism? Stop listening to the lies of the enemy, and wake up from your slumber. Stop letting offenses handcuff you, instead let love in where you have been hurt, or backstabbed. God is love. He wants you. this is not a lie! This is true!
Devil's Been Talkin - Need To Breathe
Bag of bones and blood red cheeks
Guilty from the words I speak
Say the truth will set you free
But it won't for me
Cause I'm uneasy in my skin
Hangin on by a thread
Life it hasn't left me yet
But I won't forget...
'The Devil's been talkin')
The ship is setting off to sea
But it's sailing without me
I can't help but feel I'm on
An island born to sink
...The devil's been talkin)
We can't change who we are
We are all alone...
'The devil's been talkin'
I'm running out
Of this hole alone
These fingers bled
Down to the bone
And I can't move
This hell is cold
The chorus sings
This is home...
'The devil's been talkin'
Bag of bones and blood red cheeks
Guilty from the words I speak
Say the truth will set you free
But it won't for me;
'The Devil's been talkin'
Lies. We believe them and they take us over, they trigger our reactions, they make us change for the worse. Lies. Those things you thought you would never believe, those little whispers you thought
you never listened to. Lies.
Lies are built upon false evidence, lack of understanding, lack of wisdom, lack of reason, lack of love. Lies are one of Satan's best weapons against us and our faith. What a person believes, no matter who they are, no matter what religion they are, or where they grew up, determines their lives. Discover what a man believes, and you will get an understanding as to what you can expect or not expect of him. Search inside and realize what it is you believe, and you will be able trace how it determines your actions.
There is no man that does not believe in something. In order to be agnostic, you must first believe that God doesn't exist. What you believe determines not only how you react but who you will become. Every story, every character, can be an example of this, whether fictional or historic. What a man believes, or 'thinks' to be true or not true, determines how he will act.
Today as I was pondering disbelief, I realize that certain things I have entertained in my mind, certain doubts, are actually 'lies' that I have believed. And I have believed not only these doubts, but the major lie that says 'there is no way out of the doubts'. I have come to the understanding that if I am doubting anything, it means I do not believe it, therefore I am either basing that belief on either a truth or lie.
If a person does not believe that the Bible is true, he will not account to the reality of sin. He will sense that something is 'bad', but he will not have reason to condemn it. In such a cases a landslide takes place... this is how Countries crumble, this is how Empires are formed. Evil becomes nothing more than a point of view, or an opinion of the individual. Humanism begins to break through the ground and spread forth all over. If a person does not believe in the reality of the devil, and lies he will fall prey to every lie, and base his theology on every false hood speakable. Do not let doubt have a grip in your life, not in any area.
Let your view on the Bible, crumble from truth to fiction, and you loose grip on reality. Let lies root and they will try and take you over. People believe all sorts of lies. They believe that nothing is worth while in life if they are not successful, if they are not married, if they do not have a girl friend...they believe that it is alright to kill children, that it is not sin to have sex outside of marriage...they believe that they are really another gender than they were born as, and that homosexuality is acceptable and good. People believe lies such as 'they aren't pretty', 'they aren't loved', 'they will never change'. Almost any problem you may have, or any change you want to make, comes down to ridding yourself of lies, and breaking your ties to them.
I sometimes wonder how this is possible, because I give lies too much power, because at times I believe the 'lie' that 'lies are more powerful than my will'. I must instead believe that Jesus has more power than any lie that I may believe. That He can free me, and fill my mind with the truth. I must not put my faith in my own power either, I must put my faith in the Lord. The fact is, If I am in Christ, no one can snatch me out of His hand. Satan would like to pull down the shades, and make me think I am alone, lost, and helpless, but it is not true.
I like to think of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie, where Lucy believes the lie that she is not pretty, or special, and bases her actions on that lie, even to the point of stealing a spell to make her look like her older sister Susan. I think this is a powerful example, because she wakes up as in a dream and looks in the mirror and she is her sister Susan. She opens the mirror like a door, and exits to an outside party. There she meets up with her two brothers. She asks where "Lucy" is. And the brothers both do not know who she is talking of, and say there is only three of them....Lucy doesn't exist.
Lucy wakes up out of this dream and looks in the mirror to see herself standing there, Aslan, the Great Lion comes beside her and speaks to her, and asks her why she has doubted that she is beautiful the way she was created. Lucy realizes she has been believing a lie.
Other examples can be found in almost every single piece of literature you can pick up. I like to use movie examples, but recently I've been studying the "classics" of literature, and finding they are perhaps some of the greatest examples of the power of belief, and lies. Especially, when you take a look at the lives of the Authors themselves, it is really insightful.
Pride and Prejudice, Frankenstein's Monster, Red and Black, I'd say any of the well known books you can pick up, no matter the time period, author, or genre...they all are not only the story of a character who believes something that motivates him in some way, but the Author who writes out of the sack of his own, painting words and ideas with his theology and with what he himself believes. We are most quite aware of 'wordview', every artist is a prophet of his or hers worldview. And you, may or may not be a prophet of your worldview if you are isolated, but you are a product in many ways, of what you believe.
I am a bit amazed at some of the lies I have believed, I realize that I have been affected by them, even though I didn't consciously receive them. It was more like, the lies had seeped in without me realizing it. I must say that most of lies I have ever believed, are not ones that anyone else told me, but ones I told myself. Can you relate? No one perhaps has looked in your face and told you "You are Ugly", but you believe it none the less. Perhaps no one has ever said to you "I do not love you", but you cannot help thinking you are not loved. What scares me the most is the fact that the enemies lies can get away with, and doubt can get away with leading a person, even when they're void of statements, reason, facts, or proof!
Lies are the basis for Fear and Doubt. Fear is "false evidence appearing real", which means 'fear' is really a 'lie' that one believes and wraps ones emotions around. Doubt is quite similar, only doubt is a lie that one wraps their intellect around, rather than their emotions. I challenge you to break free from the lies that you have believed. You have to want to do it though. You must be brave. Do not believe the lie that says "you are not brave", and "you will never be"...For once step over the red line of fear, doubt, or pride and prove that the lie is mere lie after all. Earlier on I blogged something about "Offenses".
"Offenses" are usually the breeding ground for lies. If you are offended by someone, whether you are hurt by them, back bitten by them, or yelled at etc.. these circumstances, incidents, are perfect atmospheres for the planting of lies. If someone hurts you, for example you may believe the lie that says "everyone will hurt you", if someone treats you wickedly you may believe the lie that "everyone will treat you wickedly". What lies have you been believing? Have you been believing that perhaps your sin is unforgivable? Have you been believing that God isn't real? Have you been believing that you are all right in our relationship with God, but you are really pushing Him away?
In my opinion Pessimism can be the produce of a mix of fear, pride, and doubt. Severe Pessimism is usually the fruit of a lie that has been believed by the individual. Sadly, a lot of us believe lies and base our actions and lives around them. Many do not realize they are even doing so. Most do not realize that when they believe something, whether they believe something is true or not, their belief, is leading their lives. May I say...that we all need to surrender our beliefs to God. We need to surrender our beliefs, not only the ones of Him, and of Others, but also of ourselves. We need to hand over our fears, hand over our doubts, and in doing so, kill the lies.
A lie is not powerful if we do not open our hearts to believe in it. Lies attach our intellect, and they attack our emotions. We must be careful to guard our minds and emotions. May we put on the whole armor of God. Ephesians 6:10-20 The Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, The Sandals of the Gospel, the Shield of Faith, the Helmet of Salvation, the Sword of the Spirit... so that we may fend off the darts of the evil one. Believe that you are God's. Believe that You are in Christ, and He is in you, and that you are in His care. Do not store up marks against God. One of the surest ways to entertain lies is to make a list of all the bad things people do against you, or make a list of all the times God has not answered you in the way you think He should have, and hold this list against your faith, the love of God, or the love of others.
If you foucs on all the bad, you will overlook how much of the good has passed by your head. That is why God says to focus on what is Good, what is pure, what is praise worthy, to seek out these things, and to dwell on them! He wants you to be filled with what is good, so that instead of dwelling on offenses, (the breeding ground for lies) that you would dwell on 'the good' (the breeding ground for faith). If you dwell on the good, your head and heart will be lighter, and you will be stronger in harder times. You have been given ample opportunity to dwell on what is good, and all the good that God has done for you.
What will you choose? will you think on the good? or sit in the puddle of gloom and fester lies? Do no such thing! The Lord says, "I am God, and there is no other. Forget not the hand that saved you, nor the love that is stronger than death". If you choose to let fear, doubt, lies consume you, you are letting them take the throne where God should be sitting in your heart, because God has saved you from having to stay in the dark anymore, and He has proved His love for You.
Do not let anything consume you but Him.
Are you letting lies rule you? What or who, is your Master? Fear? Doubt? Pessimism? Stop listening to the lies of the enemy, and wake up from your slumber. Stop letting offenses handcuff you, instead let love in where you have been hurt, or backstabbed. God is love. He wants you. this is not a lie! This is true!
Devil's Been Talkin - Need To Breathe
Bag of bones and blood red cheeks
Guilty from the words I speak
Say the truth will set you free
But it won't for me
Cause I'm uneasy in my skin
Hangin on by a thread
Life it hasn't left me yet
But I won't forget...
'The Devil's been talkin')
The ship is setting off to sea
But it's sailing without me
I can't help but feel I'm on
An island born to sink
...The devil's been talkin)
We can't change who we are
We are all alone...
'The devil's been talkin'
I'm running out
Of this hole alone
These fingers bled
Down to the bone
And I can't move
This hell is cold
The chorus sings
This is home...
'The devil's been talkin'
Bag of bones and blood red cheeks
Guilty from the words I speak
Say the truth will set you free
But it won't for me;
'The Devil's been talkin'
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