Are You Dressed Yet?

On Sunday mornings when I was a teenager, I was always the last one to leave the house, jumping in the car, mascara in hand, to finish primping as Dad drove us to church.  Often, I still seem to be putting on jewelry or lipstick as I dash to my car every day.  But there’s one lesson about getting dressed that I have never forgotten.

Growing up or even as an adult, whenever I faced a challenge or crisis, Mom used to ask:  “Have you put on your armor?”  She was referring to the protective spiritual armor Paul describes in Ephesians 6:10-17.  “God has provided a piece for everything except your back,” she’d say.  “That’s because He doesn’t expect you to retreat.”  Then she’d remind me of God’s promise in Isaiah 52:12:  “The God of Israel will be your rear guard.”

As I have faced many trials the last six months, I’m daily reminded of Mom’s words and Paul’s words and the dire importance of putting on my spiritual armor.  I would no more go out without it on than leave without my signature bright lipstick.

So, the next time you leave home, as you hop in the car, check yourself in the rearview mirror and ask yourself, “Are you dressed yet?”

Insta-Heal, On Sale Now

Take one part Scripture. Add one part holy water.  Stir gently or vigorously-you pick.  And instantly, you're healed.  If only it was that easy.  Often, the healings recorded in Scripture appear to be instant.  That's what I've wanted:  for Jesus to do for me what He did for the centurion who told Him, "If You just send the word, my servant will be healed." (Matt. 8:5-13).

I've prayed many times the last couple of months, "Lord, just send Your word and the discs in my neck will be healed."  Obviously, this wasn't His plan for me.  So, I began to meditate on some of the healings in Scripture.

While each person's change from sickness to health occurred in the blink of an eye, many of these folks suffered quite a while before meeting Jesus.  Take the woman with the issue of blood who suffered for 12 years and had spent all she had on doctors in a vain effort to get well (Mark 5:25-34).  Or the paralytic man who lay for 38 years at the pool of Bethesda wishing someone would help him (John 5:1-18). Then there's the man who was born blind about whom the disciples asked, "Who sinned-this man or his parents?" (John 9:1-12).

So, while the transformation to wholeness happens in a nanosecond, suffering may last a lifetime.  Some Christians will tell you suffering is your fault; that either you have a secret sin or too little faith to be healed.  That's a painful lie that only adds more pain and undue guilt.  God's manifestation of healing is complicated and mysterious and while it may not unfold according to our plans, it is just as real as it was when Jesus walked on the earth.  You can trust in the promise of Isaiah 53:5:  "But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed."

Let's take a trip

All aboard, folks. Take your seats, please. Before we depart for Humility, I need to warn you. This is a one-way trip and the train won’t stop until it arrives at its final destination, Glory. There will be rest stops along the way and you can hop off and turn back if you like, but I wouldn’t advise it. The towns we pass- Prideville, Arragancetown, and Full-of-Myself-Burg- aren’t nice places to visit. Oh, they look lovely from the train, but some pretty rough folks live there.

Now, the stops we will make in Humbleville, Meektown, and Hang-onto-God-for-dear-life-Burg look pretty dull by comparison.  But the kindest folks you could ever want to meet live there.  I just stopped off in Humbleville today for some rehab exercises. The instructor was kind but my face flushed red at all my missteps and I hung my head as I climbed back on the train. 

I asked God: "Am I not humble enough already?" Then I realized that Humility is not a destination. Rather, it is a state of being and one that even the godliest people cannot sustain in every area of life long-term. So, I will keep trying to humble myself before the Lord until I meet Him face to face.

As you get ready to travel to Humility, I would encourage you to meditate on these verses:  

Isaiah 66:2: “ …This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at My word.”

Matt. 11:29-30: “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Matt. 18:4: “Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

He Is Risen

He Is Risen. Those three words hold so much hope. Without Jesus' resurrection neither His first disciples nor us would have any reason to hope. But God keeps His promises and He assured us He would send a Savior to reconcile us to Him. That reconciliation was bought with Jesus' blood and accomplished while we were still sinners. On a cruel Roman cross, God offered hope through the death of the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. Through the empty tomb, He offered life eternal and abundant life for us here on earth.

Jesus' resurrection proves He is the Messiah, the Anointed One, who will one day make all things right. Until He establishes His earthly kingdom, He offers us a foretaste through the peace and joy that can only come from having a relationship with Him and the Father. In the personhood of Christ and in His fulfilled promises, we find all the hope we could ever need. It is that hope which continues to sustain me as I go through this year's health crisis.

Listen to the angel as he speaks to the women on that first Easter morning: "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here." (Mark 16:6). Go and take this hope to a dying world: Jesus is risen, just as He said.

Peace in the Storm

“When peace like a river attendeth my way,

 When sorrows like sea billows roll,

 Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say

 It is well, it is well with my soul.”

I have no idea when I first learned that hymn; I’ve been singing it for as long as I can remember.  It was a staple in our house and Mom would sing it to comfort me during difficult times.  While I have been sick this year, Jesus has taught me again that if I turn to Him, I can experience peace even during the fiercest of storms.  He made the following promise recorded in John 14:27:  “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” In Phil. 4:7, Paul calls the Lord’s peace, “peace that surpasses all understanding,” and he promises this peace will guard our hearts and minds. Isaiah 26:3 tells us: “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee.”

In 1873, Horatio G. Spafford wrote the hymn “It Is Well with My Soul” after losing his four young daughters when the ship on which they were traveling foundered in the Atlantic Ocean. His wife was one of the 226 survivors and is reported to have sent him a telegram that read: “Saved alone.” When you’re in pain or sick or facing a crisis, it can be hard to remember Jesus’ promise of peace.  But if you will turn to Him and ask in faith for His peace, He will grant it to you. And like Horatio Spafford, you too, can proclaim, “It is well with my soul.”

The Pain of Perseverance

Perseverance hurts.  It’s not a quality that is easily acquired.  Romans 5:3-5 tells us:  “….but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.”  Perseverance is forged in the crucible of life’s difficulties. 

My tribulation began in January with what I thought was a pulled shoulder muscle.  Ever since, I have endured excruciating pain in my neck, shoulder and arm.  For me for now, perseverance often means just getting up each day and putting one foot in front of the other. I’ve prayed for God to take away the pain and sometimes He has.  One day the pain felt like a boa constrictor was wrapped around my upper arm crushing it.  Exhausted from weeks of little sleep, I lay down to rest and pray.  God didn’t take away the pain but gave me His strength to supernaturally bear it while experiencing His peace and rest.

Paul asked God three times to remove his “thorn in the flesh,” but God replied, “My grace is sufficient for you….” (2 Cor. 12:8-9).  Previously I had told God I didn’t want that answer; I wanted to quit hurting.  But that day, as I had a fresh encounter with the lavish grace of God, I was grateful for His words to Paul and thankful He gave me that same grace.

Like Paul, James 1:2-3 tells us of the importance of perseverance.  “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.”As you face life’s challenges, remember God’s grace; cling to Him and learn how to press on and go through.  In the end, God has promised to mold your character to reflect His and to give you a hope that will not disappoint.

Winter Come Lately

Winter Come Lately

Winter has yet to arrive on the Gulf Coast this year. And we’re not alone. Apparently winter is late in coming all across the country. Folks who have to dig their cars out from snow day after day are probably rejoicing. Even my local friends who savor summer’s heat are thrilled. I, on the other hand, am not. I like cold weather. It brings back good memories of snowball fights with my sister, making snow ice cream, and sledding on heavy-duty garbage bags down hills in Birmingham. (No one in Birmingham bothered to buy a real sled since it only snowed two or three days a year there.) Since it snowed so infrequently, though, we often got early dismissal from school when a substantial snowfall or ice storm was predicted. Sometimes we didn’t even have to go to school. We relished those days just as we relished the beef stew or homemade soup Mom fed us on cold winter nights.

My memories of winter are cozy ones. But my memories of spiritual winters are not so fond. What spiritual season are you in right now? Spiritual winter can be as harsh and unrelenting as a blizzard or as dry as a desert. If you listen and allow God to work, He can provide joy even in the winter and He can provide lessons that can only be learned when the green leaves of summer, the red leaves of fall, and the beautiful spring blossoms are stripped away, leaving stark, naked trees and a gray landscape. Winter reminds us of our dependence on God for everything.

Winter can also be a time of rest and waiting. We wait for the warmer weather, the pretty flowers, the sunshine, and we are reminded to appreciate them and not to take them for granted. We rest and wait on God to renew our strength (Isaiah 40:31) and our spirit. If you are not in spiritual winter, count your blessings. If you are, ask God what He wants you to learn. The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us in ch. 3 v. 1: “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven.” In every season, be grateful and seek God’s counsel and remember that seasons change.