CAST IT OFF

Hebrews 12:1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses”, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us and let us run, with endurance, the race that is set before us.

Ahh, the beauty of a September morning in Northern Michigan; the perseverance of the sunrise determinedly vanquishing the lingering overnight mist; a steaming cup of coffee enjoyed on the deck, a comfortable old flannel shirt, the smell of the prior evening’s campfire mingling with all the other unique up north aromas; a woodpecker knocking on the side of your house….WHAAAT?????

Yep, that’s right…stupid woodpecker, spoiling my serene morning.  Just as I settled back down, preparing to take another sip of coffee, there it was…tap, tap, tap…relentless, tap, tap, tap.  Oh as soon as I got up and walked around the corner, he would fly to the nearest tree but only temporarily.  Then back again, tap, tap, tap.

Such is life.  We are strolling along at any easy gait, enjoying the scenery and there it is…an aggravation, relentlessly tapping away at our serenity…a weight has beset us.  Now the verse in Hebrews also talks about “SIN” and though it can wrap its many tentacles around you, sin is something we actively choose to allow in our lives.  Sin is easily identified and can be avoided, resisted and turned aside.  Weights have some of the same characteristics but they are not so easily identified.

Weights can begin as necessary elements of our life; they are NOT sins but they can hinder life’s race and sap your endurance.  Tap, tap, tap, day after day; the weights began to wear us down.  They consume our thoughts, our energy, our emotions until we are no longer running the race and can hardly put one foot in front of the other as we survey the long road ahead. 

Oh there are days when we “yell,” wave our arms, and chase off the offenders but like a pesky woodpecker, they come back…tap, tap, tap…tap, tap, tap.  STOP yelling, waving and chasing…CAST OFF the offender.  I know that it isn’t easy.  You may have not picked up the weight in the first place but by carrying it day after day, you have allowed it to grow and you are allowing it to weigh you down.  Now it is up to YOU to do something about it…CAST IT OFF!!!

Back to that woodpecker on my house…he is looking for some tasty bugs, so I am going to REFUSE to supply the object of his search.  Step back; consider the weights you are carrying, what is their source of nourishment??? REFUSE TO SUPPLY THEM!   When they drag you down to your knees, LEAVE THEM THERE!   Don’t pick them up and hang them around your neck when you rise.  Cast your weights on God, He is much better equipped to carry them and HE HAS THE MIRACLE SOLUTION that will eradicate the tap, tap, taps of your life.

BRING THE RAIN

My song this morning, “Bring The Rain,” by Mercyme…

♪♪ “I can count a million times

People asking me how I can praise You with all that I’ve gone through

The question just amazes me,

can circumstances possibly change, who I forever am in You?

So I pray…

Bring me joy, bring me peace, bring the chance to be free

Bring me anything that brings you glory

And I know there’ll be days when this life brings me pain

But if that what it takes to praise you,

Jesus, bring the rain.” ♪♪

Because of our unwavering faith in God and because we don’t choose to hang our laundry in full view of FB Land, you may never know our struggles, heartbreaks or setbacks.  We are not always “On Top of the World.”  More often than not, we are down on our knees, picking up the pieces and letting God put the pieces of our shattered dreams back together.

Perhaps that is why this line in the verse, perfectly describes my world view, “THE QUESTION JUST AMAZES ME, CAN CIRCUMSTANCES POSSIBLY CHANGE, WHO I FOREVER AM IN YOU?”

THAT’S IT!  THAT’S THE KEY…I know who I am in You!  You have loved me with an everlasting love.  You are able to keep all that I have committed to You.  You are faithful and just to forgive.  I am in the Beloved; I’ve been redeemed by Your blood and NOTHING can separate me from You.

SO LET THE RAIN FALL; GOD WILL BE MY UMBRELLA!

LASTING FREEDOM REQUIRES A FIGHT

Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free and do not be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Musing on freedom this morning...

As Citizens of the United States, we love our freedom, or so we proclaim.  If you listen, however, to an Immigrant from an oppressed country and compare their view of freedom to a Citizen that was handed freedom as a birthright, there is a marked difference.  The Immigrant has such a love and appreciation for the freedoms protected by our Constitution because he/she has had to FIGHT oppression.  Over a couple hundred years, some of those freedoms have been severely eroded or simply slipped away…and we adjust because those freedoms didn’t really affect us that much anyway.  We who were born under the Constitution of the United States, mostly, take freedom for granted because it has always been available and we assume FREEDOM JUST IS!!!

We are all born into OPPRESSION because we are all born under the Curse of Sin.  Jesus Christ made a way that we can all be BORN AGAIN under HEAVEN’S CONSTITUTION.  At first, as NEW IMMIGRANTS in the Kingdom, we have such a love and appreciation for our FREEDOM from sin. We stand proudly at attention, joining in when our anthems are sung and unashamedly spread the message of our new Kingdom.  Our “Constitution” is kept within reach so that it can be referred to frequently.  Then something happens and our freedoms are slowly and silently stolen; we barely notice because we have begun to take our FREEDOM for granted and we assume SALVATION JUST IS!!!

FREEDOM doesn’t “just happen,” it must be FOUGHT FOR and PROTECTED.  This fact is painfully apparent in the world’s history.  Since its inception The United States, has attempted to “export” this great American Idea of freedom to the oppressed citizens of dictatorial regimes.  Our military makes short work of the oppressors, the people are handed freedom and we all rejoice.  But then something happens…there are always more oppressors just waiting in the shadows for their opportunity.  Slowly and sometimes not so slowly, the Oppressors move in and the citizens, who never learned to FIGHT FOR and DEFEND their freedoms which were “given” to them by someone else, find themselves once again enslaved and oppressed.

We have been given FREEDOM FROM SIN through SALVATION by the BLOOD OF JESUS but there are OPPRESSORS just waiting in the shadows.  Satan will constantly present opportunities to tempt us to hand over our freedoms.  Religions develop “regulations” and sign “Executive Orders,” slowly eroding the freedom given you by God.  The biggest threat to our FREEDOM IN CHRIST, however, is our own desires, distractions and malaise, in which we merely lay down our freedoms because we think FREEDOM AND SALVATION, JUST IS!

Until you’ve been in the “trenches;” until you have stood and FOUGHT off the oppressive invaders; until you have DEFENDED the “Liberty by which Christ has made you free,” you will never appreciate this great SALVATION of which we are blessed to be partakers.  Mama can’t give it to you; it can’t be inherited and neither the “world” or the “church” can take it away, if you will STAND UP, FIGHT and DEFEND the freedoms JESUS DIED to give you.

Have a blessed, joy-filled day.

FIND THE EYE

Luke 8:24 Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water.  And they ceased and there was calm.

This morning’s song …The Eye of the Storm by Ryan Stevenson…

♪♪ “In the Eye of the Storm, You remain in control.

In the middle of the war, You guard my soul.

You alone are the anchor, when my sails are torn.

Your love surrounds me in the Eye of the Storm.” ♪♪

This Labor Day, the National Weather Bureau is tracking two hurricanes approaching Hawaii and a possible hurricane tracking toward Florida.  Although I have experienced some pretty horrific storms, my familiarity with hurricanes is limited to news reports.  We have all seen the pictures of their power and destructiveness and I would prefer to be only as close to one as my sofa and television.

One of the hurricane’s distinct features we hear talked about most is the “EYE.”  Hurricanes have a circular formation around an “EYE.”  According to one description, “the EYE is the FOCUS of the hurricane, the point about which the rest of the storm rotates.”  This description goes on to state, “skies are often clear above the EYE, winds are relatively light; it is the calmest section of a hurricane.”

Even in the midst of your stormy life, get your focus on the center; do you see Him?  Jesus is standing there; He remains in control.  The strong winds of diversity may be swirling, but there is PEACE IN THE EYE.

You may feel so battered that you can’t reach the “EYE,” but there is help. The “Life Line” has been thrown toward you; grab hold and He will pull you into the “EYE.”  There you will find clear skies and light winds…There you will find REST.

Have a blessed day.  Let Jesus be the EYE OF YOUR STORM!

ONE DAY YOU WILL FLY

Isaiah 40:31 But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.  They shall mount with wings like eagles.  They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

Did you know that if you open a chrysalis before it is ready, the butterfly dies?  And even after the butterfly emerges from the cocoon, it takes a few hours to allow the wings to dry so they can catch the wind and fly.  So it is with dreams…

It may seem boring in the “dream cocoon,” but important development and preparation is taking place.  Perhaps you feel that no one else supports your vision.  It could be that they are too wise to open the chrysalis prematurely.  Or maybe you have emerged from the protective covering and are ready to spread your wings.  Patience, a little drying time is necessary.  When the time is right the “wind of the Spirit” will lift you up and you will fly.

GOD IS NOT A BALANCING ACT

This morning’s song…By Israel Houghton.

♪♪ “Jesus at the center of it all; Jesus at the center of it all

From beginning to the end,

It will always be, it's always been you Jesus; Jesus.

Nothing else matters, nothing in this world will do

Jesus, you're the center, everything revolves around you

Jesus, you.” ♪♪

Parents, school has or will be started again and the busyness of “being involved” will once again overwhelm you, but only if you allow your life to become unbalanced. There are those who make sure their children’s lives are balanced and believe that a “well-rounded” life must include God...Sadly, I have watched the same children grow up with no concern for the things of God.

If God is the “balance” to our popularity, careers, and extracurricular activities, He becomes a symbol, a ritual; NOTHING at all. He must be the CENTER if you want a “well-rounded” life. Every thought, activity, and action must flow from your relationship with Him. God IS NOT a “Balancing Act.”

THANK YOU FOR THE VALLEY...WHAT!!!???

Psalms 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.  He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.  He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His namesake.

Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will 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 anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.

Surely, GOODNESS and MERCY shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the House of the Lord forever.

I actually woke up this morning with a newer song running through my head but it reminded me of an old song and that is where I will begin this devotional.

The old song says…

♪♪ “Thank you for the valley I walked through today.

The darker the valley, the more I learned to pray.”♪♪

WHATTT!!!??? When Dottie Rambo wrote that song, she obviously was not going through a “valley like mine.”  How can I thank God for valleys and storms and trials?  It is much easier to blame Him.  After all, He is in control and more than capable of getting me out of this mess.

Oh we sing songs about the “Lily of the Valley” and we long for the cool stream and lush pastures that are only found in the valley, but the valleys are also full of shadows and dark places that are not pleasant along our journey.  It is difficult to keep our focus on the refreshing stream ahead when we are walking through a dank, stinking swamp.  Yep, you won’t find a swamp on the peak of the mountain!  The lush green pasture full of sweet-smelling lilies fades as the “fog of life” swirls around our feet.

As we walk through the “Valley,” it is easy to forget that the journey to the “Mountaintop” involves a long, energy-spending, treacherous climb.  The climb up the mountain includes boulders that we must detour around and in the heat of the day; the sun beats down relentlessly with no shady trees or cooling streams to rest beside.  The storms on the mountains are fierce with nothing to still the swirling winds.  And sometimes on the mountain there are “rock slides” that take us right back to where we started.  Yes, the clear view of the Mountaintop cannot be reached by the faint of heart.

Back to that “Valley” you are walking through, I know it seems dark and lonely, but keep walking forward, one step at a time; God is walking ahead, smoothing the path.  One day, when you least expect it; a day in which you are just trying to survive, God will lead you to a clearing.  There will be a gentle stream with beautiful flowers filling the air with a lovely aroma and it is at that point He will “restore your soul.”

So, this morning Lord, I thank you for the valley I’ve been walking through.  In the valley you have taught me how to DEPEND on You for every step.  I’ve learned how to really, really PRAY and how to LISTEN and HEAR your gentle voice.  And most of all I’ve learned to REST and allow a REFRESHING because on the other side of this Valley, is a Mountain just waiting to be climbed.  I am certain that you will be there when I arrive because You are MY GOD in the valley and on the mountain…THANK YOU FOR THE VALLEY, I WALKED THROUGH TODAY!

The new song that actually woke me this morning…Blessings by Laura Story,

♪♪ “Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops

What if Your healing comes through tears

What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know you’re near

What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise?”♪♪