Tuesday's with Jesus #149

#149 "Spirit Walking"

May 27, 2008

"So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature." (Galatians 5: 16)

 

It was finally warm enough outside this morning to have my together time with God out on my patio. I've been watching the temperature most mornings and when I saw sixty three degrees on my WeatherBug, I grabbed my glasses, my Bible and my cup of coffee, of course, and headed out the door. For my friends in the south, you're used to these kinds of mornings. But for a Michigan girl....it was Heaven!!

 

It was quite windy and I could hear one of my all time favorite sounds, second only to the waves beating against the shoreline of my favorite beach. I heard the trees swaying back and forth, now full of leaves, and can I tell you...I just love that sound!

 

Lest you think I'm super-spiritual, I don't always equate everything I see or hear to heavenly matters. But as I listened in the quietness of the early morning, I was reminded of Christ's words in John Chapter 3, as He spoke to Nicodemus. "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."  I could hear the wind's sound, but truly couldn't tell where it came from or where it went after I saw the manifestation of it. Maybe back to those storehouses where the Bible says that God gathers the wind and the snow and the hail and the lightning.

 

I wasn't seeing the wind in those trees. I was seeing the manifestation of the wind. I was witnessing its effects. And according to Christ, so it is with the Holy Spirit. We can't see Him but we can be witnesses to His manifested presence. At the moment of our salvation, the Holy Spirit takes up residence on the inside of us. We are no longer controlled by the sinful nature but by the Spirit. (See Romans 8: 9) And the effects of the One who dwells within us will be seen in outward signs. 

 

In John 6: 63, Jesus said that His words are Spirit and they are life. From that I draw this conclusion: When we live in accordance with the Spirit, we are living according to the Word of God. The Bible says that we have our minds set on what the Spirit desires and we find the desires of His heart in His Word. This kind of living produces life and peace. (See Romans 8: 6) Walking in the other direction, according to the flesh, brings death. But Paul tells us to live by the Spirit, by implication then, according to the Word, and we will not gratify the desires of the flesh or our sinful nature. (See Galatians 5: 16) 

 

From His mouth, God breathes the wind of His Word and through submission to Him, we place ourselves under the Spirit's control. By His power we will manifest love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The fruit of the Spirit are those leaves and branches swaying back and forth in our lives. Those are the Spirit's manifestations evidenced in outward signs for all to see. The Spirit cannot be seen, but the evidence of His presence is visible in a life submitted to God and His Word.

 

You don't have to strain. You don't have to strive. You don't have to try and produce His fruit on your own. Christ is well pleased to blow His Spirit into your life. Let the Wind blow where it will. You are born of His Spirit. Stand in awe of the manifested presence of God.

 

Love,

Donna

 

http://www.livingthewordministries.org/

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Tuesday's with Jesus #148

#148 "Be Still And Know That I Am God"

May 20, 2008

"But the Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent (Hebrew: hush) before Him." (Habakkuk 2: 20)

 

I had a rough night a few weeks ago. I didn't sleep well because somehow the cold that I had a month and a half ago suddenly came back. In spite of the fact that it was the end of April, Rudolph texted me that morning and told me that he's in fear for his job if I didn't get rid of my red nose. I woke up with a nose that could've led a pack of reindeer through the darkest night without any problem.

 

I usually talk quite a bit during my quiet time with God. I don't know if "quiet time" is completely accurate. Anyway...I get pretty chatty bringing Him my prayers and concerns. We work things out, I seek direction and I even tell on some people. Come on now, admit it...you tattle on folks sometimes too, don't you? But that morning, I just didn't feel much like talking. And I told Him so. If anyone was doing the talking that day, it would have to be God.

 

I did find the voice for just a little telling on people though. There are some folks in my life that just won't accept the fact that I am not who I used to be. They just don't get it. They bait me and throw out the net to trap me, so that I will go right back into the pit that, Bless God, He has taken me out of. They still live there, you see. And they just don't get that I moved out years ago. Does anybody know what I'm talking about? They want you to follow in their footsteps, but your footprints just don't fit theirs anymore? If CSI:Detroit were to put my shoes on top of theirs, well, they're just not a match.

 

Peter talked about this very thing in his first letter...he said, "They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead." (1 Peter 4: 4-5) My footprints don't exactly match Christ's either, I'm not there yet...but they ARE being transformed each day from glory to glory and someday they will be a perfect match. That's what I heard when I wasn't talking. 

 

Purposing to keep quiet and let Him speak, God talked to me through Psalm 57 when He told me that I am under the shadow of His wings. I'm safe from all harm. David dealt with these same kinds of people. I love David! He went through so many of the same things that we do. I can't wait to meet him one day. In this Psalm he's talking about just the kind of folks that I was tattling on. And that my response was to take refuge under the shadow of my Father's wings and He will send love and faithfulness from Heaven to save me. I heard that too...when I wasn't talking.

 

I felt such peace and rest and calm in the arms of my Father and in the quietness of the early morning. If you seek Him early, He will meet you there. And if you zip your lip, He will get a chance to speak. It took a blasted cold to shut me up and make me listen for a change. What does God have to do to keep YOU quiet?

 

I got up to go and powder my nose. I think I was scaring the dog! Being quiet brings great rewards.

 

Love,

Donna

 

www.livingthewordministries.org

 

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Tuesday's with Jesus #147

#147 "Whose Battle Is This Anyway?"

May 13, 2008

"All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give all of you into our hands." (1 Samuel 17: 47) 

Scripture Passage:  1Samuel 17

 

An interesting map is on display in the British Museum in London. It's an old mariner's chart, drawn in 1525, outlining the North American coastline and adjacent waters. The cartographer made some intriguing notations on areas of the map that represented regions not yet explored. He wrote: "Here be giants," "Here be fiery scorpions," and "Here be dragons." Eventually, the map came into the possession of Sir John Franklin, a British explorer in the early 1800's. Scratching out the fearful inscriptions, he wrote these words across the map:

"Here is God."  

 

Because it's such an age-old Bible story, and because we've read it countless times, we tend to dumb down the account of David and Goliath. I was looking in the little Beginner's Bible that I have tucked away for cuddle time with my grandbaby, and I paused for the whole one minute it took to read this story. Simply, David came, he saw, and he conquered the giant. The illustrations depict a very young, tender faced little boy with slingshot in hand, clobbering a very mean looking, bearded big guy with a whole lot of armor on. Yay! David wins....end of the story? Not by a long shot.

 

What do you do when the giant is standing atop the hill defying you to defeat him? Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified. For forty days Goliath came forward every morning and every evening and took his stand. He taunted the Israelites every single day. He was called a "champion". He stood 9'9" tall...a giant of a man, wearing armor that weighed more than most of us. He was a bully and a tyrant. This was one powerful warrior...a strong and mighty man.

 

You may not be out on a literal battlefield, on top of a hill today, but Goliath is alive and well. He comes in the form of a stack of bills that you pass every time you walk through the room. Debt that taunts you morning and night and defies you to ever come out ahead. The giant stands before you holding the doctor's report in his hand, and screams in your ear that you're going to die. Day after day, he tells you that you'll never have that child that you long for. That you'll never be able to make it on your own without your loved one who died. You'll never be able to beat that addiction that has had you bound for years. Goliath stands boldly in the divorce proceeding, the welfare office, the unemployment line, or right in between you and your child, and he taunts you, and tells you that it's all just too much to defeat. Gas prices, home foreclosures, recessions and unfulfilled hopes and dreams cause you to run away scared and dismayed and terrified. That is, if you are walking by sight and not by faith.

 

Giants come when we think we can't lose weight. When we're in dead end jobs and work for insufferable bosses. When our spouse walks out the door. Low self-esteem and abuse and betrayal make us feel so overwhelmed. How do we ever think we can make it without God? A McCain ticket won't help us. An Obama ticket won't help us. There are no answers in the liberal or the conservative camps. Cyclones and tornados and earthquakes.....My heart must cry out: "I lift my eyes to the hills--where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth." (Psalm 121: 1-2) If not...there is just no hope!

 

David saw Goliath for what he was. He said, "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?" He didn't run. He wasn't dismayed and terrified like his fellow Israelites. He was in essence saying, "Who does this guy think he is?"  David saw God. He remembered the God who delivered him from "the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear" and knew that the same God could deliver him from the giant, Goliath. Has God ever delivered you from something? When you look at your giant today, follow David's example and remember what your God has done for you in the past and know that He is the same God, yesterday, today and forever. Stop looking at the fierceness of Goliath...keep your eyes on God.

 

You may not have the energy to fight anymore. You may not have the financial resources to fight. Your body may not be cooperating with your dream. But in God, you have all of the strength, resources and supply that you need to defeat whatever the giant is in your life today. "With God we will gain the victory, and He will trample down our enemies." (Psalm 108: 13) Did you get that? "With God". You are not alone. He is ready and able to help you. Delight yourself in Him and He will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37: 4) God is for you...He's on your side...who can be against you? (Romans 8: 31) Certainly not that uncircumcised Philistine of a problem that laughs at you every day! That giant is nothing...NO THING... in the presence of Almighty God.

 

But it's not enough to just tell yourself that. David could have played his harp and sang psalms on his side of the hill and the giant would never have been defeated. Because David believed, he went out and fought. He slew Goliath with no powerful weapons. He "triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him." (v. 50) David had enough confidence in God to face his enemy with what little he had. Do you? Baptist pastor, Bud Martenn said this, "Giants never completely go away until we face them and defeat them." I like to say that you cannot conquer what you don't confront. Look your Goliath in the eye... even if you have to look way up... and tell him that he is no thing compared to your God. Don't let him scare you into running and hiding. Face him, even if you're afraid. Speak the Word of God out loud to whatever your Goliath is today. Speak it in faith. It is your weapon. It is the sword of the Spirit. (Ephesians 6:17) You think you don't have anything to fight with? Oh, my dear one...you have more powerful weapons than any old ugly giant sent from hell to torment you. You have God and His living, active, powerful Word. You are not left alone to fight. "The battle is the Lord's" and He will give the giant into your hands. (v. 47)

 

Two hundred years ago, Sir John Franklin wrote, "Here is God", all over a map. He didn't see the obstacles. He saw God. David didn't see Goliath. He saw God. Look with eyes of faith, not just your plain sight and write "Here is God" all over that doctor's report. Write "Here is God" all over that divorce decree. Write "Here is God" all over that broken relationship. Write "Here is God" all over that stack of bills. Only you know what your Goliath looks like. I know he looks scary. He looks undefeated. All you have is a sling and a smooth stone. But open your eyes and look....Here is God!!!

 

Love,

Donna

  

http://www.livingthewordministries.org/

 

 

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Tuesday's with Jesus #146

#146 "Show Me Your Glory"

May 6, 2008

"Then Moses said, "Now show me your glory." And the Lord said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence."" (Exodus 33: 18-19)

 

The longer I live my life in love with Christ, the more I want to know Him. Not know about Him. I want to KNOW Him. I want to know everything there is to know and see everything that there is to see. I long for Him to meet with me and share His heart...His wisdom...His thoughts...what makes Him smile...what makes Him shed a tear. Best friends know each others secrets. I want to know the secrets of Christ. Just like He knows mine.

 

And I want to see His glory. I want to see Him as He is. Even if it's just a flash of lightning .. even if it's that brief, I know that I'll never be the same. I want to see Him in all of His splendor. Oh, to have been Isaiah and be able to say, "I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted." (Isaiah 6: 1) Or to have been with Peter, James and John up on the mountain and witness Christ transfigured. "His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them." (Mark 9: 2-3) That's what I'm talking about! Moses longed to see the glory of God and he right out asked Him for it. So did I. And what happened next was as close to being in front of the burning bush as I have ever come.

 

In the middle of a week of asking to see God's glory, I had a wonderful conversation with a friend who has cancer. She is undergoing treatment and many are praying for complete healing and restoration of her body. Myself included. I have never before in my life seen anyone wear cancer as well as this dear one wears it. She's not just enduring. She's enduring well. She actually seems to be thriving right in the midst of it all. I wish that I could share our entire conversation with you, but suffice it to say what I tell you next will knock your socks off. Someone told my friend that they will be disappointed if God doesn't heal her. And do you know what she said? Brace yourself...she said, "I'll be disappointed if He does." Instead of letting this disease get to her, she has let it get her closer to her Savior. She longs for the day she will be home in Heaven and see Him face to face in all of His glory. She has allowed Him to show Himself to her in ways she would've never seen Him without cancer. 

 

I came away from my chat with her amazed. I've never seen anyone going through something so devastating so well. I shared with my man and my son not even realizing what was happening, until the next day. I pray as I tidy up the house in the morning, and I got to thinking about that glory thing again. I was on my knees (not in prayer, but fixing a rug) and I asked God again to give me just a glimpse of His glory. And in my spirit I heard these words, "I did Donna...last night, when you talked to Phillis." Let me tell you, it's a good thing my shoes were off, because at that moment, I was on holy ground. My knees were stuck to the carpet and my cheeks were wet with tears. The night before, when I listened to someone who is literally walking through the valley of the shadow of death, and fearing no evil because His rod and His staff comfort her....I was witness to the glory of God!

 

In 2008 we don't get very many angelic visitations. We aren't led with clouds by day and pillars of fire by night. The Shekinah glory of the Lord doesn't visibly fill our homes or our churches so that we can't draw near. I sure do wish it would, don't you? But, oh, my friend...His glory is all around and all about us. And the Holy Spirit will open our eyes to it if we will just have eyes to see.

 

Embracing this new concept made me realize that the whole earth is truly filled with God's glory. I see it in the ex-heroin addict who is now free and loving her Lord Christ, with all of her being. I see it when she serves others and shares His love with those who are not yet delivered. I see His glory in the contemporary Christian artist who sinned some years back, and whose life was in shambles, and now has been forgiven and restored, and is serving Christ with his life again. That's the glory of God and nothing less! God's glory rests all over Ophelia, who I wrote about some time ago. A woman who sat against the wall when I preached and could scarcely look anyone in the eye...a woman who now says that she, for the first time in her life, feels like a human being. For goodness sake, what did she feel like before?! But now, she stands straight and tall, sure of who she is in Christ. Sure that she is beautiful in His sight and that she is His love! Changed by His love and reflecting His glory. God's glory is all over my pastor, whose ashes have been turned into beauty. He leads our flock well because he lets Christ lead him. As the head is, so is the body and because of his love for Christ and for other people, I am privileged to be a part of a body of believers known throughout the community for their love.

 

Glory is not something that someone gives another as a quality of importance. Glory is that side of God which we can see, which we can recognize and to which we can respond in worship and praise. It can be seen in a sunrise. It can be heard in the trees rustling in the wind. It can be as loud as thunder or as soft as the whisper of a spouse's "I love you" in your ear. It's in a longing fulfilled and it's in peace while we wait. God's glory is in a baby's cry or it can be felt while holding the hand of a dying parent. It's in the pride we feel for a child's accomplishments and in the unconditional love we can give them when they fail. God's glory is in a warm place to be in the winter and in the song of a bird in the spring. It's in the vastness of the ocean and in the kind words of a friend at just the right time. It's in all of the "I forgive yous", all of the "I'm proud of yous" and all of the "I love yous" that touch your heart. Open your eyes. Open your ears. God's glory is all around. Can't you just see it?

 

"Oh, praise the Lord! "This earth is crammed with heaven!" Oh, praise the Lord! And, Christian, look around! For every bush you pass with fire is flaming, and every spot you tread is holy ground." (Anne Ortlund)

 

Take off your shoes....for the place you are standing is holy ground.

 

Love,

Donna

  

www.livingthewordministries.org

 

 

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