Are You In the Battle?



“...pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace,

along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart”

- 2 Tim. 2: 22

Every part of my flesh wants the easy way. I want what is comfortable, what will cause the least pain, what will feel or taste good. But as I search Scripture, I cannot find God promoting this sort of mindset anywhere (as my flesh shouts, “dang it!”). And the Spirit within me testifies to the truth that in fact, this sort of self-gratifying lifestyle that essentially denies the power of Christ in my life will not lead me one step closer to true joy – in fact it will lead me closer to death.

Paul says that in the last days, many of us will live like the world, even though we are still in the church (“having a form of godliness, but denying its power.”), being “lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control...” (2 Tim. 3: 2-3).

If you were to honestly look at your life, does this sad list describe you? I confess it reflects my heart far too often, and I hate it. So do I throw in the towel and wallow in frustration and self-disgust (which is really just a reverse form of pride)? Or do I take the hand of my patient, sweet Lord Jesus and cry out to Him for His help to keep me from going the easy way that my flesh and Enemy shout at me to take? He is our only hope for the strength to “flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart” (2 Tim. 2: 22).

As believers, we are in a life-long battle - and I'm fairly certain that battles aren't easy! In fact, we should expect opposition, knowing that “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12). But because of God's crazy, unfathomable, boundless love toward us through Christ, let us keep struggling toward the righteous life He desires for us, in His power alone. Nothing this world has to offer will bring us such joy as this pursuit. We are powerless to do it on our own, but God will be faithful to work in us, even when we are faithless.

Our Unbreakable Lifeline [A Prayer]

“We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It’s an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus, running on ahead of us, has taken up his permanent post as high priest for us, in the order of Melchizedek.”

- Heb. 6: 18-19 (MSG)

How I praise You, Jesus, that You are my great High Priest, forever interceding to the Father on my behalf - that because of Your perfect sacrifice on the cross, a helpless sinner such as me can miraculously be seen as acceptable in God's sight.

This is the hope to which my life should be anchored: that as long as I walk this earth, Christ is with me at every moment; and when, in His perfect timing He calls me home, He is ready to welcome me into His presence for all eternity. If I cling to this truth daily, even in the midst of the unavoidable difficulties of life, how free from fear and its companion, despair, I will be!

On the flip-side, if I am lured by my sin nature, the world and the Enemy into believing that my hope really lies in anything other than Christ (e.g. financial security, health, a godly husband/kids, acceptance, pleasure, escapism...) then I will always walk in fear – because none of these false gods are unshakeable; they can all crumble like dust. Fear cannot coexist with the hope that overflows from Christ's perfect love (1 Jn. 4:18). When I fear, it's because I'm believing the lie that God is still angry at me, which directly denies the promised hope of Christ's forever saving work on the cross.

Forgive me, Lord – I know that at the root of all my struggles with insecurity, anger, selfishness, gluttony and worry is fear! Fear that You are not enough for me to anchor my every moment onto, but that I must manage my lifelines to all my other false gods, which is exhausting and will lead nowhere but to despair.

Oh Lord, give me the grace to live a life fully secured to the unbreakable hope of Christ alone, that He will provide for my every need, and that because of Your great love for me, I need never fear. Even though I fail daily, You are faithful to relentlessly pursue me with Your grace and mercy, as You have always done. My hope is secure in You!

Seeking the Ultimate Mr. Clean

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
-Matthew 5: 8

One of my least favorite chores is cleaning the bathroom. With three little ones in the house all learning how to brush their own teeth, the mirror is perpetually splattered with spots of toothpaste and smudges of hands. All my cleaning efforts seem wasted when the mirror only stays shiny for the two seconds that my children are out of the bathroom. I often question the point of even having mirrors - in many ways, they only seem to bring more pain than pleasure!

How similar my heart is to that mirror – it so easily gets smudged and splattered with my sin nature, my unknowning acceptance of Satan's lies, and my latent love of the world. With all this muck mixed into it, my heart cannot possibly reflect the beauty of Christ in me, but instead it spews out anger, selfishness and despair. God's presence seems to vanish, and I cannot see him in my life.

But how do I get the dirt out – all my self-efforts at purity are futile (much like cleaning my mirror with preschoolers waiting in the wings, toothbrushes in hand!). Who can possibly keep her own heart clean? Christ answers that in Matthew 19:26: “With men it is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Jesus' words prompt me to cry out, as David did, “create in me a pure heart!” By faith I must trust that God's Spirit in my heart will help me maintain its purity by enabling me to live a life of growing devoted obedience to His Word. When seeking God's Kingdom is my primary goal in life, He will purify my heart till it becomes more like His, focused on and concerned with one thing: His glory (not my gain). Then, as Christ promises, I will see God – His grace manifested in my life, His glory all around me, and ultimately, when my life is over, what untold joy I will know as I see Him as He really is, face to face - in heaven (and as we know, thankfully no spots and smudges are allowed there!).

Hungry for Holiness

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they shall be satisfied."

- Matthew 5:6

What a timely verse for this holiday season, right on the heels of Thanksgiving! I sadly admit that far too often I do not hunger and thirst for righteousness with the same passion that I lavish on food. Why? Simply put, my mind is so easily set on earthly things, on experiences that my physical senses can enjoy, rather than heavenly things – those which will never fade...nor leave us with heartburn and a guilty conscience afterward. When I live to please my flesh – whether it's eating too much, not restraining my frustration, gossiping - God's warnings come true in my life, and I reap destruction (damage done to my body and relationships). However when, by His grace, I choose to live to please the Spirit, hungering after Christlikeness, then I will reap true satisfaction, peace and eternal life (Gal. 6: 7-9).

The rewards of hungering after righteousness benefit us both this life and the next. Oh, to stand at the end of my days and look back with a sense of thanksgiving that, although I was nowhere near perfect, I sought hard after holiness, not my own pleasure. To be able to do that, I must expect pain along the road – living like Christ is not comfortable; in fact, it means death to many things that my futile mind treasures. I have to stop trying to fill myself with things that do not truly satisfy so that I can finally feel the deep hunger that will only be quenched by Christ and His righteousness made manifest in my life.

This holiday season, let's make it our prayer that God would give us the grace to make an insatiable hunger for righteousness the focus of our hearts and minds. We are always looking for the “perfect gift” for our loved ones. If we profess Christ as our Lord, then He is to be our most Beloved – what more of a gift could we give Him than a heart that is hungry for purity, that desires to live as He did, all for His glory, not our own sense of satisfaction.

Are You Angry?

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
-Matthew 5:5

We're not very familiar with the meaning of the word “meek” these days – it's one of those words whose value has slipped to the wayside along with “mild” and “lowly.” What a tragedy, as its definition encompasses such beauty: gentleness, not demanding of one's own way, not easily irritated, long-suffering, humble.

Sadly, we are all too familiar with the reality of one of its opposites: anger.

Sometimes anger manifests itself in dramatic outbursts of rage, fuming and spewing all the pent-up frustration that's been so deeply buried that we didn't even realize it was there. Sometimes we carry around in our hearts a sort of low-grade anger that just sits below the surface of our every waking moment, gradually eating up all the other life-giving feelings such as joy, compassion, gratitude, and kindness.

The response of anger can result from innumerable situations: unfulfilled longings, tragedies, disappointments, pain, physical exhaustion, not getting our own way, guilt, pressure, unmet needs...the list could go on and on. Life tackles us periodically (for some, constantly) with these things – sometimes as a result of our own sin, sometimes as a result of someone else's sin, sometimes under the direction of the Enemy – always under the sovereign, perfect, watchful, loving eye of our Omnipotent God. Nothing enters our world that is out of His control, and He ALWAYS has a plan for our good and His glory, if we will trust in Him.

So, what are we to do? I don't know anyone who actually enjoys being angry and frustrated (most of us prefer the “joy” and “peace” end of the spectrum, out of which our aforementioned quality of “meekness” flows). If anger is something we will all battle in this life, we can be sure that God has something to say about it in His Word:

“In your anger do not sin.” Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry...Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

- Ephesians 4: 26-27, 31-32

 

“Mockers stir up a city, but the wise turn away anger.” - Proverbs 29:8

 

“Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.”

- Ecclesiastes 7:9

 

“But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment...And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.”

- Matthew 5:22

 

“[Love] does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.” - 1 Corinthians 13:5

 

“But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips...Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love...” - Colossians 3:8, 12-14a

 

“...Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.”

- James 1: 19b-21

Without question, God wants anger to have no hold on our lives. He is a God of peace and wants all His children to walk in consistently authentic joy. We cannot do that if we allow anger to have a stranglehold on our lives. So, if anger is common to all humanity, how are we to get rid of it?

In Christ alone.

Only He had the power to satisfy the righteous wrath of God against all humanity by living a perfect life and laying it down on the altar of the cross, then victoriously rising again three days later! He alone has conquered anger and the destruction and ultimate death it produces. He alone has overcome the power of all sin – including anger – and He freely gives this gift of victory to all who will accept it.

If you are a child of God through faith in Christ, then this victory is already yours. You must now simply walk in it by trusting every moment of every day in the sufficiency of Jesus. If we will allow ourselves to fully bathe in the healing truth of the forgiveness and acceptance we are offered because of Christ's work on the cross (not our own!), how can our hearts help but release the anger we have clung to? All our hurts and hang ups...they all find purpose when we live with a grander view of the tapestry of life, realizing that it's not about us at all – but about the beauty and glory of our Redeemer. He has so mercifully rescued us from the destruction that our wayward hearts were destined to deliver and we are now made right with Him – the God of the universe – and promised eternal life! What more could we possibly every need?

Our challenge from here forward, till the end of our days, is to continually remember that the fullness of life that we are all frantically searching for from birth has been provided for in our union with Christ. He is enough! The whole point of life is “to know God and enjoy Him forever,” for in Him “there is fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11). Nothing else this side of heaven will ever truly bring lasting peace and joy – not a higher salary, healthy kids, a slower schedule, a cleaner house, a new mate/job/house/car. None of these things are what life is ultimately all about (and the disappointment we feel when they fail us inevitably leads to more life-smothering anger). But how easily we forget that! Our hearts are so quick to absorb the incessant lies with which they are bombarded every day.

So, how are we to stay focused on the one eternal truth that life is all about God (and not us!) and that because of Christ's saving work on the cross, God is now for us (Romans 8:31)? We fight back the darkness with “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance...” (Ephesians 6: 17b-18). Through God's gift of His Word, we are renewed every day with such astounding, beautiful truths that anger loses its vice grip as we turn it over to Christ. If we are believers in Christ, then we can take comfort from His Word as we are reminded that:

• God is totally sovereign and completely in control and nothing is outside of His domain, so we really need never get frustrated or angry over anything, even if we miss the flight! Wow! (Psalm 103:19)
• All things (even our hurts and failures) are working together for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28)
• He will always love us even though we fail Him (Romans 8:38-39)
• He accepts us because when He sees us, He sees the righteousness of His Son, not our feeble, failing attempts at it (Colossians 3: 1-4)
• Even though we are far from perfect yet, He is giving us the desire and the power to do what pleases Him (Philippians 2:13) and will never give up on growing us into His likeness (Philippians 1:6)

I thank my Merciful Father that He saw fit to give me the free gift of salvation through faith in His beautiful Son, Jesus Christ. Only through His Spirit living in me can I have hope to conquer my struggles with anger (not to mention all the other known and unknown sins in my heart). I trust Him as my faithful, steadfast Guide through this life as He so patiently works on my “prone to wander” heart, and praise Him that although I fail continually and am not who I want to be, by His grace alone I am not who I used to be!

To read more about how you can have this same precious gift of peace with God through Christ, click here.

To Be Truly Rich, We Must Be Truly Poor

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 5:3

With a trail of multitudes clamoring to hear more of His astounding message, Christ treks up a mountainside, sits down and, right out of the gate, announces to His eager listeners that if they want to be blessed, they have to be... poor. In our finite minds, these two words - “poor” and “blessed” - just don't seem to go together in the same sentence whatsoever. Instead, we naturally grate against this idea because since birth the world has sworn to us that to be “blessed” is to live a life of ease, comfort, and riches of all sorts. What the world has forgotten to tell us is that these riches can never truly satisfy and, ultimately, they will all pass away.

Christ is speaking of a spiritual poverty, of knowing deep in our core that nothing good resides inside us and that we are desperate for the power and presence of God every moment of our lives. All our self-efforts of trying to perform “good enough” to be accepted by others (including God) will without exception leave us exhausted and empty.

Instead, when we approach every day with our hearts humbled before our merciful Father, what joy we receive as His boundless store of spiritual riches are poured out onto us! No service in ministry, no amazing accomplishment, no attainment of the “American dream,” could even come close to producing the depth of peace and unshakeable joy that Jesus wants to lavish on us when we make fellowship with Him our number one priority.

In this life, if we want to be truly rich, we need to be needy. When we are beggars for more of Christ – the true Bread of Life – our hearts will perpetually cry out, as the old hymn says, “I need thee every hour.” Let us hold fast to the truth that if we but stay at Christ's feet and find nourishment for our souls as He teaches and guides us, all the treasures of His Kingdom will be produced in our lives for His glory.

Advice from Amazing Mooooooooms: "4 Moms of 35+ Kids Answer Your Parenting Questions"

There are moms...and then there are

moooooooooooooms.

These are the chosen few mamas out there who, out of deep faith and trust, have allowed God to bless their family with as many children as he sees fit, regardless of the number! For many of us, just the thought of this causes us to shake in our boots a little (ok, maybe a lot). One of my "moooooooom" friends described it this way when she said, "you've heard of extreme sports? Well, this is like extreme faith!" 

I cannot help but be inspired when I see such fearless trust in the Author and Sustainer of all life from these large families. And by and large, it seems that the Lord blesses these families with more and more grace as he adds to their number. Doubtless their store of wisdom in parenting is much larger than my own, and so I have been blessed to glean guidance from their depth of experience. Lately that has come in the form of a profound little ebook called, 

"4 Moms of 35+ Kids Answer Your Parenting Questions." 

My friend, Connie, of Smockity Frocks (one of the awesome "mooooooms" out there), and 3 of her fellow large family blogger buddies have taken the time to compile their heartfelt and hilarious answers to 17 of the most frequently asked parenting questions they get, including (but not limited to!):

• Nap Time
• Parenting styles
• Keeping Your Patience
• Church time with Children
• Grocery Shopping with Little Children
• Accomplishing big projects
• Giving Individual Attention
• Talking to Kids About Sex

It also has a master chore list divided into age appropriate chores, as well as a sermon notes printable. 

"4 Moms of 35+ Kids Answer Your Parenting Questions" is one of those truly priceless resources out there for all moms seeking, by God's grace, to raise the little ones He's given us to walk in His ways. And as a side bonus, there are some really hilarious moments candidly shared by these honest and precious mooooooms (we could all use a good laugh!). 

To order "4 Moms of 35+ Kids Answer Your Parenting Questions" for $7.99, click the following link

https://www.e-junkie.com/ecom/gb.php?cl=205259&c=ib&aff=210346" target="ejejcsingle