Tag: meditations

  • When Will We Treat Malfunction As Unacceptable?

    I’m thinking of specific friends and acquaintances I’ve made over the years who got stuck in one rut or another. And it seems rather obvious that the rut is unavoidable, and we cry out to God over and over again to deliver us from our rut. We pray that He will swoop down like Daddy Warbucks and carry us off to our new mansion we had no idea was waiting.


    Except God doesn’t often work this way. So why do we handle our ruts the same way over and over again?

    At some point, we must stop doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results.

    Should we stop praying? Of course not. But there’s a mindset that needs to shift. One that goes from a belief of “All I can do is just sit here and wait for deliverance” to “what steps are available RIGHT NOW that I could take and be proven as a good steward?”

    When it comes to emotional malfunction – call it trauma, depression, heartbreak, addiction, inferiority, ADHD, panic attacks, PTSD – whatever the case, there are steps we can each take WHILE we cry out to the Lord for deliverance.

    It’s not that we assume the responsibility of wholeness completely. It’s more that we don’t pawn off our portion of responsibility upon the Father so that we have nothing to do but cry and whine at him month after month, year after year, until we grow disheartened and disillusioned.

    There are steps you can take today. Pray for those. Begin to channel your daily prayers into two directions: Father, deliver me and set me on the path of restoration and fulfillment of my purpose; and Father, I’m ready to take a step toward wholeness and restoration today – show me the step that is before me.

    I’ve invested thousands of dollars in alternative treatments for my wife and I. I was willing to do what sounds foolish for the sake of even the slightest chance of improvement. Why? Because it’s more important to become restored than to look and feel dignified. If you are unwilling to look foolish, you will miss out on the vast majority of what God has for you. It is an act of self humbling to lower one’s self to do something that appears foolish or undignified in the eyes of others – IF you do it for a purpose. Being foolish in and of itself is not humbling, but rather wasteful. But there is a significant difference between looking foolish and acting foolish.

    How did I find these alternative health treatments? Research. My wife, my mother-in-law, and I invested our time into seeking out treatments because remaining a malfunctioning person is unacceptable. It cost us television time; hangout with the friends time. And you know what? We’ve found more healing and restoration as a result of not allowing our peers to determine that remaining just like you are is acceptable.

    It’s a never-ending pursuit of wholeness and relationship with Jesus. I seek Father God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit because I want to become who I was meant to be. But I also pursue healing apart from prayer and waiting because sometimes I can’t see God as He truly is until I remove the hurts and lies. And sometimes I can’t see what is what until I treat my body’s ailments first.

    Body, Soul, and Spirit. Each has needs. Legitimate needs. The question is, as the only person who can guarantee continual effort for the sake of your own good, are you going to take up the mantle of responsibility and seek out your complete healing and restoration, or are you going to settle for brokenness and for living a sub-standard lifestyle?

    The choice is yours. And it’s mine. Let’s take it seriously.

    * image by alexbruda


  • God Is Raising Up a Generation of Baby Adopters!

    It’s time for an online movement to arise, where believers stake a claim for the unborn children who would otherwise be aborted. It’s time to stand up and shout out:

    “We want your babies! Give US your babies! Don’t do what your heart and conscience know are wrong! There are OTHER options! We won’t judge you! We won’t curse you! We won’t speak evil of you to your children! We will love them and nurture them and honor you by telling them that at the moment of decision, their mothers thought there was no alternative but instead chose to give them LIFE! LIFE!”


    Harnessing Social Media as a Redemptive Tool

    I see a generation of people on Twitter and forums and Facebook groups making declarative statements that they would adopt babies slated for abortion. They will make themselves available for contact so that ANY woman considering an abortion can contact them and choose to relinquish parental rights to these loving and confident people.

    They will use hashtags to unify on Twitter. They will say, “I live in DFW. Please don’t abort that child. I want your baby! #wewantbabies” and pregnant women previously seeking abortions will find them and contact them and arrange meetings with them.

    The time has come for the Church to stand up and take care of its people.

    This is also the generation who will begin caring for and housing pregnant women who choose to keep their babies because the Holy Spirit convicts them. They will offer their services to train women in skills that will help them get jobs and provide for their families. They will provide loving and safe mentoring relationships so that single mothers ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS have someone to turn to for strength and advice and encouragement.

    It’s Time to Honor the Single Moms

    Segments of the Church will begin to esteem and honor single mothers so highly that they are drawn to the community of believers. A great spiritual fathering momentum is building! A great opportunity for blessing! Restoring the hearts of the fathers to the sons and the sons to the fathers begins by FIRST standing in the gap for the fathers who are absent. First comes standing in the gap. Then next will come the actual fathers’ hearts. First someone must love these babies. Someone must love them and give them WORTH! Esteem! Honor! Value!

    Provoking Jealousy in Prodigal Fathers

    The spiritual father stands in the gap for the physical father and gives to the child the blessing and birthright due. He acts on behalf of the father until the prodigal father’s return. That’s right. A prodigal father’s return is coming. But they will come, like the Jew who Scripture says will come because they envy that their birthright was shared with the Gentile. The father will see his children loved and esteemed and enjoyed and God will rip his heart in two with love! He will quake and fall and cry and be unwound in the midst of his community. He will come running, says the Lord.

    Someone has to speak it. Who will be so moved by compassion that they will sacrifice their comfort and their “ideal family” structure to offer up a chance to save these precious lives?

    * image by Charlotte Morrall


  • Pure Religion God Wants

    If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

    James 1:26-27

    There is so much here… where to begin? First, by saying “OUCH!” That whole keeping-a-rein-on-the-tongue thing…

    But let’s move on… quickly. :)

      1. Look after orphans and widows in their distress

    I love the simplicity of this. What is it about orphans and widows? In AD 55, widows and orphans were lower than slaves on the economic ladder. At least slaves were going to get shelter and food for their labor.

    I wonder that James didn’t mention men who were jobless or homeless. But then, I suppose he expected those who COULD work to be in much better straits than those who could not.

    Most, if not all, of my coworkers and random strangers I encounter act like they have no needs. No problems. It’s part of the game of being an American. You project success, strength, vitality, confidence. Even the slightest hint of weakness leaves you vulnerable as prey.

    But there are people, not all that far away from where we stand right now, who have no will to pretend. They cannot benefit from the charades. They have nothing. No reason to play games. Sure, they may still be defensive, hard hearted, or spiteful, but these are the least which Jesus told us to love and care for.

    2. keep oneself from being polluted by the world

    And to keep this post legal, I’ll touch on #2: Keep oneself from being polluted by the world. There are very few thoughts on my mind as much as this. Does this statement remind you of another command in Scripture?

    “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

    There’s something about the pattern, the rhythm, the culture of the world. It’s a culture that deafens ears and hides light. There are 101 ways to twist truth and thwart people from reaching their destinies. The darkness of men’s hearts has led them to worship lifeless things. To pour our hearts into fruitless pursuits. Time meant for the installing of God’s Kingdom on earth wasted. Fleshly pleasures pacify while spiritual pleasures go unexperienced.

    The command to keep yourself from being polluted by the world is closely linked with the choice to no longer conform to the world’s patterns. We are transformed by the renewing of our mind. And part of that renewing transformation involves not being polluted by the world. Are you polluted? Are you letting the world speak into your life? Is the world painting your understanding of life, love, marriage, friendship, and God for you? Are you a passive canvas, coloured by the noise of secular culture?

    Or will you take your energy, time, and passion and pour it into knowing God, renewing your mind, and being transformed into the image of His loving and generous Son, Jesus?


  • The Pursuit of Happiness: Which Part is Guaranteed?

    If you follow my Twitter account, you probably already read this. But it was good enough I wanted to share here, and maybe expound a bit. The context was a larger political rant which I’ll spare you.

    The Right to Pursue Happiness vs the Right to Happiness

    this country was founded on the right to pursue happiness. to have the right to pursue, you have to have the right to fail at your pursuit.September 22, 2010 6:41 pm via TweetDeck

    I object to the political parties who say we need bigger government in order to control all the poverty, and solve all the needy people’s problems. Each nation is built to fulfill a purpose, and it’s laws are constructed in such a way as to uphold that vision.

    The United States of America were built upon basic inalienable rights. The right to life, liberty, and the PURSUIT of happiness. Having a right to life means no one has the right to take your life from you. Having the right to liberty means no one can take your liberty from you. Having the right to pursue something means no one has permission to prevent you from pursuing happiness.

    Our founding fathers were very careful and deliberate with their word choice here. Part of having liberty means you can pursue your own happiness to the degree that it doesn’t squelch anyone else’s life, liberty or pursuit. That leaves the door rather wide open.

    Freedom to Fail

    If you have the freedom to pursue, that means the outcome is uncertain. It’s your right to pursue happiness. You might get it. You might not. But if you drink away your house and marriage, it’s not the government’s responsibility to hand out money so that you can continue your lifestyle of choice. You get to pursue happiness through the means you choose. But if your choices fail to bring you happiness, you have no one else to blame or demand reparation from.

    If you are free to pursue, you are free to choose HOW you pursue. And if you are free to choose how, then you are free to royally screw up your chance. And that has to be okay. Because you are free to try.

    Here’s a bonus:

    I agree with the Democrats’ concern for the poor, the unfortunate, and the minority. i disagree that it’s the government’s job to fix.September 22, 2010 6:13 pm via TweetDeck

    Caring Doesn’t Equal Solving

    It saddens me to see that the Democratic Party has become known as the sympathetic party. I love their heart for the poor and oppressed and unfortunate. I really do. But it’s not enough to care. Caring doesn’t equal solving. You can be dying of a gunshot wound to the chest and I can care so much for your pain that I run to the street corner and petition people to form committees to investigate the bullet hole, the cause of shooting in America, and what type of lifestyle needs you might have as a gunshot victim. I can spend time and money organizing. Meanwhile you’re dying. And you won’t make it another hour, much less in the time it would take to conclude our investigation and appeal to others for funding.

    But I cared about you! I tried to help you! So much more than those other snobs who walked by and only said they cared. At least I DID something! But wait. This isn’t about making ME feel good. It’s about saving your life. It’s about doing what actually needs to be done, rather than what satisfies my need to feel charitable. I should have just laid my hand on you, commanded your body to be healed, and then driven you quickly to the hospital if nothing happened instantly.

    You are not guaranteed health. You are not guaranteed happiness. You are given the freedom to pursue those things. But the government is not your parent. It’s not their job to clean up your mess.

    The Right to Accept Favor and Grace

    Let’s stretch our minds here just a second, and apply this to the Kingdom of God. We read about what God has said He’s given us: favor, grace, mercy, love, forgiveness, righteousness, etc. But I know many Christians, including myself, who aren’t experiencing these all the time.

    Some will argue with my word choice here, but I wonder if it wouldn’t be more accurate to say God gave us the freedom to pursue favor, grace, and mercy. It’s more than that, I know. He actually HAS made it available. It’s really there, for the taking. But we don’t automatically walk in the realization or experience of those things just because we believe. We can accept Christ as Lord and Savior and still misunderstand plenty about who He is, what His intentions are, and what He thinks of us after we mess up.

    And some of us will wait on our duffs for the day when God drops the answer out of the sky. But what if He already did? What if your answer is already there, and you’re just not seeing it?


  • Psalm 5

    For the director of music. For flutes. A psalm of David.

    1 Give ear to my words, O LORD,
    consider my sighing.

    2 Listen to my cry for help,
    my King and my God,
    for to you I pray.

    3 In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice;
    in the morning I lay my requests before you
    and wait in expectation.

    4 You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil;
    with you the wicked cannot dwell.

    5 The arrogant cannot stand in your presence;
    you hate all who do wrong.

    6 You destroy those who tell lies;
    bloodthirsty and deceitful men
    the LORD abhors.

    7 But I, by your great mercy,
    will come into your house;
    in reverence will I bow down
    toward your holy temple.

    8 Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
    because of my enemies—
    make straight your way before me.

    9 Not a word from their mouth can be trusted;
    their heart is filled with destruction.
    Their throat is an open grave;
    with their tongue they speak deceit.

    10 Declare them guilty, O God!
    Let their intrigues be their downfall.
    Banish them for their many sins,
    for they have rebelled against you.

    11 But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
    let them ever sing for joy.
    Spread your protection over them,
    that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

    12 For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous;
    you surround them with your favor as with a shield.


  • Psalm 4

    For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.

    Answer me when I call to you,
    O my righteous God.
    Give me relief from my distress;
    be merciful to me and hear my prayer.

    How long, O men, will you turn my glory into shame?
    How long will you love delusions and seek false gods?
    Selah

    Know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself;
    the LORD will hear when I call to him.

    In your anger do not sin;
    when you are on your beds,
    search your hearts and be silent.
    Selah

    Offer right sacrifices
    and trust in the LORD.

    Many are asking, “Who can show us any good?”
    Let the light of your face shine upon us, O LORD.

    You have filled my heart with greater joy
    than when their grain and new wine abound.

    I will lie down and sleep in peace,
    for you alone, O LORD,
    make me dwell in safety.


  • Psalm 3

    A psalm of David. When he fled from his son Absalom.

    1 O LORD, how many are my foes!
    How many rise up against me!

    2 Many are saying of me,
    “God will not deliver him.”
    Selah

    3 But you are a shield around me, O LORD;
    you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.

    4 To the LORD I cry aloud,
    and he answers me from his holy hill.
    Selah

    5 I lie down and sleep;
    I wake again, because the LORD sustains me.

    6 I will not fear the tens of thousands
    drawn up against me on every side.

    7 Arise, O LORD!
    Deliver me, O my God!
    Strike all my enemies on the jaw;
    break the teeth of the wicked.

    8 From the LORD comes deliverance.
    May your blessing be on your people.
    Selah


  • Psalm 2

    Psalm 2

    1 Why do the nations conspire
    and the peoples plot in vain?

    2 The kings of the earth take their stand
    and the rulers gather together
    against the LORD
    and against his Anointed One.

    3 “Let us break their chains,” they say,
    “and throw off their fetters.”

    4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
    the Lord scoffs at them.

    5 Then he rebukes them in his anger
    and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,

    6 “I have installed my King
    on Zion, my holy hill.”

    7 I will proclaim the decree of the LORD :
    He said to me, “You are my Son;
    today I have become your Father.

    8 Ask of me,
    and I will make the nations your inheritance,
    the ends of the earth your possession.

    9 You will rule them with an iron scepter;
    you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

    10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
    be warned, you rulers of the earth.

    11 Serve the LORD with fear
    and rejoice with trembling.

    12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry
    and you be destroyed in your way,
    for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.


  • Psalm 1

    Psalm 1

    1 Blessed is the man
    who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
    or stand in the way of sinners
    or sit in the seat of mockers.

    2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
    and on his law he meditates day and night.

    3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
    and whose leaf does not wither.
    Whatever he does prospers.

    4 Not so the wicked!
    They are like chaff
    that the wind blows away.

    5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
    nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

    6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked will perish.

    (New International Version)


  • Proverbs 2:1-6

    1 My son, if you accept my words
    and store up my commands within you,

    What is he saying here? Accept his words. Hear them, accept them as true. Store his commands within. Own them. Accept them. Renew your mind. Absorb and become.

    2 turning your ear to wisdom
    and applying your heart to understanding,

    Turning your ear to wisdom implies it is not already turned. Applying your heart implies effort. Ever hear a parent, teacher, or mentor tell you to apply yourself? This is what they mean. It’s not enough to hear wisdom. Earnestly pursue understanding it with your heart.

    3 and if you call out for insight
    and cry aloud for understanding,

    4 and if you look for it as for silver
    and search for it as for hidden treasure,

    5 then you will understand the fear of the LORD
    and find the knowledge of God.

    6 For the LORD gives wisdom,
    and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.