Every Captive Free

FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!

This has been the cry of my heart for quite some time yet it has been amplified in the last couple of weeks as God is in the process of bringing even greater levels of freedom into my life. Healing and freedom go hand in hand to me. As we are healed, greater levels of freedom come.

I am currently reading a rather intense book that I don't know that I would recommend to everyone but here is such a powerful quote from it:

None of us are as free as Jesus intended for us to be. We may be as free as we know how to be at this hour. As we gain new freedom, we will then be able to look back and see how deeply in bondage we were all along.-Malone

Jesus has greater levels of freedom for me! And for you! The kicker is, we have to want it. Jesus is a gentleman and He will not force anything on us, from salvation, to the Holy Spirit, to healing and freedom. He desires it for us more than we could ever know but He won't force it. We have to want it!

I want it so bad I can taste it! It is literally something I am craving and I am working towards because I recognize two things: 1. I need it. 2. Those around me need it and until they see it manifest in my life, they won't recognize the need for it in their own life.

Yesterday, a friend posted on facebook "what is something that i want to see changed in the world? it can be small or big...anything." I asked her if it was a rhetorical question and she responded that she in fact was trying to figure out what she wants to see changed in the world and that she would take suggestions. My response was "I want to see lives transformed for the glory of God, particularly people living as free and healed as God intended them to be." I do! I really, really do!

A friend of mine shared this song with me the other day and I can't stop listening to it. It's one of those that has gotten down into my spirit and I keep singing it over and over as I go throughout my day. The song is Every Captive Free by Matt Gilman. May it minister to you in great ways and may you seek after healing and freedom in Christ all the days of your life!

Fight For It!

Life is about relationships. God created us to be in relationship with Him first and foremost but He also created us to be in relationship with others. He saw all the way back in the garden of Eden that it was not good for man to be alone. (Genesis 2:18). Often we think of this only in relation to husbands and wives but looking broader, we see that ultimately, God, in His divine wisdom saw the need for us to be in relationships with others.

However, in case you haven't noticed, Satan tries to do everything in his power to destroy relationships. All Satan knows how to do is steal, kill and destroy, nothing more and nothing less. (John 10:10) He knows that he will forever be estranged from God and that the relationship he once had with the Creator of the Universe has been severed; thus his reason for attacking us so vehemently. Satan is jealous of our relationship with God Almighty and he will do everything in his limited power to keep us from Him. And again, the only way he knows how to do that is to steal, kill and destroy.

Additionally, Satan recognizes the power of united Christians; brothers and sisters that dwell together in unity in Christ (Psalm 133:1). He attempts to cause disunity, disorder, pain, hurt, rejection and communication breakdown in those relationships in hopes that we will turn on each other and ultimately turn away from God.

Over the past few months, one such relationship was under attack between myself and a friend of mine. Pain happened. Distance began. Communication stopped. Relationship nearly ended. BUT GOD! This past week, we were able to talk through the events and situations openly and honestly before one another. We both decided that this relationship, this God-ordained friendship was and is worth fighting for! And today, we spent the day together! And ya know what? We had the best communication than we have ever had and our relationship is stronger than it was before! There is such an awesome power in knowing that two people are fighting for a friendship and are determined to make it work! My God truly is a God of Reconciliation!

Maybe there's a relationship you need to fight for today. It could be a marriage, a relationship with a parent  a friendship or whatever. Regardless of the who, my exhortation to you is to fight for it! It's so worth it! It's not always easy, this I know as I tearfully shared with my friend the night of our reconciliation but the good fruit that follows is of the sweetest kind!

What relationship are you willing to fight for?

You Are Mine

There are no words for me to say today. I am His. He is Mine.

Isaiah 43:1-7
But now, O Israel, the Lord who created you says: “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. 2 When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. 3 For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I gave Egypt, Ethiopia, and Seba as a ransom for your freedom. 4 Others died that you might live. I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to me. You are honored, and I love you. 5 “Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will gather you and your children from east and west 6 and from north and south. I will bring my sons and daughters back to Israel from the distant corners of the earth. 7 All who claim me as their God will come, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them.”



Concept Grasped, Execution Elusive

I have found so many insightful truths from the movie(s) Princess Diaries and Princess Diaries 2! Even though I could probably quote the movies verbatim, occasionally as I listen, some quotes stir me as if it's the first time I have heard them. Let me set up the scene from which this quote comes.

Princess Mia has been having a rough go of things. She is engaged to be married to a man (Andrew) she is clearly not in love with but is choosing to overlook that fact for the sake of the crown. However, she is being wooed by a man (Nicholas) that she does find attractive and is drawn to although he is trying to steal her crown. Mia has just had another interaction with Nicholas in which he kisses her causing much confusion and chaos that leaves the two of them soaking wet from falling in a fountain. Princess Mia shamefully heads back to the palace.

The next scene is Queen Clarice reprimanding Mia for her actions in essence asking Mia when will she grasp the concept that she is a princess, on the road to queen-dom. Mia responds by saying "The concept IS grasped. The execution is a little elusive!"

Quite often, I feel like Princess Mia. I can relate with her in so many ways and on so many levels. I understand the "concept" but sometimes the execution is a little elusive or a little out of reach. Paul talks about this idea in Romans 7:

^14-16I can anticipate the response that is coming: "I know that all God's commands are spiritual, but I'm not. Isn't this also your experience?" Yes. I'm full of myself—after all, I've spent a long time in sin's prison. What I don't understand about myself is that I decide one way, but then I act another, doing things I absolutely despise. So if I can't be trusted to figure out what is best for myself and then do it, it becomes obvious that God's command is necessary.
 ^17-20But I need something more! For if I know the law but still can't keep it, and if the power of sin within me keeps sabotaging my best intentions, I obviously need help! I realize that I don't have what it takes. I can will it, but I can't do it. I decide to do good, but I don't really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time.
 ^21-23It happens so regularly that it's predictable. The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up. I truly delight in God's commands, but it's pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight. Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge.


Paul got the "concept" but the execution was elusive. Your "concept" may not be a sin issue as Paul was talking about. The "concept" for you might be that you "know" that you are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2) but executing that might be difficult or a little elusive for you. I don't know what it is you are struggling to execute in your life but God does and He has promised to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

Ultimately, by the end of the movie, Princess Mia not only grasped the concept, she was able to execute it and execute it well as Queen of Genovia. It may take us a little longer than an hour and a half movie to get there but we are well on our way!

 Don't allow your goof-ups to slow you down today!

God Speaks Through a Donkey and a Wii

God speaks to his people, there's no mistake about that. We read in Numbers 22 how God used a donkey to speak to Balaam. Balaam was trying to obey God but He didn't recognize the angel of the Lord and when his donkey stopped, Balaam beat his donkey, not once, not twice but three times. But then the donkey, no relation to Mr. Ed, speaks via the Lord's power so Balaam could hear what God had to say. You can check out the story for yourself in Numbers. I just wanted you to be aware that sometimes God speaks in different ways :)


Yesterday, I was playing a Wii game called Sword Showdown. In the game you are a swordsman and you are taking on 100 different opponents by yourself. You have three lives and each time you are hit, you lose a life. I am on level 6 which I can’t seem to get past. I must have played that level about 35-40 times now and I can’t win. As I was playing with the children I babysit looking on, I could feel myself growing increasingly frustrated with this imaginary game. Why? Because that’s how I often feel in life…like I can’t win. I make progress and seem to be conquering but then I take a few hits and I am down for the count or lose. It doesn’t matter how angry I get or how hard I hit to take out the opponents, I can’t seem to get the victory...yet. And I am mad. Mad at the devil and his stupid lies. And I have a feeling you might be as well.

I was reminded last night about healing being a progressive work, something I remind others about often but occasionally need the reminder myself. We often think of healing and life on a timeline with point A being said issue, point B being another. We deal with said issue but if it comes up again we feel like we have failed and that we are starting over or at least taking two steps forward and one step back. However, we need to see our lives and our healing as a spiral (Alicia Chole illustration) or a mountain (Me and Miley Cyrus illustration). Yes, we deal with issue A to the best of our ability at the time and as we go around the mountain we may tackle issue B and C but then we may come upon issue A again. When we do so, it's not a sign of defeat or setback but rather the reality that we are going further in dealing with our issues as we go up the mountain.

Miley Cyrus sings the song called The Climb and in looking at the lyrics this morning these particular verses stood out:

 The struggles I'm facing
The chances I'm taking
Sometimes might knock me down
But no, I'm not breaking

I may not know it
But these are the moments that
I'm gonna remember most, yeah
Just gotta keep going

And I, I got to be strong
Just keep pushing on


All of that to say, I'm pushing on. And while, I may not have conquered level 6 of Sword Showdown and while I am working on conquering new levels in my life, I WILL CONQUER BOTH EVENTUALLY! As Romans 8:37 says: No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us!

We can conquer, friend. I choose to keep on fighting and I pray you will do the same!

Healer

Over the last few days, I have been re-visiting this song that helped me through a difficult season and is helping me yet again.

Quite a bit of controversy surfaced over this song but more in regards to the person who wrote it. The lyricist, a broken individual, penned the words to this song while lying about the fact that he had cancer. While this is a sad ordeal, I think it was the cry of the author for true emotional healing, even through the deception. Many churches have stopped singing this song as a part of their worship set however, there is so much truth enveloped in these words. I have refused to allow the controversy to quench what God wants to do in and through me via this song. Below are the lyrics and the song sung by Hillsong, yes the original lyricist, as God can forgive him and heal him just as he desires.

 I pray greater levels of healing for us all.

Healer

You hold my every moment
You calm my raging seas
You walk with me through fire
And heal all my disease

I trust in you
I trust in you

I believe
You're my healer
I believe
You are all i need
I believe
You're my portion
I believe
You're more than enough for me
Jesus, you're all i need

Nothing is impossible for you
Nothing is impossible
Nothing is impossible for you
You hold my world in your hands

Remembering, I keep a grip on hope!

All I have to share today is the scripture I have been mulling over since I heard it on the radio last night. The Scripture is found in Lamentations 3. I know, Lamentations..sounds exciting, right? But these verses have already brought me hope and I pray they do the same for you! The italicized and underlined section is what was shared on the radio but it's all so good.

It's a Good Thing to Hope for Help from God

 ^19-21I'll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness,
   the taste of ashes, the poison I've swallowed.
I remember it all—oh, how well I remember—
   the feeling of hitting the bottom.
But there's one other thing I remember,
   and remembering, I keep a grip on hope:

 ^22-24God's loyal love couldn't have run out,
   his merciful love couldn't have dried up.
They're created new every morning.
   How great your faithfulness!
I'm sticking with God (I say it over and over).
   He's all I've got left.

 ^25-27God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits,
   to the woman who diligently seeks.
It's a good thing to quietly hope,
   quietly hope for help from God.
It's a good thing when you're young
   to stick it out through the hard times.

 ^28-30When life is heavy and hard to take,
   go off by yourself. Enter the silence.
Bow in prayer. Don't ask questions:
   Wait for hope to appear.
Don't run from trouble. Take it full-face.
   The "worst" is never the worst.

 ^31-33Why? Because the Master won't ever
   walk out and fail to return.
If he works severely, he also works tenderly.
   His stockpiles of loyal love are immense.
He takes no pleasure in making life hard,
   in throwing roadblocks in the way:

 ^34-36Stomping down hard
   on luckless prisoners,
Refusing justice to victims
   in the court of High God,
Tampering with evidence—
   the Master does not approve of such things.