No Automatic Pilot

Our generation seems to be preoccupied with the ability to put circumstances on “automatic pilot.”  The newest invention is self-driving cars.  Before that were self-flying drones. 

The obvious question, to me, is why are we trying to write ourselves out of involvement in our own lives and jobs?  That’s a question that probes human motivation.  The next question, looking to the future, is what will be the consequence? 

As I drive down Austin city streets with Waymo vehicles passing me, I get an eerie feeling as I peer into empty driver seats.  Will actual people become expendable? 

Ironically enough, as I think about the way God sees people, I realize we are anything but expendable.  In fact, we are precious.  Believing in God the Creator and Redeemer of mankind reveals a weightiness about human beings. God so loved the world that he gave what was most precious to himself.  I suppose he could have sent a robot, but instead he sent his own Son. 

Likewise, when I think about the position and commission Jesus has given to us, his disciples, I am even more struck by the weight of authority he has placed upon us.  The responsibility of God-given authority – of being his hands and feet to the world – is the opposite of being expendable. 

I don’t know, maybe we’re afraid of the responsibility.  Maybe we’re lazy.  But we had better wake up or we might “automate” ourselves out of usefulness.  There is no automatic pilot for being human.

Miracle Sight

Have you ever thought: “If I saw a real miracle I would believe in God!”  Really?? 

I beg to differ. 

On the contrary, you and I see things of miracle or near-miracle status every day, and go about our business as if nothing is out of the ordinary.  It’s shocking, but true.  For instance, have you ever seen a healthy baby? The overall chances of a healthy couple conceiving and birthing a full-term baby are about ll.2%.¹  Maybe that’s not quite a miracle of the supernatural kind, but at least it should cause us to say “Wow!” 

Or have you seen a sunset or sunrise?  These events depend on the stable revolution of Earth around the Sun as they both hurtle through space.  How likely is it that they will move out of this stable relationship (i.e. no sunrise and sunset)?  “Current estimates suggest only a 0.2% chance of Earth being flung out of its orbit or colliding with another planet over the next five billion years.”²   I think we’re OK.

My point is that if we have lost our sense of awe over God’s creation of these “natural” things, how will we respond when someone tells us: “I had cancer and God healed me”?  The ones who believe this are usually the ones who already believed in God. Many people may be too polite to say so, but they doubt it.

Jesus did fabulous, never-been-done -before miracles, and yet some people questioned his authority, some accused him of conspiring with the devil, and some wanted to kill him.

Why was that? Why didn’t they believe, with awestruck wonder, that God had done something?  Jesus diagnosed the condition by saying:

‘When they see what I do,

   they will learn nothing.

When they hear what I say,

   they will not understand.

Otherwise, they will turn to me

   and be forgiven.’ (Mark 4:12) 

In other words, their problem was deeper than physical seeing and hearing, but was a heart issue.  They were spiritually blind and deaf, and couldn’t see what was “as plain as the nose on your face.”  As odd as it sounds, they needed to believe before they saw.  If they repented of their unbelief in God first, then their hearts would be clear to actually understand what they saw and heard.

So next time you see or hear about a miracle, don’t just think “I doubt it.”  Instead ask for the heart change that will enable you to understand.

 

¹https://mommyhood101.com/pregnancy-odds-ovulation-to-birth

² https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth's_orbit

 

 

A WORD OF HOPE

Psalm 132: 13-18

For the Lord has chosen Jerusalem;
   he has desired it for his home.
“This is my resting place forever,” he said.
   “I will live here, for this is the home I desired.
I will bless this city and make it prosperous;
   I will satisfy its poor with food.
I will clothe its priests with godliness;
   its faithful servants will sing for joy.
Here I will increase the power of David;
   my anointed one will be a light for my people.
I will clothe his enemies with shame,
   but he will be a glorious king.”


I’m a literature teacher. In literature we learn that a symbol is one thing that represents another thing. But it also includes the original thing in its meaning. For example, a rainbow is a symbol for God’s promise never again to destroy the earth with a great flood – but the bow in the clouds is itself included in the meaning.


In Psalm 132 there are several symbols. The first is "Jerusalem," which is a symbol and precursor of the church, and both were in God’s mind from the beginning as his chosen possession. The second is "David," who is a type and symbol of Christ, but also included in Christ because he was Christ’s physical ancestor. Next is “David’s enemies,” which would represent the devil, because the same spirit that was opposing David in establishing Israel’s kingdom was opposing Jesus in establishing God’s kingdom.


So God is speaking over us at Hope Chapel that

• he lives here and this is the home he desires
• he will bless us and make this place prosper
• he will satisfy our needs with his provision
• he will clothe us with godliness so that we sing for joy
• he will increase the power of the Lord in this place so that people are drawn to his light
• he will expose the works of the enemy that he has conquered for us

And Psalm 132 is one of the songs of ascent that the people were singing as they walked up to the city of Jerusalem, looking up in hope to what God was going to do there.


Today we’ve been singing “open the eyes of my heart, Lord,” and Steve has described how Isaiah looked up and saw with his inner eye what was not visible in the natural. 

So look up!  With the eyes of your heart, with the eyes of hope. to what God is about to do for you.

The Gifts of Salvation

On Sunday during worship service I had a vision I didn’t share with everyone.  It is Christmas in July and there are beautiful presents stacked high and wide under the Christmas tree.  Jesus has them all wrapped and waiting.  He wants you to reach out and take them, open and receive each lovely answer to your need!

 

One of the ways to honor him, (and all the worship songs we were singing were about giving him honor) is by receiving his gifts.  Things in the kingdom of God are upside down that way – we bless him by receiving from him.

 

“What shall I give unto the Lord

For all he’s done for me?

I’ll take the cup of salvation

And call upon the name of the Lord.”  Psalm 116:12-13

 

The cup of salvation is free, the gifts are free – prepared out of the good and loving heart of your Father; paid for by the sacrifice of the Son.  Salvation will not only happen in eternity, but is the answer to your every need now – to make you whole and holy.

 

Reach out and receive today!

 

Song reference:              https://youtu.be/-Qfzfeswi_g?si=-sQdzxkZymBVnZfM

Scripture reference:        For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast.  Ephesians 2:8, 9

The HAVES and the HAVE NOTS

 Read: Matthew 6:19-34

Jesus’ teaching about money and the kingdom of God in Matthew 6 is about focus. He uses two types of audience as examples: the HAVES and the HAVE NOTS.

 

In verses 19-21 Jesus is addressing those who HAVE money.  They have something laid up, something to treasure.

 

Then the flip side – in verses 25-34 Jesus is addressing those who HAVE NOT.  That is, they actually don’t have money laid ahead but are struggling day to day or month to month just to survive. The thing is, their focus is just as much on money as those who do HAVE extra set aside.  It’s the same problem on the flip side.

 

In verses 22-23, in the comparison about the eye, Jesus explains that the problem with money is all about your focus.  If your focus is on money and what it can provide you, that’s like living in the dark but thinking you can see just fine.

 

Jesus then uses another powerful comparison in verse 24: focusing on money is enslavement.  It keeps you from actually serving the kingdom of God.

 

Either way, HAVE or HAVE NOT, if you trust in money and what it can do for you in this world, you’re trapped.  You find that you’re not actually free to do the things God is calling you to do.  Because God always calls you to respond to his grace through faith, and what he calls to is what HE provides for.  Bottom line: where is your provision coming from – God or self, faith or works?  It makes all the difference.

 

What’s in your “wallet”? 

MY HEALING FROM AN OVARIAN CYST

On July 27, 2024 I was rushed by ambulance to the hospital with intense abdominal pain from an unknown cause. 

 

But wait. Flashback to the day before.  I had written in my journal: “During my quiet time with God, I got a picture of a stronghold.  It was a concrete castle ruins covered over in vines so I couldn’t see it. I kept stubbing my toe on it and not knowing why I was stumped.  So I asked God what stronghold should I focus on tearing down?  I heard him say “fear.”            … Now back to my story…

 

After a CT-scan and other tests, the doctors told me that I had a cyst on my right ovary that measured 15 cm. across.  They showed me the image – it covered the entire width of my abdomen.  It took 3 days in the hospital for the powerful pain and nausea drugs to calm my system so I could go home.

 

I prayed for God to show me what to do, because the recommendation was that I see an oncologist surgeon to remove the cyst and any other involved organs.  They couldn’t know if it was malignant until after the surgery.

 

A day or so later I saw an ad on TV for a “Healing is Here” Conference in Colorado. I recognized the name Andrew Wommack and felt drawn to go to it.  Now, spontaneous trips out-of-state when I’m in the midst of a health crisis are NOT in line with my natural temperament!  Nevertheless, within a few days I was flying to Woodland Park, Colorado along with my daughter Laura.

 

God spoke various things to me during the conference, and I went forward for prayer several times.  I left Colorado feeling better than when I had arrived.

 

Back home I took a turn for the worse, however, and was soon on high-powered pain killers 24 hours a day, barely able to eat or even take care of myself.  During that time I was intently listening to the “Healing Journeys” testimonies from Charis Bible College, to Andrew Wommack’s videos on “God Wants You Well,” and I read Spirit, Soul, and Body by Andrew.  Finally, God gave me assurance to go ahead with surgery and to ask people to partner with me in prayer over every aspect of the operation and my recovery.

 

In the night before surgery I had an experience with God. I felt him come close to me and lay his hand on my hair, like I was a tiny child, and as he touched me I felt something happening in my body. I asked him what it was, and he said, “I am taking away the knee-jerk reaction of fear – now you will have a choice.” A delicious calm feeling enveloped my as he said, “You are safe.”

 

The successful surgery with no complications happened on September 4^th.  No cancer was found at that time.  Two weeks later I got the final conclusive lab report that the large 2.2 pound cyst that had been removed was completely benign.  Praise God for his grace and healing!

 

I am now fully recovered, able to continue all my previous activities, and happily in school as a part-time student at Charis Bible College (Austin Extension Campus). 

 

Lorraine Mahan, Austin, Texas

10/17/2024

RICH WITH PRACTICALLY NOTHING

A mechanic pulled up next to me just when my car broke down.

A friend walked into the garage just when I needed a ride.

A visitor picked up some medications for me just when I ran out.

Are these all coincidences?

I don’t think so.

But you may think otherwise.

We can see such opportunities as serendipity, or as karma, or as God’s favor.

 The Psalmist tells us that our own efforts only go so far, and that we do need God’s favor and help:

“Unless the Lord builds the city, the workmen labor in vain.  Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.”

It’s humbling.

We Americans love our independence.  We love action.

We have to be intentional about trust in God.  But if we do.  Even if we only give him a little bit of faith.

He multiplies it.

2 becomes 4.

4 becomes 8, or 16, or 48.

And 2 fish become 5,000.

Prayer:

“Jesus, when my faith is small, don’t let me forget what you can do with practically nothing.”

(Prayer quoted from Cynthia Ruchti in Mornings with Jesus.)

A Series of FORTUNATE Events

My car shook with a “clunk clunk” sound in the middle of afternoon traffic on Highway 183 South. But following me in her car was my co-worker, Cynthia.  I managed to pull over and park, and minutes later Cynthia pulled up next to me.  Just as I lifted the hood and was wondering whether to call for a tow, a man in a truck pulled up and offered to help.  He spoke very knowledgeably and as I walked over to him I saw that the insignia on his shirt read Arbor Car Wash and Lube.  As it turned out, amazingly, all I had to do was drive a few feet to the Arbor garage parking lot to get my car checked.  Within a few minutes, a kind mechanic at that shop had run a diagnostic and told me the error codes.  No charge.  Soon I was on my way and Cynthia continued on to do her errand.

The second fortunate event was the next morning when I pulled into the Firestone Station to have my car serviced.  I was there the first thing early, and the service manager offered to do a free routine check and to use the information given me by the other mechanic to diagnose the car – saving me $100.  As I waited in the customer lounge, I was shocked to see my good friend Elizabeth, whom I had not seen in years, walk in the door.  We embraced with enthusiasm, and then spent the next 45 minutes pleasantly catching up and encouraging one another in the Lord.   When her car was ready but mine was not, she offered to drive me home.

Back at home, I made some breakfast and had only taken a few bites when my office manager, Karen, pulled up in front of my house.  She had kindly offered to take me to work.  I thought I might as well get some hours in at the office, and then  later call someone else to take me back to my car.

That’s when the third fortunate event occurred.  As we drove toward Hwy 183 North, we had not gone more than a couple miles when my cell phone rang.  It was the Firestone manager, and my car was ready for pick up.  So quickly!  Then just up ahead  of us, I caught a glimpse of the Firestone Station, so I quickly shouted to Karen, “Turn right here, turn here!”  She was able, instead of veering left onto the entrance ramp of Highway 183, to make a quick right turn, and drop me right back at the door of the Firestone Station. 

This was a bit too much for me.  I was dazzled by the split-second orchestration of each event since the previous day.  It was as if an invisible hand had moved the chess pieces of all our lives around in perfect harmony – meeting my needs perfectly and even blessing a few others along the way.  I hadn’t prayed, except a quick “Help me” when my car started to shake, yet it was as if God was right there in the midst of us.

I did have to spend a significant sum for the repair, which I had not been anticipating, but I got in my full day of work on both days – didn’t miss a beat.  And I suspect that the God who orchestrated all of these fortunate events, will also be able to handle my repair bill.

For Holocaust Remembrance Day – MY VISIT TO DACHAU

In 1975 I was travelling in Germany, and I went to visit Dachau Concentration Camp.  Back in those days no one said stupid things about the Holocaust having been a media invention.  We knew it had been shockingly real – our parents had fought a war not only to protect our nation but to liberate peoples being conquered and exterminated by the Nazis.

So, I went out of curiosity, but the type of curiosity mingled with deep reverence and even dread.  It’s somewhat near the feeling you have when you attend a funeral.  Unpleasant, but important.

There was still barbed wire around the compound, and the heavy iron-grilled gate was still in place, although of course it was open and we could enter and leave at will.  Still, there was a slightly creepy sense upon entering – knowing the stories of horror told by many of the survivors of this and similar camps.  One building had been made into a museum, and there were long hallways of pictures, and they included the entire history of the rise of Nazism, Hitler, the camps, the war, and finally the liberation.  People filed silently and somberly along these hallways, reading, staring, riveted by an invisible force that wouldn’t let them look away, drawn like moths toward a dangerous flame. Disturbing. It’s the kind of experience where you ask yourself: “Why am I doing this to myself?”  But you already know the answer.

The pictures were all within arm’s reach – this was no ordinary museum. The most unexpected – shocking – part of this for me was that in every picture where Hitler was depicted, his face had been gouged out, smudged and spit upon.  You could feel the hatred, disgust and despair emanating from those eviscerated photos.

Outside this building we could enter one other building that was still standing.  This was one of the many barracks.  It was a long rather thin wooden structure, unadorned with any decoration or color that would lift the mind or spirit.  Inside were row upon row of plain wooden bunks, hundreds of them.  There was no privacy, no personal space, no comfort, no hint of individuality.  It was depressing just to stand there.  I quickly left.

The last part of the experience was the only redemption.  At the back of the lot, three small open-air chapels had been built, one each for Protestant, Catholic, and Jew.  This was a place to stand and reflect that this evil era had come to an end, and that good had triumphed.  It was a place to be grateful to God.

It's Nobody's Fault! -- thoughts on aging

Are you caring for an aging parent?  Perhaps you did care for them and now they have passed away.  There are many lessons to be gleaned through such a gargantuan task.  If you are currently involved in this task, you are likely too busy to read this!  If so, just read the four headings. J

This morning my thoughts turned to the last seven years of my mother’s life, those years of caring for my mother – how she changed, and how I changed as I helped her and walked with her through that tumultuous time.  My insights crystallized into four statements about the changes and difficulties of aging and dying:

1)       It’s no one’s fault. 

As I helped Mom with the normal everyday tasks such as cooking, cleaning, paying bills, and as we had to face monumental changes together – moving, leaving things and people behind, giving stuff away, switching the parent-child role – she would get angry a lot.  And she was angry at me.  I comforted myself and felt “guided” through all this by clinging to the thought, “These difficulties, sadnesses, and griefs are because of aging, and it’s no one’s fault.”

2)      You can’t fix it.

My default mode is fixing things and making them better.  The changes of aging can’t be fixed.  They can only be endured and lived through together.  It was a radically different kind of living for me – to make gargantuan efforts without being able to “fix” Mom, or fix her life for her, or make all this go away.  It was valuable to experience this in a “head on” sort of way, because, truth be told, there are lots of things I had been trying to fix in my life that were not in my power to fix.

3)      It’s not going to have a happy ending.

Watching someone age, and knowing that someday they are going to die, is the ultimate downer.  The thought could have presented itself, “If it’s not going to have a happy ending, why try?”  Most people are tempted to quit when the obstacles are too high and the outcome is anything but assured.  In fact, it is downright heroic and even mystifying when someone presses on in the face of unbeatable odds.  In To Kill a Mockingbird, when Atticus tells Scout that defending Tom is something he has to do even though he probably won’t win, I am admiring yet confused.  But now that I have gone through it myself, I understand -- there are a few things in this life that are worthy in themselves, regardless of “success."

4)      It’s all going to be OK.

It’s not really explainable, but love makes it all OK.  Love, and God, and eternity.  Knowing that I had given my all for Mom, that I had truly loved her as a daughter should, gave me a sense of rightness and completeness that nothing else in my life has done (other than raising my children).  And that love has an “outside of this world” component.  There was a sense of God walking with us.  This made it far better for me than if I had walked with her toward death and knew there was nothing else.  That would have been senseless, purposeless.  But with God, everything, even aging and death, seemed to have purpose – even if that purpose didn’t fit into my puny brain at the moment.  After she passed away, I was laid low with heavy grief for a while, but I glimpsed her life in that Great Beyond, and I knew she was now OK and happy --- more complete and happy than she ever was or ever could have been in this fallen world.  Amen!  

“All will be well, all will be well, all manner of things will be well.”

WHEN A GREAT MAN PASSES ------------------------- Billy Graham 2018 and George Whitefield 1770

When a great man passes away, the world sits up and takes notice.  It may be that they never paid much attention to what he said.  It is likely that they have never met him.  And yet on the day he dies, many are willing to listen and learn about him.  Today is such a day.

Billy Graham was a great man by the world’s standards.  The qualities that made him great will be discussed for years to come.  But today as news media across America and around the world share the facts of his life and death, what we feel is the sheer impact of the man.

In the 1700s God had raised up another such powerful preacher, George Whitefield.  He was 200 years before my time, yet this poem which was written about him by Phyllis Wheatley shares the same emotion I think many are feeling at Billy Graham’s passing – impact.

Hail, happy saint! On thine immortal throne,

Possessed of glory, life, and bliss unknown:

We hear no more the music of thy tongue;

Thy wonted auditories cease to throng.

Thy sermons in unequalled accents flowed,

And every bosom with devotion glowed.

Thou didst, in strains of eloquence refined,

Inflame the heart, and captivate the mind.

Unhappy, we the setting sun deplore,

So glorious once, but ah! It shines no more….

Thy prayers, great saint, and thine incessant cries,

Have pierced the bosom of thy native skies.

Thou, moon, hast seen, and all the stars of light,

How he has wrestled with his God by night.

He prayed that grace in every heart might dwell;

He longed to see America excel.

He charged its youth that every grace divine

Should with full luster in their conduct shine,

That Savior, which his soul did first receive,

The greatest gift that even a God can give,

He freely offered to the numerous throng

That on his lips with list’ning pleasure hung.

“Take Him, ye wretched, for your only good,

Take Him, ye starving sinners, for your food,

Ye thirsty, come to this life-giving stream,

Ye preachers, take him for your joyful theme,

Take him, my dear Americans,” he said,

“Be your complaints on his kind bosom laid;

Take Him, ye Africans, he longs for you;

Impartial Savior, is his title due.

Washed in the fountain of redeeming blood,

You shall be sons, and kings, and priests to God.” …

MY STORY - In Honor of Billy Graham’s Homegoing

I was fourteen years old.  I’d had a rough life up to that point.  Divorce had shattered my family, and my dad had kept things stirred up with custody battles.  Mom was depressed, and so my sister and I often felt as if we were the parents.  Life at school wasn’t much better for me.  Except for academic success, the school scene was empty and lonely.

Then came a moment of decision and change that I had never anticipated.  I was at a movie created by the Rev. Billy Graham’s organization, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA).   Titled “The Restless Ones,” it showed the empty lives of a group of teenagers and how everything turned around when they decided to follow Christ.  I was a church-goer, but I didn’t know that I was supposed to personally make a decision.  After the movie, the BGEA-trained counselors gave an altar-call, and –shaking all over—I went forward to give my life to Christ.

After that, I was spiritually sensitive to understand the Bible, to know how to pray, and to have wisdom for decision-making.  I prayed about how to deal with my difficult parent situation, how to act in relationships, and where to go to college.  God directed me – often in very specific ways – again and again.  He also gave me courage to move across the country at age eighteen, and later to marry and start a family.  When I became a parent, I sought God for how to raise my children, and I led them in the sinner’s prayer, as I had been led by the Rev. Billy Graham all those years ago. 

Today my family are all members of Christ’s own family because of the ministry of the Rev. Billy Graham.  This day heaven is overflowing with people who have the same testimony as I do – we are in God’s kingdom because of this man’s obedience to the gospel.

Thank you, Billy Graham.  Thank you, Lord Jesus, for giving us such a servant of yours to show us the way.

If you want to get right with God and know that you are some day going to heaven, you can pray right now, right where you are:  “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”  I John 1:9

And the Angel said ...

“When EF Hutton talks, people listen.”

Remember that old commercial?  If you want to express what it means for a person to have authority, the most direct and effective way is to say “People listen.”

And so, if an Angel showed up at your house today, and said he was sent from God to tell you something, you would listen.  Right?

And yet, even in the presence of an Angel of God, people have a choice – to believe or not to believe.

The Christmas back story about Zechariah and Mary and their separate encounters with the angel Gabriel is very revealing.  Same angel.  Same power. Same fearsome presence.  One believed what he said; one did not.

Both of these people were told about a baby that was going to be born.  Both of them were standing in humanly impossible situations for that to happen.  Both of them were told that God had favored and listened to them; both were told the name of the baby and his future destiny.  Two parents.  Two incredibly powerful destinies predicted for their children.  Two very different responses.

Now, if you don’t believe that angels exist, you will have discounted this story, but to do so you will have to call a lot of people liars.  Mary is a liar.  Zechariah is a liar. All the worshipers in the temple courtyard at the time Zechariah came out and could no longer speak – are liars.  Elizabeth is a liar.  All their neighbors who knew her to be old and childless are liars.  And Luke the doctor, who researched and interviewed witnesses and wrote it all down, he’s a liar, too.

But NEVERTHELESS, everything that the Angel Gabriel said came true!

Today, Christmas Eve, I just read again the powerful words of this Archangel who stands in the presence of God, and I am gripped with awe just as both Mary and Zechariah were so long ago.  Will you listen with me?

An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.  When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.  But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah your prayer has been heard.  Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.  He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.  He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb.  He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God.  And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous--to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." Zechariah asked the angel, "How can I be sure of this?  I am an old man and my wife is well along in years. The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.  And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.  And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”

Make God Look Good!

Christian, have you ever wondered what you can do to see that God gets credit more often?  What can you and I actually do in order to glorify God?  I asked this question recently after an unusual dream. Here are some ideas.

• Don’t be afraid to tell people about your good works.  Jesus said, “Let your light shine,” which means don’t do good things and then keep them hidden out of false humility.  But the purpose is not about boasting.  No, we have to tell the story in such a way that God gets the credit.  That means we have to “connect the dots” for them as we tell it.  

We have to tell a story that shows both our need and God’s supply.  For instance, I have started volunteer work at a hospital by making crocheted baby blankets for new moms.  If that is all I tell people, it sounds like I am boasting – I must do this because I am such a good person!  But the reality is, I took up crochet at a time when my life had hit rock bottom and I couldn’t work.  It gave me an outlet so that I felt less useless.  Then God answered the prayers of many people and healed me.  Now I can become a “Blankets of Love” hospital volunteer. 

• Don’t be afraid to share your own weaknesses in the process of telling the story.  Sometimes Christians think that in order to glorify God they have to appear strong.  In fact, the opposite is true.  As in my example of the crochet ministry, if we let people see our area of need and how God provided for us anyway, we give them hope that he might do the same for them.

• Finally, don’t be afraid to pray specifically and then tell the story of what happened later in that situation.  Many people pray very general  prayers, thinking that this gives God sovereign leeway to do “whatever” is his will in the situation.  But that is not the way Jesus taught prayer.  It’s true that he did teach us to pray “your kingdom come, your will be done,” but he also prayed that a fig tree would wither up, that a deaf person’s ears would hear, that a blind person’s eyes would see, that a lame person would get up and walk, etc.   

How does specific prayer give God the glory?  People tend to take notice when a “coincidence” occurs. 

For example, if you ask God to heal someone quickly after surgery and then the doctor tells them they have healed very quickly, is that a coincidence?  Perhaps.  People will draw their own conclusions about it, but the closer the similarity between the request and the result, the more credit goes to God and not to coincidence. 

And if you pray for what is humanly impossible, for instance that the person heal without the need for the surgery, and the doctor later tells them, “I have no idea what happened – the tumor was there on the first Xray but now it is gone” – then everyone will experience a mystery.  

Human beings love a mystery.  Something in our nature seeks for an answer to it.  And the answer to the mystery is God.

Live life to glorify God.

The Best Way to Live

I had an unusual dream.  Actually, it was like a conversation. 

 Me:     “What is the best way to live?

Answer:           “Live to glorify God.”  These words glowed like a bright cloud.  

Me:      “I don’t know how to actually do that.”  

Answer:           “Whoever offers praise glorifies me.”  “Let your light so shine before men that they see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Me:    “What causes people to give God the glory or credit?”

Answer:           When a circumstance is unusual or unlikely, when something is serendipitous or coincidental, or if something happens that is technically impossible.

So then I woke up.  And here was my first waking thought:

"Unusual, unlikely, serendipitous, coincidental or impossible events make people think about God."

And now I have a question for you:

“Who was answering my questions?”

Job’s Lament or The Good Old Days!

I have never allowed myself to indulge in “I wish I were back there” thinking. I don’t even say those things out loud.  Perhaps I am afraid of the grief or depression that might come on me if I did.  Or maybe I don’t want to depress other people!   At any rate, I discovered today that Job did it.  In Chapter 29 I read:

“How I long for the months gone by,

  For the days when God watched over me,

When his lamp shone on my head

  And by his light I walked through darkness!

Oh, for the days when I was in my prime,

  When God’s intimate friendship blessed my house,

When the Almighty was still with me

  And my children were around me,”

So I will say this once  I wish for the days when my house was full and my schedule was full and I could scarcely get a moment to myself.  When I went to church often and participated in whatever groups I wanted to and sometimes led them.

I guess I thought that my life would just go on like that, getting better and better.  Job did too.  He said:

“I thought, ‘I will die in my own house,
    my days as numerous as the grains of sand.
My roots will reach to the water,
    and the dew will lie all night on my branches.
My glory will not fade;
    the bow will be ever new in my hand.’

But disaster struck.  I was betrayed on a gargantuan scale.  I suffered in ways I had never imagined before.  I was brought to my lowest.  Brought to where I could no longer care for myself--physically, emotionally and financially,  If not for God, I would have had no hope.  Like Job, I lost everything – or almost.

Was I struck down because of my own sin?  No. Unless being deceived is a sin, and I don’t see that in the Ten Commandments -- “Thou shalt not be deceived!”  That’s like saying it is your sin when someone else sins against you.  Ridiculous.

Yet I was left alone – accused and abandoned.  So, like Job, all those questions about “why” and “what now” apply.  But I have the benefit of reading Job’s book, so I know how his life turned out.  And I also have the cross and the Resurrection.  So even without seeing restoration and restitution on this earth, I would have real hope for an eternal future.  

But all that does not erase the losses, does it?  It’s OK to count them once in a while

So, would I REALLY want to go back?  Sort of yes and sort of no.  ‘Yes’ because I loved being a mom and caring for my children. I loved being married and going on dates.  I loved teaching English and leading Bible studies.  But ‘No’ because I don’t have the strength to do all those things now! And also because I’m aware that there was a lot of bad going on as well as the good.  I definitely don’t want to relive the bad parts!  And you can’t pick and choose the parts of life you want to keep.

So, even though I miss some parts of “the good old days,” and even though I hope from the bottom of my heart that some of those longings will be fulfilled again, I don’t really want to go back there.  It was not perfect, just as my life now is not perfect.  All in all I’m happy and I have a lot to be thankful for.

REALLY.

(How about you?  Can you do without "the good old days"?)

The Positive Legacy of Deception – Part 6

What if you have been deceived and devastated by a sociopathic personality? (See Part 5 for the definition of sociopathic.)  Being an idealist, I am always scanning for the silver lining underneath those dark rain clouds! 

That is the purpose of this series of 6 blogs.  And there is at least one solid, positive result from having ever been deceived by such a person: you are not likely ever to be deceived again.  The contact with a sociopathic personality is so devastating, and the recovery so lengthy, that it is unlikely you will let another similar person into your inner circle.  That is good news.

Not only that, but you will likely spot this “type” and be able to warn others.

Here’s an analogy in the physical realm.  Recently in the news was Dr. Kent Brantly who suffered and was near death from the Ebola virus.  This excruciating experience, however, left him completely invincible in terms of Ebola.  In addition, it left him with an antibody in his blood which can now be used to heal others from what was previously an incurable disease.  Subsequently, his gift of blood transfusions has been responsible for the healing of at least two other people.

I’m not sure what Dr. Brantly would say if asked whether it was worth it.  My guess is that he would probably smile and say something like: “Two more people are alive because of this.”

As for myself, if asked whether it was worth being in contact with a deceptive, sociopathic personality in order to learn the life lessons that I have learned, my first response would be,

 “Praise God for his deliverance -- that I am alive and in my right mind!”  

 My second thought would be, “I would never wish that on my worst enemy!”  

 And my final thought is: “Let’s see how God uses my victory to deliver others.  Then I will tell you how much it was worth.”

Very thankfully yours,

Lorraine

SPIRITUAL EATS

Do you know where your food comes from? 

Is it Organic?

Is it Pesticide-free?

Is it Non-GMO

Is it Whole Grain?

Is it Free-Range?

Is it Farm-Raised?

Is it Spring-Fed?

We read the labels on what we buy, but sometimes pay no attention to what our eyes, ears and heart ingest.

So if we’re feeling Anemic, maybe we should check the source and the contents of our “spiritual eats.”

The prophet Isaiah asks:

Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy?

Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.*

David answers, from the Desert of Judah:

God, you are my God …

I thirst for you,
    my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
    where there is no water.**

Like a starving man, he seeks after the One True God, the God of power and glory, whose love is better than life.

And the result:

He is full.  He is completely satisfied.  As if he has eaten the richest, most nutritious food the world has to offer.

Good spiritual eats.

*Isaiah 55:2

**Psalm 63:1-5