DEEP DIVE

I used to scuba dive in the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean. I remember the feeling of excitement as the boat, filled with other enthusiastic divers, made its way miles away from the dock. Once we arrived at our destination we donned our gear, checked our air regulators and sat on the side of the boat waiting our turn to fall over backward into the cool ocean water. 

It usually took me a few minutes to realign my focus while I watched schools of barracuda and yellow jacks hang around the new arrivals watching and listening to us bubble and hiss from our air tanks. Two by two, we paired off with our dive buddies, and began our decent into the unknown. 

As we went deeper we needed to be acutely aware of our surroundings. The coral reefs were beautiful but the water beyond was murky, hiding predators, and our vision was blurred. Our focus also needed to be on our air regulators that let us know how much air we were using and periodically we had to check our compass so we didn't get lost or go to far from the boat. Things tend to get confusing when your swimming at deep depths. Diving is a great adventure and lots of fun but safety is paramount. If we don't follow the rules for safe diving our lives could be in danger.

Actually, we can learn a lot from scuba diving when it comes to our spiritual lives above the surface. 

As we navigate life, we need to check our equipment...our minds and hearts...and stay sharp. Life can be going well, but beyond what we can see an enemy is prowling, hoping to catch us off guard. The Bible clearly warns us of danger and how to navigate the issues we face everyday. "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1Peter 5:8 )  Spiritual warfare is nothing new, its been affecting believers from the beginning of time. Our best defense is to be alert to our surroundings. Make sure you are not drifting away from God's protection and into sin that has the power to devour your soul.  When God tells us to be sober minded he means to live our lives deliberately, making sure we are staying within the perimeters set by his teachings. Don't neglect prayer when your life is going well. Be prayed up and ready. God's words, in the Bible, are our compass to keep us from getting lost and falling for the worlds errors. We live in a beautiful world but beyond what our physical eyes can see is a dangerous enemy who glorifies sin and mocks faith. 

Check your surroundings. Stay focused. Be sober minded. Pray. Read the Bible and be vigilant to do what it says. Why? Your life depends on it.

IF YOU ARE REAL...PROVE IT

 The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the foundation of our Christian faith but for some of us, it's a sticking point where doubt clouds our vision. The Bible tells a story about doubting Thomas, one of Jesus closest followers before his death and crucifixion. This guy was part of the inner circle. He spent intimate time with Jesus and his chosen twelve. He saw Jesus heal the sick, walk on water, cure diseases and raise a man from the dead, yet he wasn't on board 100%. The night Jesus died Thomas ran away and hid. He ended up not being around when the Resurrected Savior appeared to the disciples. When they told Thomas about this supernatural event he scoffed at them like they were delusional. 

"Unless I see the nail marks in his hands, and put my finger where the nails were and put my hand into his side I will not believe." (John 20:25 ) 

A week passed until the disciples were in the house again, and this time Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked , Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."  Then he said to Thomas , "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side  Stop doubting and believe." Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God."Jesus didn't condemn him, or shame him. Instead he challenged Thomas to stop doubting and believe.

Have you ever been there, where part of you believes but the other part is screaming Prove It.  I have.

 Like Thomas, I was supposed to know Jesus. I was raised Catholic. I went to church. I knew the Bible. I professed to believe...just not 100%.  One day, many years ago, I came to a tipping point in my life. I was broke, raising two children and my marriage was a disaster. My relationship with my husband hit rock bottom and we were headed for divorce. In desperation I cried out to Jesus. I literally prayed "God, if you are real,,,do something with this mess of my life." I ended the prayer and walked away disillusioned, confused, my heart full of doubt, and a mind overflowing with questions. The crazy thing was, Jesus showed up. Shortly after praying that prayer, even though I did not believe God heard me or cared, I started to read the Bible. Little by little my mindset and attitude changed. First, toward the reality of a God who sent his son to die for my sins, and secondly toward my relationship with my husband. He saw the change in me and began his own reading program drawing him closer to Jesus. Needless to say, its been 56 years and we are still together, navigating the ups and downs of marriage with the Resurrected Jesus. In effect, I did what Thomas was told to do...stop doubting and start believing.  When Jesus was finished proving himself to Thomas he said,"Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and believed." (John 20: 29) 

KEEPING PROMISES

 Remember when you were a kid and swore a promise with the infamous "pinky swear"? I taught this symbolic gesture to my youngest daughter who took this Japanese inspired practice to new heights. She learned quickly that when she locked pinky fingers with me, and we made promises, whatever we swore to do became a done deal. Although these promises were silly like having waffles and ice cream for Friday nights dinner or having her two best friends for a  sleepover extravaganza these promises became an unbreakable agreement. Back in those innocent days of childhood, this simple gesture signified a promise that would never be broken. She learned she didn't have to do anything to earn these promises, she simply had to believe I would do what I promised to do. Pinky promises were more than a silly way of making a commitment, to us, it was a foundation of trust.

Did you know, in the Bible, there are 7,487 promises for your life. If you decide to read just one of these promises a day you will have a promise from God for more than 20 years of your life. If that's not great news I don't know what is.

 To the point of this blog... we can pinky swear (so to speak) with our Heavenly Father and trust him to fulfill all his promises. "For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and Amen, to the glory of God through us." (2 Corinthians 1:20)  In other words, when you agree with God, and choose to believe the promises written in the Bible are for your life, you have in effect, done a pinky promise with God, the creator of all things. God tells us to come to him with childlike faith. He wants to bless you. Below, I have listed a weeks worth of God's incredible promises. Google the verses on your favorite Bible app. Each day, read and think about what God is promising you. You don't have to earn his promises. He actually cares about you and wants to abundantly bless you.  Don't wait to get started on the road to miraculous blessings. Accept his offer of an abundant, promise filled life.

God has a great plan for your life! (Jeremiah 29:11) 

All things are possible for those who believe. (Matthew 19:26)

God will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4)

When you are weak, God will give you strength. ((Isaiah 40:31)

God will guide you along the right paths for your life. (Proverbs 3:5-6) 

You will prosper and succeed in all you do   (Joshua 1;7-8) 

God loves you and calls you by name. (Isaiah 43:1)

 

 

 

FOLLOW THE LEADER

"When the godly are in authority the people rejoice, but when the wicked gain power they suffer." {Proverbs 29:2)

We tend to look at the outward appearance of our politicians and judge them according to popular opinion instead of taking a step back and weighing our impression by a higher standard. Leadership should be about the platform and qualifications of the person we decide to put in charge of our families, bank accounts, safety and freedoms.When choosing our presidential candidate in the upcoming election, our vote has the power to alter the course of our great nation for generations to come.

We can't afford to put our signatures behind a weak leader who changes their position at the first sign of opposition or worse just to garner a vote. We need to put our weight behind a strong person with moral convictions that mirror our own, not some flimflam who's platform is constantly changing and tossed about by the wind.

Leadership and strength of character go hand and hand and are mentioned 360 times in the Bible. Why is the word of God important when we are talking about following the right leader for our future? 

We have witnessed throughout the past four years how quickly our nation has fallen into spiritual darkness. Without God leading the charge, we are doomed to have chaos and evil of every kind within each branch of government, in the deep state and the special interest groups. When I say vote your conscience I am not using some religious cliche. If  our leadership's ideals don't line up with the Word of God in the Bible we will reap a society that is following the wide road to perdition. 

My friends...we are the country's last line of defense against Communism or Freedom. Choose your leader wisely.  

 

  

 

FINDING THE WAY

Google has changed the way we devour and process information.  With a few clicks of the keyboard we can scour the internet to our hearts content looking for everything under the sun. 

Sometimes our searches are a lot more important and there is more at stake, especially when we are looking for spiritual guidance and direction. Some research engines say there are 4,000 recognized faith's in the world. In that colossal number of religions there are five that are most widely known. So how do we sift through the opinion versus fact of finding and following the one true God.

At this time, Christianity is still leading the pack in theory, but 65% of people who claim to know God, believe Jesus is NOT the only way to eternal life. Unless we begin to think of the Bible...not the internet... as our life compass we become like ships without the correct coordinates to guide us through the storms of life. If you find you are lost and in doubt of the truth, search the Word of God for answers. The gospel of John 14:6 covers all loose ends. Jesus said, "I AM the way, and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me." For me, that's the end of the story, but to really bring this passage home we read in the book of Acts, "There is no salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which you can be saved."( Acts 4:12)  Jesus is the only name!  He died on the cross and rose from the dead and took our sins and guilt upon himself.  Why? Because God loves us and wants us to repent, follow Jesus, and live with him eternally in heaven. "Like sheep we have all gone astray, each one of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquities of us all." Isaiah 3:6

We can google whatever we want, and believe what we choose, but there is only one book to base our eternal life upon. The Bible is our road map leading us on our way home. 

 JESUS IS THE WAY

 

 
 

IDENTITY THEFT

I have realized over the years that one of the worst things we can do to ourselves is compare ourselves with others. Always thinking we are not as good as someone else will eventually pull us into full blown defeat. At first, unhealthy comparisons might seem like an innocent obsession. We enjoy imagining what it would be like to have their car, their house, their family, their life. However, comparison has a friend named discontentment and a cousin called ungrateful who will quickly move into your head space to steal your joy and in it's place will leave you feeling depressed and believing you are not enough. 

If you have ever found yourself thinking you just don't measure up let me share with you some really great news from our life coach...the Holy Spirit.

 "For we are God's masterpiece, he has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." Ephesians 2:10

Not only does God tell us we are each his special masterpiece but he has good things planned for each one of us. His plan is unique for you...just you. That means when we trust what his word says even the bad things that happen in our lives he can turn around and help us use them for good. God doesn't play favorites (Romans 2:1)  I realize some set backs are totally traumatic, like a bad diagnosis or the loss of someone you love but God can turn the worst situation into your biggest blessing if you will trust him.

Give God your paintbrush. He is preparing you for a 'one of a kind' life of purpose.

WATCHERS ON THE WALL

One of my favorite political commentators always reminds his viewers that,"Cutesy Time Is Over." I couldn't agree more. Believers are called to be Watchmen in order to sound the alarm when enemies approach our gates. At this point, our adversary  Satan, and his sinful ideologies, have surrounded the fortified city we call planet earth.  Unfortunately, many of God's Watchmen have abandoned their post for fear of offending someone. This is not the time to sugarcoat the Word of God. Sinful beliefs are running rampant in our halls of justice, our government policies, the entertainment industry and even our churches.  Calling sin what it is, rebellion against God and His commandments, is not 'hate speech.' Intimidation tactics should not bully us into silence and compromise...It should empower us to speak against the growing evil causing many to fall away from the faith we have long held as our standard in America. 

If sin is not such a big deal...why did Jesus have to die such a horrible death to pay the price for our rebellion? As Watchmen we have to stop calling evil good and good evil to appease the gods of this age. We have all sinned and fall short of God's glory. That's why we must admonish the unbelievers and backsliders to repent now, before its too late. Each one of us has a circle of influence. Our homes, our workplaces and social media are in dire need of Watchmen who will speak the truth and lead the lost to safety. God is waiting for sinners to have a sincere desire to turn from their rebellious ways and turn back to him.  If the Watchmen don't tell them who will? Repent and be saved.

"If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sin and purify us from all unrighteousness."( 1 John 1:9)

"If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (Romans 10:9)