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Archive for the ‘Condemnation’ Category

Nunya!

Posted in Condemnation, Devotional, Emotinal Pain, Emotional Healing, Encouragement, Faith, God's Faithfulness, Inspirational, Miracles, Spiritual Hunger, Testimony on November 1, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Let’s be honest; too many personal questions can sometimes be annoying. My friend, Barbara, often answers them with one simple word –nunya. (Yep, that really is in the (urban) dictionary –I looked it up).

She and I are good friends, so she has never responded to any of my questions like that. In fact, the first time I heard her use that term; it caught me off guard because I had never heard it before. She explained, “When I feel that someone is asking me a question which is out of line, I lightheartedly reply, “Nunya” for short. She further clarified, “By that, I mean ‘It’s nunya business.”

That’s probably not a word I would ever use much, because my life is pretty much an open book. Having said that, let me tell you that yesterday was one of those days that I just wanted to put life on hold and spend the whole day communing with my Heavenly Father; so I did. Yes, I prayed for the needs of others, but mostly I just worshipped  the Lord, spending precious time in His presence off-and-on throughout the day. I can say with certainty that He was right there, surrounding me with His awesome presence, every single time I called upon His name. For that I am truly thankful.

One of the things that gripped me most yesterday was the gratitude  I felt  knowing that our Heavenly Father is ALWAYS available for us. It doesn’t matter if we just want to ‘sit on His lap’ and enjoy His presence, or if we have a dire need; He is always as close as the mention of His name.

Perhaps you, dear reader, have never really known that kind of relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to encourage you that you can simply talk to Him as though He was standing right there beside you, and He will answer! I promise you, when you cry out, “Lord, where are you? I need you!” He will never reply “Nunya!” Instead, He will gently speak to your heart and say, “Here I am, my child!”

Even so, it is sometimes difficult to feel His presence. In His Word, Jesus assures us that He is always present, even though our own emotions hinder us from accepting that. During those times, it often feels that the Lord God is so far away that we must diligently search for Him. Even then, He promised: Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And you shall seek me, and find me, when you shall search for me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13).

In this Scripture, the Lord God was speaking to the nation of Israel. They had turned their backs on Him, so He punished them by allowing them to be taken into captivity  in a foreign land. Yet, He was still in their midst all along, just waiting for them to call upon Him, so that they might be restored.

I thought about this over the weekend as I listened to a very sweet man share his testimony of how he first encountered Jesus Christ. This man had been told about Jesus, but he was reluctant to accept Him into his life because of his self-imposed belief that Jesus was surely angry at all the bad things he had done in his life, and was still doing (at that time).

Then one day, as this man sat in a bar, drunk, the Lord Jesus literally appeared to him in a vision. As the man recalled the face of Jesus, his own  face lit up with joy. “Jesus was not angry with me!” he said with a rapturous expression. “He was smiling! He loved me and I knew it.” “He was smiling at me,” he repeated.

What the man said next might be hard to believe for some of you, but it’s the truth. In that vision, Jesus told this man to stop drinking and never do it again. With that, the vision stopped and the man was completely sober– instantly! The friend seated next to him, also drunk, noticed this immediate change and asked what just happened. “I  saw Jesus!” he answered. Of course, his friend scoffed –-  until the very same thing happened to him, that is.

 I have no idea what  became of the second man, but the first man obeyed Jesus  and stopped drinking right then. And he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. This man now lives his life knowing with full certainty that his Heavenly Father is always with him, lovingly helping him through every day of his life.

Please understand; the Lord Jesus loves all of humanity and longs to be a vital part of every person’s life. When we know our relationship with God is not right, it is only natural to feel a sense of alienation. Never forget, however, that The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18 NIV). He longs to restore those whose relationship with Him is broken; and in His great, lovingkindness, He will be quick to answer those who call upon His name.

Finally, let me warn you that the adversary of humanity does not want you to be in communion with God. What of that? My advice to you is simply this: boldly tell that old devil –NUNYA!

Postscript: Thank you G.C. for sharing such a touching and remarkable testimony with us. May God continue to bless you and amaze you in ways you never dreamed possible!!!

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No Trespassing!

Posted in Condemnation, Devotional, Encouragement, Faith, Forgiveness, God's Goodness, God's Provision, Guidance, Obedience on April 12, 2011| 1 Comment »

[This blog, originally titled In Search of Bigfoot, has been greatly modified from the original in order to share a different message.]

Though there were few opportunities for adventure in my childhood, I once joined a group of six or seven other kids on an expedition to find the elusive “Bigfoot” monster. Several people had boasted of an encounter with the smelly, gargantuan beast in those Missouri bluffs so we figured it wouldn’t be too hard to spot him for ourselves.

Armed with nothing more than a healthy dose of bravado, we headed into a thicket which was disturbed only by a narrow dirt road that had long since been abandoned. Obviously, we never saw any trace of Bigfoot there, but we did stumble upon a densely wooded area with a chain stretched between two trees. On it hung a sign which stated in large capital letters: NO TRESPASSING – VIOLATORS WILL BE SHOT!

Tell a bunch of kids who are out for adventure they can’t do something and what do they do? Half the kids ducked the chain before I even finished reading. “C’mon,” my brother scolded, “You’re holding us up!” Reluctantly, I followed the others deeper into the woods.

To our surprise, we didn’t have to travel far when we came upon a wood railing fence which was well maintained. Beyond that stretched the largest, greenest yard I had ever seen. A man on a riding mower was cutting near the back of the house when he spied three of us sitting on his fence watching.

I couldn’t quite make-out the angry words he hollered at us but everyone turned and ran as fast as their legs would carry them. The older kids had to stop a few times to let us younger ones catch-up, which allowed the man enough time to trade his mower for a four-wheeler. It became increasingly evident that he would reach us long before we made it back to the house, but the older kids didn’t seem overly worried -at least not until we heard gun shots.

Don’t get me wrong, the man wasn’t planning to shoot a bunch of kids. But he certainly wanted to scare the daylights out of us, which he did. When he posted the no trespassing warning, he meant NO trespassing!

I’m sure he must’ve seen us hunkered in the bushes trying to hide as he passed by, but after a few more gunshots and choice words, the sound of the motor faded and he was gone. We ran back to the house and said nothing to our parents, resolved to pretend it never happened.

Truthfully, I hadn’t thought about that bungled Bigfoot adventure for years. Even if the Bigfoot legend is true, I’m certainly too old to go hunting for monsters. Nevertheless, I am still earnestly searching for something; I am continuously searching for God’s wisdom and understanding
–that is certainly worth finding no matter the challenges along the way.

I know that God is gracious and merciful, but He is also an awesome Heavenly Father who knows better than we do what is good for us and what is harmful. He has, therefore, placed “No Trespassing” commands throughout His word in order to keep us all safe and healthy.

Because I take God’s instructions very seriously, I always try to avoid whatever “monsters” God has forbidden me to pursue, regardless of how alluring they may be. That’s not always easy, of course, because human nature is easily enticed by the lure of the forbidden –just ask Adam and Eve. I learned the hard way, though, that giving into those temptations, as harmless as they may seem, only creates difficulty and heartache in the end. Even if the harm cannot be seen visibly, my spiritual well-being is always adversely affected, as is my relationship with the Lord. It’s not worth it.

Some no trespassing violations open doors of opportunity for the adversary to attack as well. Even so, I’m far more concerned about offending my Heavenly Father than I am about the devil’s schemes. That’s why I have firmly decided that if I am going to err, I would much rather do so by being overly strict in my attempts to obey God rather than being too compromising.

I want to encourage you, dear reader, please don’t view God’s No Trespassing warnings as oppressive restrictions, but rather as the profitable boundaries our Heavenly Father meant them to be. Like any loving parent, He expects us to obey the rules whether we understand His reasoning or not because they are meant for our good!

Finally, always remember that if we mess-up and duck some of God’s no trespassing warnings, we don’t have to hunker in the bushes in fear of His wrath. The Bible makes it clear that God does not desire violators to suffer harm. Yes, disobedience to His commandments is sin -which is punishable by death- but that’s why Jesus offered His own life as atonement for our sin. The preeminent message of the Holy Bible is forgiveness through repentance, by faith in Jesus Christ as Savior.

Satan knows all about God’s no trespassing commands and deviously tempts mankind to ignore them. He delights in the thought that “violators will be shot.” However, God is merciful and gracious; His message is the opposite. He wants you to know above all, dear reader, that VIOLATERS CAN BE FORGIVEN!

Having searched for many things in this life, including legendary creatures, I can assure you that searching for God’s wisdom is far more exciting, profitable and rewarding than anything this world has to offer. Won’t you join me in the search?

My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;
So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;
Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding;
If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;
Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.
For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding
He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.
He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.
Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path. When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul~ (Proverbs 2:1-10)

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Relative Truth

Posted in Condemnation, Devotional, Forgiveness, God's Faithfulness, Judgement on March 7, 2011| Leave a Comment »

photo credit: Forbes.com

Have you ever had one of those relatives whose very name made you cringe? Mine was a particular aunt. She always came to visit for a week or so without her family, but boy did I know all about my cousin Kathy even though I had never seen her in person.

Auntie dearest always sang Kathy’s praises
Ad nauseam, and they went something like this:

“Kathy is prettier than you! Kathy is smarter than you! Kathy is the closest thing to an angel this side of heaven.”

Then one day it happened; I finally got to see Kathy.

Laughing out loud would have been rude so I restrained myself and laughed silently. This was Kathy? This was the princess whose beauty could hardly be surpassed? Well, I guess love really is blind.

Kathy wasn’t overly intelligent either. Nor was she more creative, better at cooking, nor anything else I had ever heard about her. In fact, the only attribute in which Kathy seemed to be superior was ego.

After all those years of resenting my “perfect” cousin, I found myself feeling rather sorry for her. She might even have been likeable if she were not so self-centered. To her detriment, she had been conditioned to believe that the world revolved around her and should bow down to her. If Kathy had any natural beauty, I couldn’t see it through her ugly self-exalting (and mother-exalting) vanity.

A great many years have passed since I stepped out of Kathy’s shadow into the light of reality, but I have encountered others very much like her and her mother along the way. I pay them no heed and I certainly don’t allow myself to feel inferior to them no matter how superior they present themselves.

You and I need never compare ourselves to others because our heavenly Father doesn’t. There is no question we are all terribly flawed and markedly lacking, but we are children of the King (of Kings) and as such will one day be perfected.

Furthermore, each of us is special and unique. We are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light
(I Peter 2:9).

Though we are never to be puffed up in pride because of our heavenly status, we can certainly walk confidently in it. After all, our heavenly Father doesn’t care how brilliant our minds are. He cares only that we love him with our whole heart, soul and mind. And, He is not concerned about our physical appearance. When he looks at us sees only our heart (I Samuel 16:7). God is not even concerned about our ability –He is only interested in our AVAILability.

Satan, on the other hand, forever lost his heavenly status because of his puffed-up, self-exalted pride. No wonder he takes his fierce wrath out on God’s children. This deceiver also has a song that he sings Ad nauseam. Its lyrics go something like this:

“You’re not good enough. You’re not spiritual enough. God can’t use you! Did God really say that?”

If that weren’t enough, Satan wants us to live in the shadow of his child, whose name is condemnation. But the reality is that there is no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit (Romans 8:1).

We might have to tolerate some unbearable relatives now and then, but we never have to tolerate the lies of the accuser of the brethren. And that’s the truth!

postscript: Satan is the accuser of the brethren (Revelation 12:10) and he is the father of all lies. (John 8:44) In fact, Satan is not really his name, it is his title. In the original Hebrew he is called hasatan, which means the (ha) deceiver (satan).

~ p.s.s. Kathy is not my cousin’s real name. Furthermore, these events took place more than thirty years ago while we were still quite young. We haven’t seen each other since, but I assume that “Kathy” is now a very down-to-earth person and I hope to see her again some day.

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