I Woke up this morning with…….

 The word “Adversary” kept rolling around in my head early this morning, like 1am, 3am, 4am and then finally @around 5:50am , I decided I needed to get up and look up this verse. 1 Peter 5:8″Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9But resist him, firm in your faith…..”(NASB).   I don’t know why but I feel I am to be obedient today and blog this.  I googled the word really quick this morning because there is much to do  today. Here is the site I went to and I like the three points they made  http://bible.cc/1_peter/5-8.htm from this site  –       As a roaring lion – Satan tempts under three forms:

1. The subtle serpent; to beguile our senses, pervert our judgment, and enchant our imagination.

2. As an angel of light; to deceive us with false views of spiritual things, refinements in religion, and presumption on the providence and grace of God.

3. As a roaring lion; to bear us down, and destroy us by violent opposition, persecution, and death. Thus he was acting towards the followers of God at Pontus, etc., who were now suffering a grievous persecution.

As I began to ponder this verse and think about  what I was to say I feel my challenge for all of us today is to recognize because of the fall of Adam & Eve, our human nature, Satan knows and magnifies it as our adversary. The verse that comes to my mind a lot is ” ….. because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” 1John4:4 The adversary may prowl around trying to hurt and mix our minds up but we have Overcome with Christ!!!! If you have not been drawing closer to the One in you who is Greater, You better do it today! Don’t let your adversary make you think he has you defeated.  No more devouring can take place. Our God has a better plan and the truth for you today. Go to Him!! I am going now to pray and seek Him who is greater in me right now! May you be a Overcomer today!! The enemy has no power over you!

Deflecting Insults

Mark 15 this morning brought on some thoughts to blog about.  My amazement of my Savior brings to me to a quite awe!  My Lord was not only abused physically but mentally too.  The notice sign above Him on the cross had no real reason for the punishment he received. The King of the Jews was the truth and yet their great ignorance brought them to the point of   ridiculous insults. V.29 says people passing by hurled insults @ Him, v.31 Chief priests and teacher of the law mocked Him and then in v.32 even the convicted on the other crosses heaped insults.  I looked up insult in the dictionary and one sentence jumped out at me. ” Insult implies such insolence of speech or manner as deeply humiliates or wounds one’s feelings and arouses to anger.”  Jesus was entitled to respect, He had done so many wonderful things and spoken the truth and loved so selflessly, yet here people humiliated with contemptuous words. They were so rude even after they had physically put Him on the cross, they didn’t stop with their demeaning physical acts but took it to a greater level of torture.  I do believe the evil one had great influence on them but to have witnessed the awesomeness of our Savior and turn so deathly against Him.  It brings me to the realization that our Lord’s love and understanding of humanity is so great our minds only know the half of it.  I am reminded of how Paul wrote in Ephesians 6 about the armour and how we need the helmet of “Salvation”.  We need what Christ did for us because of sin separating manner and our wish-washy minds, We can’t take what Christ took. We could never have hung and received what He did. My awareness today of my great need brings me back to my knees again.  “Father , I want to wear my helmet of “Salvation” with more humility. May I never forget what you have done for me. Thank-you for putting up with humanity and our ignorance of who you are.”  As you walk through this day someone or the evil one may come against you with some kind of mental hurt, Christ took the worst and deflected it for us! He knew we would have mental combat and need salvation  in more ways than one. Today, remember your helmet!

15 years ago

            As I sit here today I am reflecting on 1996. It was a huge step of faith that year.  I was 28 years old, our daughter Abby was 19 months. I had already said “no way” once to church planting. I loved being a youth pastor’s wife, so much fun!  That idea was so foreign to me. In 1995 God started working on my heart and I began to say “have your way, Lord”.  Following & being obedient is very important.  It brings you to a deeper relationship with the Lord.  I have not been any better than anyone else just chose to listen to the calling in my heart.  In fact it makes you a mess and there is really no explaining the future. Just great peace moves in and you are always looking to see what God will do next because you have no control of what is next around the corner.  I remember one day in particular in our Livonia house I just sat staring out the window trying to imagine what God would do when we moved to Temperance. We knew no one other than a handful of people meeting with us on Tuesday nights when we would drive down to have a Bible Study. I was so comfortable in our newly remolded Livonia house. I loved our youth, youth leaders and in fact the whole church. They had loved us so sweetly and blessed us so much! We had a very nice Christian School with the church and our daughter would have fit in very nicely.

        Faith in my Savior was very easy until it was to bring it to a strange place, alone with just my small family.  I have to say though, I woke up every morning looking for what God was going to do and show us. The money end seemed to come just at the right time and just enough to make it that day or week.  Money can’t buy the awesome, beautiful place of trusting God deeper and being desperate to see Him move.  We may not be way ahead in the financial part of our life right now, but I would not return to 1996 and change our path.  I know God can be trusted! He is faithful. When He leads us to do things that are out of our comfort zone, we are secure and blessed! We can’t say to our Heavenly Father, “Have your way in my life” and not allow Him to speak and say “follow me this way”.  I often have to check my heart and remember what I have prayed or sang, and mean it!  My mind and heart have to be loyal to my Lord.  I have given Him my whole life not just part. Self wants to crawl off the altar so many times because it feels uncomfortable.  When I stay where God wants me, He always meets me way beyond what I expect.  I guess I understand a little about this from being a parent, when your children obey and submit, you desire to bless them and rejoice in them. Our Heavenly Father has all the knowledge and sees our future better then we can even imagine.  I see now He allows me to draw close to Him, that is a blessing and then He brings in more. If you sit and reflect on God’s blessings in your life, you will see they are great!   We choice daily to be obedient not just in a major path change but every time we say no to our flesh and listen to what God wants.  It is for our own good.  There is no regret and I know our Heavenly Father is rejoicing over us.  The enemy is defeated and our testimony to others is louder for Christ!!

                I pray today as you are seeking God’s Will for your life that as you walk in obedience, you are encouraged.  Christ is faithful and your small bit of faith, He will bless!  Look up and walk in His plan! I know He is rejoicing in you!!  So love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your soul and your entire mind and might.  Show Him this by obedience and trust!!!