To Flee or not to Flee

Remember the movie "The Runaway Bride"? Julia Roberts played a bride who continually ran away when it came time to say "I do". Maybe it was a good thing to run from some of those guys, but finally she met someone of worth. But the wedding anxieties were just too much, and she still put on her running shoes and ran.

Jogging down the road this morning, in the early glimmers of light, I thought about the different things in life I want to run away from. The difficulties, drama, confrontation, or even daily questions and chores, "what's for dinner?", "did you wash any socks?", sweep the floor, load the dishwasher,  honestly can drive me to do what Julia Roberts did in that movie, run away! But I'm glad I don't...

This did bring to mind 2 places in scripture that involve running...or not running. The first one is the second part of James 4:7, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Now, looking at several scriptures, (I Cor 6:18, 10:14, 1 Tim 6:11, 2 Tim 2:22) they tells us plainly TO flee several things: sexual immorality, idolatry, evil desires of youth, the love of money to name a few. So, to summarize, resist the devil and HE will flee; and I am to FLEE from temptation, lest I stare at it too long. Now, my wheels are really churning. What would happen, per-se, if I was to flee from the devil and just "resist" temptation. Would that work? Is that the same thing? What's the difference?

 I do believe there's a difference, and here's why. If we flee from the devil we wind up in a dog fight. Satan is faster and stronger than we are. The faster we run away from him, the faster he pursues us. If we just muster up enough strength to "resist" temptation, we end up staying longer than we ever needed to. It comes down to how dependent are we on the Spirit to decipher between the two. I know I get blowing and going along and solving my issues the best way I know how, until I realize I'm facing the same thing over and over again. I stop and say, "what am I really fighting here? What is the root to why I'm feeling/reacting this way?"

There are times we need to just keep walking, maybe even run (flee temptation) and there are also times to press in. First Corinthians 10:14-15 assures us, "No temptation has seized you except what's common to man. God is faithful, He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." So what's the way out? For me that's been sharing aloud with a friend, or spouse, the thoughts that can haunt me. I believe it's time for Christians to stop playing charades and be AUTHENTIC with each other. This is a two partner dance. Partner #1 has to humble herself to BE authentic, regardless of the potential cost. Partner #2 has to LISTEN to the words spoken and cast NO judgement or CONDEMNATION towards the other person. That particular area may not be your individual struggle, but we all have something! Partner #2 must also commit to keeping that information confidential and never EVER use that information as gossip or fire starter. This would be Partner #1's worst fear coming true in being authentic!! No temptation has seized you except what's common to man. None of us are exempt from Satan's attacks - from difficult marriages, to trouble with kids, to entertainment choices, we are all fallen people and we need one another if we are to walk blameless in this life and not fall into the snares set for us.

"The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion." (Proverbs 28:1) In the face of Satan, our only resistance is to stand firm.  He wants us to tuck tail and run as fast as we can, scared to death. On the other hand, we can choose to pull out our shield of faith, and allow our "Heavenly Daddy" to handle Him. Otherwise, Satan will chase us around with accusations and condemnations until we crack or give in, because we feel as if we've done it anyway!

So the next time life tosses you a reason to run, maybe its time to turn in your running shoes, like Roberts, and commit to fighting the good fight of faith.

Relational Rose Bush

In my garden, I have the quote, “In the garden of life friends are the flowers”. I heard someone reply to that, “But watch out for the thorns, I hear it's a common hazard for both friend and flower.”

Yes, roses have thorns. And so do I! If I’m going to be working in my rose garden, what do I need to do? Do I reach in unprotected and then curse the rose for hurting me? I could, but is it really the roses’ fault? What did I think would happen?! No, I would wear gloves and possibly even long sleeves with pants depending on how big the garden is and what I’m doing there. I also might carry some Band-Aids and Neosporin close by in case of an accidental scrape. The fact is part of the rose IS its THORN.

Since that first bite of forbidden fruit eaten in the Garden of Eden, we have dealt with thorns. It’s just part of it. Part of being in community with other human beings is dealing with their thorns. So, we can pretend they aren't there, get scratched, curse the friend and never plant roses again. OR we can look at the situation for what it is – we ALL have thorns – and dress accordingly, prepared to apply God’s grace, even liberally when/where needed!

Think for a minute about the rose thorn. Why do thorns grow around this beautiful flower? Could it be a source of protection against predators? I bet if we thought about it, some of the “thorns” on OUR stem could trace back to protection mechanisms. Maybe we’ve been hurt, so to protect ourselves from that incident ever happening again, we’ve grown a thorn to keep that particular predator away. Thorns could also be as a result of what kind of home we grew up in. We’ve created certain boundary lines to protect our flower. Whatever the case, thorns aren’t all bad. They provide a valuable level of protection for a beautiful specimen of nature, and also remind us that we’re not in Heaven yet.

The thorn does, however demand respect when handling. I believe we do to. That’s why in Ephesians Paul encourages us to speak the TRUTH in LOVE to each other. The context of this exhortation is that we grow up. We stop being infants and blown about from here to there with every new season of “cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming”. (4:14) Paul pleads with the church to speak truth to one another and grow up into Christ as the Head of this body. “From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” (4:16) What a beautiful picture of the body of Christ! Do you think the early church body dealt with any thorns? You bet! We can’t avoid them. Instead, if we have any chance at looking appealing to non-believers, we must learn how to deal with them.

“In the garden of life, friends are the flowers” sounds like relationships (and gardening for that matter!) come easy. But just like gardening, friendships must be watered, tended to, pruned, fertilized and much more.  I'm thankful we have a Perfect Gardner, Jesus Himself who says He will help us through the thorns and roses of life.

Sunrises

How would you describe the color of the sky during a morning sunrise? Is it boring brown, black, gray or white? No! How about flaming torches of orange, red, yellow, even purple on occasion?

This morning on my jog I saw the most beautiful cloud splashed with a purple not found in a crayon box. I thought it interesting that usually clouds are cotton ball white or stormy gray, but this morning the colors of the dawn reflected on the cloud and not just the sky. When I started out though, before the sun rise, blackness clothed the sky. As I ran, I witnessed the sky go from black, to purple, to shining white and clear. Remind you of anything else? I wish it could have reminded me of a beautiful, fragrant flower, rich in color. But no, it reminded me of a bruise. Bruises usually start out black, then after a few days turn purple, blue, sometimes even green. Then after awhile, they return to normal skin color and the evidence of the mishap is gone. I thought the purple cloud was beautifully breathtaking this morning, and I must say, I've never thought that about a bruise.

Have you ever been bruised by God? You may be appalled by the question. Have you ever been bruised because He didn't answer something you specifically asked for with all the faith in the world? Bruised because He answered differently than you expected or took something/someone away from you? Bruised because what you thought were right choices have left hard consequences? Or bruised because of His silence? I have, with all of the above, and it hurts. I felt His presence with me as I thought about this, and laid out, with tears, again the areas that were still a bit tender. Then I looked back up at that magnificent cloud. It was displaying the Lord's splendor right in front of me, for what other God could bring up the sun every day in such a fashion? I think in the same way, our "bruises" are opportunities to display the glory of the Lord, if we will surrender to His sunrise schedule. A few minutes later and a different cloud would have been on rotation and been put on display, but God chose THAT cloud for this morning. And by the time my miles had ended, the once "bruised" cloud was a glorious shining white with not a trace left of purple. Now that reminded me how Jesus has purified us whiter than snow and left no trace of our old self.

One of my favorite songs on the radio right now has a line that says "Make me broken so I can be whole". Sometimes, that's what God has to do with us. Break us, to then make us whole. How glorious it is that in a painful process we can be shining examples of His glory to others, and maybe even encourage others as they might be picked as that cloud tomorrow.

HEAT

I was a runner in High School. But that was 1.5 decades ago, 3 births, 36 months of nursing, 15 birthdays, 5,475 days of marriage, countless meals, sleepless nights and lullabies ago, so it doesn't really matter! About a month ago, the Lord nudged me, challenged me rather, to roll out of bed before the rooster crows and meet Him on the road. Finally, I had ignored Him and slept in long enough, so I set the alarm and committed to obey this voice in my head. Either I was completely crazy and one run would be enough or the Lord really was speaking to me and I would grow in this process. First morning I couldn't sleep, for thinking of how early that alarm would go off and how terrible I would feel if I didn't get to sleep! Let's just say I saw 2 am and the alarm was set for 5:30. That's not much sleep for this must-have-8-hours-of-sleep connoisseur.

After jogging regularly for a month now, I feel my body getting stronger, but more importantly, my prayer has been for the Lord to train me to be Godly. "Teach me to listen to your voice", I have prayed. Physical conditioning is important to health and vitality of my days, but spiritual conditioning will endure beyond this earthly body. So, no headphones, no agenda, just me and the birds, listening to my Savior.

At first, just the task of running overwhelmed me. I set my goal and measured my course for 2 miles, but even prayed that if the Lord had a plan for me to go a different route or a different amount of miles I would listen and obey that. Of course my first thought was to the worst - that He'd want me to go 5 miles tomorrow and I just wouldn't be able to do that. But then, on the other hand maybe He would say 1 mile and I'd have an easy day. It was 2 miles throughout the entire 1st week and that was hard physically for me, especially on 5 hours or less of sleep. I wanted to stop MANY times, but prayed for the Lord to strengthen me, and He kept my feet moving one in front of the other. I was amazed, though at how I was still able to function, even with joy, in my day. He completely multiplied my strength as I obeyed.

The object I noticed first, UNDENIABLY was the sun. It would just be peaking over the horizon line as I crested over the hill and set out with fields stretched out on both sides. Instantly, when that sun breaks through you feel it's heat. Everything does, nothing is exempt.

I thought about the "heat" I've felt in my own life. Pressure and trouble in relationships, decisions, haunting thoughts of "what-ifs", responsibilities....the list could go on. I felt an impression on my heart that said, "I am the heat you've been feeling". No, God doesn't BRING us hardship, as in the context of being MEAN. Rather, He ALLOWS them, as fiery furnace for gold or a crucible for silver, to bring out the impurities within, and with the goal of making of making us holy. I should rejoice in that heat, for He is there! My life cannot be hidden from His heat if I am His child! I should be worried if I DIDN'T feel His heat, for those whom the Lord loves, He disciplines!

Thank you Lord for your heat. The pressures in our life that MAKE us turn to you, completely rely on you. Increase our trust in you in these intense heated times of our life, that those impurities may be cleansed away and not hold us back in our walk anymore. I pray for those who are hurting and struggling today, that you would give them joy instead of ashes, a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair and you would make all of us oaks of righteousness, a planting of yours for the display of your splendor! Amen

Jude 24 "To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy..."

Thief or Conquorer? Both!

"Momma, why do people steal?" asks my 8 year old cowgirl.

"Well," I respond with heaviness in my heart and a prayer of wisdom on my lips, "have you ever wanted something someone else had?"

A resounding "YES!" comes from all 3 kids in the backseat of the van.

"Well then someone who steals chose to simply take what wasn't theirs instead of working to earn the money to buy what they wanted or the lacked character to ask for it."

At that moment I realized there's a little bit of the thief in me. In me resides the inclination to steal, kill and destroy. It's a force to be reckoned with, not deny. The desire to have something that's not mine left unchecked by the Spirit could lead to robbery. Paul said it best in Romans 7 (paraphrasing), I don't do what I want to do and I do the thing I don't want to do! There's a battle going on inside my soul everyday! Will I choose to walk in my flesh and gratify my human nature - which FEELS really good and satisfies for the moment, yet leaves me out to dry once the moment's over? Or will I walk in the Spirit - putting aside my SCREAMING demands and obey the still small voice?

Have you ever had a screaming child in the car? You're driving home and about 10 minutes away your infant wakes up, STARVING! What can you do besides speed up a few notches and maybe rock the car from side to side? Driving while nursing is definitely NOT recommended! You know the child will survive 10 more minutes, even though he/she does not.

It's the same way with our walk. My flesh can scream out at me to give in and satisfy my emotion - which is no different than stealing a candy bar from the gas station. That's why Jesus went to the cross. To embody all the sin of the thief, the murderer, the adulterer, the liar. It all died with Him! Then He walked out of the grave and offers us His hand to join Him. We 'walk in the Spirit" when we realize the depth of our sinful nature, (our speck) stop pointing out our brothers saying we could never do that, and choose to say "It's only by YOUR powers Jesus I'm not the thief right now! Lead me, Help me to follow you...because without YOU I am NOTHING!

And it gets better...God says to me His grace is sufficient for me and His power is made perfect in my weakness. He says I am more than a conqueror through Jesus. He says He will lead me in triumphal procession in Christ and spread everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. He says He will keep me in perfect peace when my mind is steadfast on Him. God tells me the moment I look to Him, I am saved. I have the mind of Christ, the spirit of sonship and can call the LORD of all, Daddy. I am His daughter. He says nothing can separate me from His love. Not my fears, not my thoughts, not the fear of my thoughts...nothing....nothing....nothing. I am His and He is mine.

Yes, I am capable of the worst of sins - I could do it all in a heartbeat. I may feel guilty in the morning, but don't we all? Paul shares a similar story in Romans 7:14-24 and ends with these words, "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our LORD!

John 15:5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."