Loving the Lost

     I have been increasingly becoming more sensitive to my Father's heart for the lost.  In that I mean I have begun to see people with new eyes.  I feel their pain as if it were my own and I know the Lord is preparing me for something different. 
     Do we really understand how Father feels about His people?  All of His people which includes every person on the face of this vast world with no reference to race, color, creed or religion. As "Christians" we have taken Biblical truths to beat people up and have shown intolerance for anyone different than us.  The church has certainly missed the boat in that aspect.  Not judging just making a statement.  It's time we get back to the truth and start loving one another.
     I have always been interested in the Justice system, and now with the wonders of television I can watch criminal trials and I am always amazed at the twisted way we can turn the law into what ever we want it to be.  The church for the last 100 years has done that very thing.  We have taken a gospel of good news and love and turned it into rules and condemnation for those that don't follow "our" rules.  We need to get back to the basic simple spiritual laws that God has set before us and stop trying to twist them into something to suit our own selfish needs. 
     My Father has recently opened up my little world, in this little bubble of Reno Nevada to seeing that not every one lives like us. As I grumble about having to sweep all the dirt in my house daily (and there is a lot :)  ) the thought came to me that I could have a dirt floor like many other people live.  I sometimes complain about my transportation and I have come to realize there are people serving God with everything they have in other countries that have to walk miles just to get to their church or to help others and they do this unselfishly and without complaining. We are so spoiled here, so very spoiled. We voice our opinions loudly everyday about the politics of things going on this country and yet we forget to thank God that we still have our freedom to express our opinions and we forget to shut up long enough to actually look around and find someone, a real person, right in our path that we can help. 
     There are so many needs right here right now, right in our faces that we can be fulfilling for people and showing the love of God instead of pointing fingers. 
      I became aware of one particular group of kids that I had never heard about. They don't tell you this stuff on the news.  Once a child becomes 18 and they are in a foster home the foster parents stop receiving funds for the child so they get thrown out to live on the streets.  I was devastated to learn this takes place everyday right here in our community. These children need love and need to know someone cares about them.
     So I challenge you for the next week, step outside of yourself and look around to see what you can do for someone.  It can be as simple as holding the door for an elderly person at the store, letting the guy wash your windows and instead of giving him change, give him a twenty, it won't kill you.  Take the time to smile and start conversations with those in the grocery line, just be pleasant and nice.  Slow down, stop complaining, start thanking the Lord for all the blessings you do have and love on someone and show them who Jesus really is.
    

Jump in with both feet!

    I woke up this morning filled with new life and a renewing of my spirit singing praises to my Father in Heaven and excited that I am chosen to participate in the greatest times of the history of the earth.  There is no question that according to prophets and apostles, church leaders, lay people and everyone else that we are in the last days.  I say Come on latter rain! Let's move forward and come into the place that we were all called to be. 

     It's time to mature and move forward in your own life.  One time I had a revelation about the Holy Spirit and He is the living water flowing all over the earth in streams and rivers giving life to everyone that dare step into the water.  You have several choices, you can stand on the bank and watch it flow by, you can step into it about ankle deep and complain about it being murky or you can jump into the middle where the current will carry you where the Lord wants you to be in your life. 

     Once you are in the mainstream stay there with your praises and your worship to the Almighty Father in Heaven that loves you so much He would let His son die in your place.  If you start to float off into your own thing, you will find yourself caught up in the stagnant puddles left over from past experiences with the Lord, there is no life there, you have to keep in the current. 

     When raging flash floods come don't end up as debris on the banks broken and destroyed, reach out and hang onto the Father's hand as you ride it out and you will come out stronger and more blessed than you will ever know. 

     I challenge you today to move forward into your calling even if its just one tiny step, each step will bring you closer to peace and prosperity.  Start by meditating on this scripture and ask the Holy Spirit to give you revelation of what He has for you today.

 

Ephesians 4:1-16 (NIV) As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. ² Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. ³ Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. ⁴ There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; ⁵ one Lord, one faith, one baptism; ⁶ one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

⁷ But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. ⁸ This is why it says:

“When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”

⁹ (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? ¹⁰ He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) ¹¹ So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, ¹² to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ¹³ until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

¹⁴ Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. ¹⁵ Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. ¹⁶ 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.

Be blessed!

Grace

     I was driving the other day and contemplating what exactly God's grace means. The actual dictionary meaning is this:

1a : unmerited divine assistance given humans for their regeneration or sanctification

b : a virtue coming from God

c : a state of sanctification enjoyed through divine grace

2a : approval, favor <stayed in his good graces>

b archaic : mercy, pardon c : a special favor : privilege <each in his place, by right, not grace, shall rule his heritage — Rudyard Kipling> d : disposition to or an act or instance of kindness, courtesy, or clemency e : a temporary exemption : reprieve

     A lot there to try and comprehend but the revelation that God gave me was that of being in the womb.  Covered in complete protection, connected through the umbilical cord directly to Him who provides every need we have.  We don't need to eat, drink or even breathe, He is our complete source of life.  If we continue to stay connected through prayer, praise, worship and declaration of who He is we will never want for anything.  We will be submersed and protected by the fluid waves of the Holy Spirit and all of the stimulation of the outside world will be filtered through the warmth of the Lord's comfort and glory.

 

Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.
2 Corinthians 9:8
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;
2 Corinthians 1:12
For our proud confidence is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you.

 

What's in your gas tank?

This morning as I was getting ready for church the thought came to me that my life is the vehicle that will take me from birth to eternal life.  What I put into it will determine the quality of the ride and force of impact I have on people around me.

My first car was a Pontiac GTO, yes, really, my Dad and I have always had an extreme love and respect for automobiles. 

If I fill my gas tank with fear, apprehension, guilt, shame, greed or unforgiveness, my vehicle is going to sputter and it will crank hard and be slow going on this long journey.

So I choose to fill my tank with unconditional love for others and faith which will make the vehicle purr and run smoothly.

If I really want to have the utmost ride in this life I will also fill it with God's glory, sending me into supercharged speed moving forward like the "Fast and Furious".

What's in your tank?

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Dancing in Praise

This morning I woke up singing "and Your praise goes on" by Chris Rice.

     I have come to realize as Christians we spout off scriptures but the words have not really affected us.  I was thinking back over the years of dedicating my life to Jesus and I have come to realize I finally get it.  It isn't any longer a philosophy its a relationship.  So when I say "(Philippians 4:10-13) But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me", I mean it.
    I have lived it and I have felt with all the pain of having nothing, being homeless and abandoned and losing everything including the betrayal of those I love, I can stand before you and say this is the living word of God and it dwells deeply within me and I can be content no matter what is going on in my life.  I have learned to forgive as He has forgiven me. I have learned to love and show love no matter how people treat me, I shake the dirt off my shoes and move on because God loves those people who hurt me as much as He loves me.  I have died to my emotions and they don't rule me anymore, my Papa God has got this, I am content and I can dance and praise His Name without embarrassment because I don't put importance on what "man" thinks of me.  I don't write this full of pride but humility, it has been a long hard lesson and I have the scars to show the battle.  If I could hug everyone of you and transfer this revelation and relationship into your very souls I would.  So be encouraged today, God loves you, its not a meaningless saying.  He loves you so much He sacrificed His son so you could have life and contentment.  Think about it.  Selah

Hi Dad

Hi Dad,
I came to visit today.  I know, I know, you aren't really there.  But it helps me to be in the last place I saw you.  I just wanted to tell you I love you.  I know we didn't always have the perfect father daughter relationship due to my stubbornness (that I got from you by the way) and both of our frailties and weaknesses.  But I wanted to say thank you for the little ways you showed me you loved me.
Here are some of the memories precious to me:

• The way you polished my school shoes and left them by the front door for me everyday when you worked the graveyard shift, and you would set your alarm to wake up so I could come home for lunch. Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup still my favorite comfort food!

Thank you for showing me its important to take the time to do the little things for those you love.

• You used to let me comb and put curlers in your jet black wavy hair when I was little and paint your fingernails.  You went to work with red fingernails at the Washoe County Sheriff's Dept. one day because we didn't have polish remover.  Sorry :)  I am sure you got harassed by the fellow officers.

Thank you for allowing me to be me.

• I followed you around the yard with my tool belt hammering things with you, you were always building, creating, or fixing something.  I learned so much from your demeanor in dealing with me. 

Thank you teaching me to think I can do anything.

• I learned my love of cars and motorcycles from you.  Remember the VW van camper you bought?  We never went camping in it because you sold it. I always assumed it was because you thought it gave me bad memories.  You had just bought it and you were so excited and we were outside checking it out and my cat got run over by a hit and run on the street.  Remember how you shuffled me into the house so I wouldn't see and you grabbed my cat and took her to the vet?  Remember how you can home and pulled me on your lap and told me the cat didn't make it and you held me and let me cry? 

Thank you for teaching me compassion.

• Remember how you used to holler at me to stay away from your full dressed Harley because I was so curious and it was SO big it could crush me if it fell over?

Thank you for making me feel safe and protected.

Ok, ok I have to stop with the memories I am crying my eyes out as usual. 

Just wanted to say I love you Dad and I will see you soon.  Tell my brother I love him, give my grandma Velma a big hug, say Hi and I send my love to all my aunts and uncles and cousins and grandparents that have all gone before me.  Oh and don't forget to tell Jesus and my other Dad (God) I am sooooo glad I met them and can't wait to finish my assignment here on earth so I can sit at their feet in the throne room and worship Them. 

Love you Dad, see you soon.

Train Revelation

     Today while I was traveling back and forth to there and back to here, my busyness was interrupted by a train.  As I sat there irritated that I couldn't get to where I needed to be right now I started to feel the calm of the Holy Spirit wash over me with a still small voice, "take notice of the things around you".  I began looking at the graffiti on the freight cars as they went by.  Each one decorated with words unfamiliar, no doubt gang related but the colors were beautiful and the letters and drawings were done by extremely talented people.  My mind began to wander and I began to wonder about the hands that painted the graffiti, where did it originate, could be anywhere in the country.  Most probably young men seeking to belong and being trapped into a false sense of security within the only family unit they know.  Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light but he deceives us and he prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
      Yes I agree graffiti is a nuisance to who ever owns the property and its destructive, I know all that but some times we need to look past the offense to see the person's hurting heart crying out for love and acceptance, not condemnation. 
     If you haven't figured out I am not just talking about graffiti, I am talking about mankind in general.  Every single person on the face of this earth has the same right to be loved as anyone else.  You have to look past whatever irritates you, could be tattoos, lifestyle, the walls they may put up, purple hair, piercings, occupations, race, religion, too fat, too thin, did I forget anything?  Jesus died on the cross for their lives just like he died on the cross for us. 

We are no better than anyone else on the face of this earth

Romans 3:23

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

 

and we are no less than anyone else either

 

Romans 8:17

Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

 

So the next time you see someone look past your own issues and see their need and love them.  Sometimes we don't want to because of our own issues but we don't belong to ourselves any longer.  We belong to Christ and there is no place for disobeying the most important commandment given to us.

John 13:34-35
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” Period.