New Layout ISSUES! Yuck...

(UPDATE: As You Can See.... I did not change too much! It was way too complicated... anyone who can suggest help... please do so! I am definitely in a quandry!)



I'll be back soon to work on my layout... having yuck problems with getting it to cooperate with me. Yippee! I am going to get this down pretty soon!!!

Blessings.

Amazing Women's Conference - North Texas Area

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March 27-29th

Gateway Church, Southlake, Texas

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Come Discover How You and I are Crowned For Greatness!

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You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand,a royal diadem in the hand of your God. Isaiah 62:3

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I received the following information today from Jan Greenwood, Event Coordinator for Women's Ministries at Gateway Church...

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If you have never experienced Pink Impact and are available these dates you should come and spend an anointed weekend with the Lord and Your girlfriends. Guest Speeakers will be Christine Caine, Hillsong Church and Dr. Lois Evans, wife of Dr. Tony Evans of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship! Kari Jobe, one of Gateway's Amazing Worship Pastors will be leading worship. The time will be very anointed and very meaningful should you choose to come.

We've been planning some fun surprises with you in mind.Pink Devotion and BlogThis year we are launching a 30-day, pre-conference "Pink Devotion". Please plan to join us, beginning February 26th at the Pink Impact Blog. Simply click here. This will take you straight to the devotional where you will find the daily postings.

The blog is designed to be interactive, so please respond using the "comment" tab to share with us about what God is saying to you, how you are personally preparing for Pink Impact, or any need for prayer or praise. Our hope is that this daily devotional will enable all of us as one to prepare our hearts to be Crowned with Greatness.

If you are attending Pink Impact and are a pastor's wife, women's ministry pastor, leader, or director, we would like to know! Pleae tell us by contacting our office at 817.552.3756 or via email at pinkimpact@gatewaypeople.com.

If you are considering bringing a group of ladies from your home church to Pink Impact we would love to send you some additional promotional items to assist you in your plans. This year we will be offering church hostesses - women from Gateway who are positioned at our registration area - to meet you, help you get settled in and in general answer any questions you may have. Please send me your team leaders contact information and we will be sure that our team is ready to receive you.

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I'll be there anticipating the Lord doing mighty, mighty things. Won't you please come...

Blessings...

Blog Friends Forever!!!

BLOG FRIENDS FOREVER! Well, I must admit this is an interesting idea that I borrowed from Twinkle... She is an old friend to me, and a blog friend forever. I first met Twinkle and her Georgia charm and love of gardening in the Lifeway Forums. She is a gentle encourager and a contagious exhorter - She is a Titus 2 woman if I ever met one and she is such a loving, wise soul. Her spirit is tender to all women and she is discerning to the end. I am blessed to know her, honored to call her friend. Oh, and she has titled my link... "Michelle the Writer."

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Then there is Mrs. Bev... A local siesta to me, a friend and a dear sweet soul who loves the Lord and only wants to walk with others as she seeks Him with all her heart. She is a leader and she is a worshipper at heart. Her words are precious and dripping with encouragement - she is so caring - she will listen to your most difficult story and make you laugh out loud in response. It is just her contagious enthusiasm for life that keeps you coming back for more.

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Elise, sweet Elise. This soul sister, also from the Lifeway Forums, walked with me through the difficult last months of Justin's life... She was a heart tender to my circumstance and we were sisters from the moments our words penetrated one another's heart. We were two mothers desperate to save our sons... we prayed, shared our hearts, our anguish and our laughter together. Kindred hearts from the start.

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Teri... Teri's heart is tender to all God wants to do in her life, she is precious and seeking Him at every turn. She seeks Him in every cirucmstance and trusts Him to carry her through - she is a Titus 2 woman... the kind being raised up to walk someone else along life's difficult roads. She is a joy and a blessing - I just love her ... love her.

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What more could I say about these wonderful ladies... except God is a good God and He draws our hearts together - sometimes we are iron to sharpen iron and other times we are like Barnabas - encouragers and those who help to carry those we love through every circumstance in our lives... through joy and pain - love and laughter... through whatever life brings - a friend loves at all times and a friend will stick closer than a brother.

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God's Word tells us that a cord of three strands is not easily broken. When the cross stands between us we do not fall into the entanglements of life, but walk together with a cord of three strands... so that when falls down the other can help them up.

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Be Blessed and tag your BFF's with this fun award!

Praying... Believing... Receiving... She Speaks

SHE SPEAKS CONFERENCE...

Well, ladies I learned about a terrific opporutnity to win a scholarship to the Proverbs 31 "She Speaks" conference for women in all walks of ministry... speakers, ministry leaders, writers and the like... um... like me (well at least I hope)?????

Okay, so to the best part - I found out about it over at BooMama's place (I am a little out of breath because I ran all the way back to tell you about it as soon as I could... just kidding, but I am out of breath with excitement...) and thought well, now here would be a great big chance for me to see a bit of our national countryside, because I drive - not fly, not to mention meet a blog icon or two or three or well maybe all of you, too... and get some valuable information about this Habakkuk 2:2-3 opportunity that God has put in my life. I mean, He told me to be actively pursuing what He has given me, but be still... do you think going to North Carolina for a conference would qualify for being still... me either, but I so want to go to North Carolina. And BooMama told us all about it because she is going to be speaking there... that's right, she's speaking at the conference about what else, BLOGGING!

AND, as if that were not enough, there are going to be great workshops and opportunities for writers, speakers and ministry leaders to learn what it takes to fine tune their craft and develop their God-given gifts and talents, and well, it just sounds like an out of this world kind of anointed time.

Seriously, I am writing this post to let you know about the conference, to encourage you to check out the link in my Link List or by clicking here and go... go... go... But also because I need a scholarship to make the trip. They are having a sholarship contest and so I am going to get to the point right now.

My husband and I made a big financial decision last summer in leaving our church home which was also my place of employment. We knew God was calling us to a new place, and we have made huge adjustments in our standard of living (which, by the by, landed us in a bigger, nicer home for less money!!!) And, as we have prayed and walked this new journey out we have discovered that writing is my gig - maybe not my best gig ever - but the one God gave me and I know that God is calling me into a larger sphere of influence because we have landed in a large church with a sphere of influence that runs around the globe. I am sorting through the calling part, working my way to the finish of a novel and writing a Bible study as well as a three or four day a week blogging experience.

Now, I am fasting for 40 days hoping for breakthrough in my many areas of stronghold and this one area of promise. I am sure God has put this opportunity in my life for a reason. I want to know how to do this thing - how to land in a place where I can use what God has given me to do what He is calling me to do. But, since we are choosing to follow the Lord, it also means I have no extra income to help with the expenses of traveling half way across the country AND paying the well-worth-the-price fee to attend the conference. I would say I would crawl across broken glass and hot coals to get there, but while I am determined - I am not desperate.... Not yet anyway, so I will pray for favor for this stream of consciousness rave and ask that God would grant my desire to better myself and learn more about the gifts and talents He has placed in my life... especially since I have some experience in these areas of ministry - but I want to be the kind of writer/speaker that brings such glory to God that it changes peoples lives!!! I just want to do this thing - do it until God calls me home - and just for the record I am hoping that will be a good long run at it if you know what I mean.

All of that said, there is this little part of me that is feeling particularly favored because my seat at Bible Class last night had a Starbucks card taped to the bottom of it... so I Won a Doorprize... which indicates favor, Don't you think?

Check out the link, and know that I am asking God for mighty things for the Proverbs 31 ministry folk and conference speakers, attendees and well everyone who is touched either diectly or indirectly by this conference that will inspire growth, change and success in the name of the Lord. And maybe just a little mighty thing by getting me there... one way or another.

I could beg, but my puppy dog eyes went south with the rest of what gravity has taken from me so I guess I will just pray... God's answers are better than manipulation anyway! If you would like to submit yourself for the scholarship then check Lysa Terkeurst's blog out here. Suffice it to say, I'm believing God - if He wants me there He will provide the way... Have a blessed day.

El Roi - The God Who Sees The Outcome

As I read the passage from Genesis 16 I was given pause this morning as I sat quietly mulling my thoughts over with God. I was in the car, where some of my best thinking can occur if I turn the radio down and begin to submit my mind to God. It was still dark, and though I was a little groggy I just kept seeing Hagar in the tent of Abram - given to an old man to do nothing more than bear him a child his favored wife could not seem to do. I hear her heart as she weighs the matter, "They are just using me. I am nothing more than an incubator." Hagar did not have a choice, Sarai owned Hagar. Sarai gave her to Abram. How little do we consider the human aspect of what we read in our Bibles? Hagar was a woman, a slave, a woman far from her home with no family and no one to cry out to for her gods were in Egypt. She had obviously been with Sarai long enough to have an idea of who God might be, but He was not her God.

Who would come to Hagar's rescue? Like the teenage girl who was popular before she slept with her friend's boyfriend on a night of foolish adolescence and later would learn she is pregnant. Maybe she was a good girl, maybe not... what does it matter? When you become the town scandal who comes to your rescue? Deep within each woman's heart is a need to be honored and loved for who she is - the women of the Bible were not made differently, just living in a different culture where women were bartered and sold, not cherished. Hagar must have been wounded, angry and unable to understand why this thing had to happen to her. Sarai only cared for her because she was carrying the baby Sarai herself could not give her husband. And when the baby was born they would let Hagar nurse and wean the boy, but she would never be his mother. Sarai would be his mother. Nothing could be more painful than to be forced to give birth to a child you knew you would never keep. What is a girl to do?

I remember how appealing the desert looked when I was a young, husbandless mother. All I felt was the judgments and the censorship of my family and with the exception of a few friends, nothing in my life seemed like it would ever again be hopeful, except that baby, that precious baby boy. He was new life to me - a love I had never known - not ever and so I ran to the desert with my baby. I struck out on my own certain that whatever means I had would be better than living under the deep scrutiny and defeating comments of those who were supposed to love and take care of me. Had Sarai really treated Hagar fairly or was Sarai even more threatened by the woman now carrying her husband's child? Was she the victim of her own lack of faith and scheming? Was Hagar the taudry vixen or just a young godless woman trying to make sense of what had happened to her?

The following is commentary from "The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Old Testament" (Walvoord and Zuck, Victor Books, 1984).

"Often in Genesis popular etymologies capture the message. [In other words, the history of the names tells the story.] These are rhetorical devices that draw from the account the explanation of names. Thus the nam was a mnemonic device for remebering the events and their significance. In this passage two poplular etymologies form not only the climax of the section but the point of the whole unit. God Himself named Ishmael, which He then explained: for the Lord has heard of your misery (16:11). Clearly He meant this primarily for Hagar, but it was also meant for Abram and Sarai.

"The other naming was Hagar's referring to God as "the One who sees" after her, that is, looks out for her. So in these two names is a world of theology: God hears and God sees. This spot would afterward become holy, a place where God could be found providing for and hearing te cries of His people.

"The names provide the message: God spoke in direct revelation, and Hagar responded in faith. God sees distress and affliction, and He hears. Sarai should have known this. Since God knew Sarai was barren, she should have cried out to the Lord. Instead she had to learn a lesson the hard way - from the experience of a despised slave-wife who, ironically, came back with a faith experience. How Abram must have been rebuked when Hagar said god told her to name her son Ishmael, 'God hears.'"

Consider this insight with for a moment. Abram and Sarai were benefactors of God's promises and blessings, but lacked the faith to follow Him fully into His will. Sarai, like most women, lacked patience and desired to "help God out" by supplying a fertile younger maid servant to her husband as a surrogate for own barreness. How often do we lack the security and faith in our God to see our situation through to the end? For me it is not at all as often as it once was, but still doubt and fear creep in and niggle around the edges of my faith. The enemy whispers, what are you waiting for - that will never happen, it will never work out if you don't DO something.

A few months ago I had the opportunity to learn this very thing. Our car broke down and went into the shop. With no money in the bank to pay for repairs and no other source of transportation, I was very given to stressing out and going over the edge. Borrowing money as we had in the past to solve our problem. However, God had other plans. That week I read and came back to this Scripture over and over again... "The Lord will fight for you, you need only to be still." Exodus 14:14. In the amplified it reads this way, "The Lord will fight for you, and you hsall hold you peace and remain at rest."

Hagar learned in the desert that God was not only real, but He was very personally involved in everything that was happening to her. He knew Sarai's response, He knew she would carry a child - Ishmael, and He knew that she would run in her agony - seeking her home, but God had other plans. He gave her two messages that day, one horatory (advisory) and the other promisory. He exhorted her to return to her mistress - our God who sent His son to set us free sent Hagar back into bondage and slavery to be mistreated and to have her son raised by a woman who despised her. Does God prefer that we remain in bondage or does He want us free?

In my journey this past month I have learned so much, but on Sunday as I considered the message from worship servcie... revelation came.

God wants us to remain in those situations that distress us and bring us difficulty and even pain so that we not only discover truth about ourselves, working out sin and areas where our faith is weak, but He wants us to know He is real, He keeps His Word, and that in Him we are strong enough to not only win the battle but take back the places/areas we have lot to the enemy.

In a conversation on Sunday I admitted I had so much trouble with some areas of stronghold in my life, but I was so amazed at the revelations that I was receiving because they were phenomenally huge. I told her that I had realized that often I had reached the point of breakthrough but saw it as a victory and so I would give up or worse turn back and retreat never retaking the ground that was lost in the stronghold.

I will post more as I ponder it... blessings.

El Roi - The God Who Sees After Me

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Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, "You [Or You, God, see me ] are a [Elroi ] God who sees"; for she said, "Have I even remained [Lit. seen here after the one who saw me ] alive here after seeing Him?" ~ Genesis 6:13 (NASB with notations)

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Definitions:Strong's Hebrew from Lifeway's Online Bible Library (KJV with Strong's)
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EL ROI - is the combination of two Hebrew Words - 1.) El - a singular masculine noun translated God, and 2.) Roi which is translated sees.

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Strong's Reference # 410

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Transliteration: 'el
Root: shortened from , Greek and
Part of Speech: n m
Vines Words: God
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Usage Notes:
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English Words used in KJV: God 213, god 16, power 4, mighty 5, goodly 1, great 1, idols 1, Immanuel + 2, might 1, strong 1 [Total Count: 245]
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1) god, god-like one, mighty one; 1a) mighty men, men of rank, mighty heroes; 1b) angels; 1c) god, false god, (demons, imaginations); 1d) God, the one true God, Jehovah
2) mighty things in nature
3) strength, power
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Strong's Reference # 7210
Transliteration: ro'iy
Phonetic Pronunciation: ro-ee'
Root: from
Part of Speech: n m
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Usage Notes:
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English Words used in KJV:
see 4, look 1, gazingstock 1 [Total Count: 6]
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1) looking, appearance, seeing, sight; 1a) seeing; 1b) appearance; 1c) sight, spectacle

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El Roi is the name given to God after the very first recorded appearance of the "Angel of the Lord" literally translated a messenger or angel of the Lord. The commentaries, and most teachings on this subject consider the references to the Angel of the Lord in the OT to be a pre-incarnate representation or "type," a foreshadow appearance or a theophany - a preincarnate manifestation - of Christ. Hagar recognized that this messenger who met her in the desert was indeed God, and she identified Him in a very personal expression of revelation and truth. She called Him the God who sees after her, the God who is involved in her deepest, most personal difficulties and looking toward her very basic interests and needs. God exhorted or advised Hagar to return and submit in humility to Sarai, her mistress, and He promised that He would be with her son, Ishmael (God Hears). He gave her not only a glimpse of Himself, but a glimpse of her own future. You see, in the desert, when Hagar ran away, God saw and went after Hagar, but a few chapters later when Hagar is cast into the desert, leaving her son under a bush to die, it is Ishmael (God Hears) who God hears and responds to... Ishmael's name was indicative of God's present and future action in the lives of those who put their fait in Him. Ann Spangler notes in her book, "Praying the Names of God" that the God Hagar met with that day in the desert was the deeply personal and intimate God who looks after our daily needs and cares for us in a loving way.

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Can you see that in the passage? Do you realize that God sees you? Oh Beloved, He is looking upon you right now with concern, love and great pleasure - He wants to speak into Your life personally just the way He did with Hagar. Are you listening for Him? Do you expect Him to show up and act on your behalf? What is it you are looking for? El Roi delivers.

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As I studied El Roi, the only place I found a reference to this name is in Genesis 16: 13. Both words for see in that verse are Strong's reference 7210 "roi."

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God wants us to know He sees us... He sees us, beloved. He is watching and He is not for one moment failing to act. He saw Hagar's misery and the disgrace of her situation, He saw the despair later when she left her son for dead and could not bear to be near as the boy's life faded away. He heard and He responded and Hagar knew He was God. How has He seen, heard and responded in your life lately?

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Let me say that I have never experienced the presence of God in this way more than I did when my son was going through his darkest time. I remember reading Carol Kent's book "When I Lay My Isaac Down" and thinking to myself, but what do you do when your child is not Isaac, He's Ishmael? I remember it so clearly, I wrote the note in my Bible during that season - Justin is Ishmael. What do you do when you have Ishmael? You do what Hagar did, trust the God who has revealed Himself to you, search Him out more and when He speaks - you listen and you act. It is all we can do.

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I remember the moment I realized that God was not missing one moment of my agony over my son - it was a deep washing in my heart of peace. The discernment to know that God could see my child's suffering and my agonizing over the pain in his life. I knew He was bringing the answer and whatever that answer brought - I would trust Him. But, in those days I had moments of weakness, moments of crying out and weeping aloud to God just like Hagar did - I asked Him why change was not His will for Justin - what could I pray? And, God responded. I don't know if I was ready for the answer, but I knew enough about my God personally to trust His response even if I didn't understand it. Knowing God as El Roi is all about knowing Him deeply, personally and intimately. In this day and age, that kind of knowing does not come apart from God's Word. If I had not been deeply studying His Word the three years before Justin's accident I would have been afraid, angry with God and this day I would probably be dead or crazy - most likely alone. I could not have stood under such a test if I did not know that God went before me and prepared the way only to return and walk this entire journey right by my side. I could not have calmly rode to the hospital praying had I not known that God would be my peace and strength when nothing in my world was making sense. I could not have spoken with hope at Justin's funeral without the truth of my hoping in the Lord being the only constant that I knew in those days.

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Recently I have had the opportunity to see God working a new season in my life. He is in a season of planting/sowing into my life and preparing me for the season of harvest that is coming soon. He gently shows me truth in ways that help me to identify where we are on the same page and where I need to work toward drawing near to Him. He picks me up from my weeping mess on the floor brushes my hair away from my face and says, "Michelle, why are you crying?"

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He is so real to me, He is the air I breathe, the love I feel and the truth of all my days. He is El Roi, the God who looks after me.

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As you read Psalm 139... look for the ways God is speaking to you personally about who He was to you and who He is to you now! He wants more than just an occasional acquaintance with you ... He wants a relationship, intentional, meaningful and true.

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Psalm 139 (NKJV)

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God's Perfect Knowledge of Man
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

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1 O LORD, You have searched me and known me.

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2 You know my sitting down and my rising up;

You understand my thought afar off.

3 You comprehend my path and my lying down,

And are acquainted with all my ways.

4 For there is not a word on my tongue,

But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether.

5 You have hedged me behind and before,

And laid Your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;

It is high, I cannot attain it.

7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?

Or where can I flee from Your presence?

8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there;

If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.

9 If I take the wings of the morning,

And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

10 Even there Your hand shall lead me,

And Your right hand shall hold me.

11 If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me,"

Even the night shall be light about me;

12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You,

But the night shines as the day;

The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

13 For You formed my inward parts;

You covered me in my mother's womb.

14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Marvelous are Your works,

And that my soul knows very well.

15 My frame was not hidden from You,

When I was made in secret,

And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.

And in Your book they all were written,

The days fashioned for me,

When as yet there were none of them.

17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!

How great is the sum of them!

18 If I should count them,

they would be more in number than the sand;

When I awake, I am still with You.

19 Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!

Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men.

20 For they speak against You wickedly;

Your enemies take Your name in vain.

21 Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You?

And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?

22 I hate them with perfect hatred;

I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;

Try me, and know my anxieties;

24 And see if there is any wicked way in me,

And lead me in the way everlasting.

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He is El Roi... He sees, He hears... He acts and He will never forsake you ever! Be blessed.

EL ROI – The God Who Sees Me

As we dig into our study of El Roi for tomorrow, I would like to prime the pump so to speak. Please consider these questions and answer them if you feel like it. Remember our text for this journey is Genesis 16:1-14, Genesis 21:8-20 and Psalm 139.

Read Genesis 16:1-14.

How did God reveal Himself to Hagar?

What were the circumstances that led her to the desert?

What do you think God's promise about her child meant to her?

Has God ever introduced Himself to you personally the way He did with Hagar in the desert?

Can you relate to Hagar or God as you read about them today?

A Final Thought About Elohim

Well there is a dear one who posted on the original Elohim post just last night and made the point that the Bible is full of allusions and allegory and all sorts of reference respresenting that the Elohim (plural noun in singular use) of Genesis 1:1 is in fact plural in representation because of the plural pronoun usages and the many other ways the Trinity is represented in Scripture. And, I indeed agree. I have no doubt any of this was intentional on God's part! No doubt whatsoever!

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In my original post, I posted literally what I found in my own Word study and the literal translation that I found in Strong's as well as the notes in the lexical aids and in Ann Spangler's book. That most scholars do not find a plurality indicated when the context uses a singular verb and that is when it is most often translated "God." Now let me dig a little deeper here.

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The concept of the doctrine of the Trinity is that we have one God in nature, with three seperate and distinct personalities: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This is not new to most all of us I would imagine. But how does Elohim really reflect that truth - in the grammar, of course! Our God is so amazing! Think about it - it is a plural noun (three personalities) with a singular use (one nature)! And that my friends was such a subtle revelation I barely knew I had it. Elohim, the plurality of God in one concise word! Amen and Amen... and Thank You Carri for forcing me to look a little deeper.

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Isn't it just like God to take the plural form of a singular noun that traditionally represented pagan gods and turn it around to tell us a little something about Himself... Amazing - Hallelujah! What a wild and incredible God we have on our side. He gives me the gigles all the time! Please share your thoughts if you would like.

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Well, I am now off to prepare my post for El Roi... I will be back soon.

More thoughts on Elohim

You know today as I sat here considering the wonderful qualities of our great God I thought to myself... wow, God must really be so hoping we get this quality of Him. I mean think of it this way, all of Creation is under His copyright, no matter who evolutionist ascribe the beauty and intricacies of creation to it belongs to our God... "(c) before the World Began, Elohim". Then, I thought and in heaven, instead of a birth certificate - we have a Psalm 139 certificate - a whole notebook style file with all our spiritual firsts recorded and maybe a few discipline slips to boot I am sure - though by the time we get there they will be long since gone - even before the day we were born. He is sovereign, sending rain on the just and the unjust. He is holy, unable to stand or tolerate sin or unrighteousness - even His glory passing by would knock us dead if we looked upon His face. Can you fathom it? I mean really?

As I do, I look to heaven, even on a dark and dreary day like this where bad news seems to loom everpresent in the air and cry out, "I am so unworthy, Lord, but so grateful you would love me so much that everything in my life, whether Good or Bad would drive me straight into a more personal and deeply meaningful life with YOU!"

Elohim, Master Artist, Sculptor, Designer and Creator... Copyright owner to the entire Earth and all the heavens, too. He before we ever have a thought stamps His brand on our best ministry ideas, every word we write to honor Him, and even those times of deepest agony have His mark if we seek Him through it... now that is what life is really all about! My Elohim, God Most High!

Elohim – The Most High God

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Transliteration: 'ělôhîym - /el-o-heem'/ (Strong's Reference # 430)
Definitions:

Strong's Hebrew from Lifeway's Online Bible Library (KJV with Strong's)

Root: plural of <H433> ['ělôah]

Cross Reference: TWOT – 93c

Part of Speech: n m p – (noun, masculine, plural)
Vines Words: None
Usage Notes:

English Words used in KJV: God 2346 , god 244 , judge 5, GOD 1, goddess 2, great 2, mighty 2, angels 1, exceeding 1, God-ward + <H4136> 1, godly 1, [Total Count: 2606]

1) (plural): 1a) rulers, judges, 1b) divine ones, 1c) angels, 1d) gods;

2) (plural intensive - singular meaning): 2a) god, goddess, 2b) godlike one, 2c) works or special possessions of God, 2d) the (true) God, 2e) God.
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Based on my study of this word, there is no definite primitive root to this word, though it appears to be closely related to the above referenced root: 'ělôah, which is singular in form and appears mostly in poetic uses or in poetry. In her book, "Praying the Names of God" Ann Spangler notes that the Hebrew word for God appears to be borrowed from their Caananite neighbors, and though it is plural in form does not necessarily denote plural gods. She also states that there are some who identify the plural form as being representative of the Trinity but nothing in the Hebrew language or her research pointed to that specifically. It is closely related as well to the Aramaic word for god, elāh.

This word is used in a variety of descriptions that relate to both the one true Deity as well as pagan or idol deities. It can be in reference to men, angels, others with "divine connections" as well as gods and goddesses or the One True God. In the Lexical Aids for "The Complete Word Study Old Testament" I found this note, "…It usually takes a singular verb so no implication of any plurality in divine nature can be inferred from the fact that the word is plural. Scholars are divided on whether 'ělôhîym has an direct connection with the world 'ēl."[ strong's 410 is the singular term for the word god.]

In Genesis 1:1 we find our first introduction to Elohim as the universal name of God. The Bible Knowledge Commentary Old Testament (Victor Books, Walvoord and Zuck, 1985) calls this beginning of Genesis, the account of how the universe came to exist, "a theological treatise… [that] lays the foundation for the rest of the Pentateuch." Think about that, it is an offering by God by which He would universally become identified by – the term used in Genesis 1:1 and the more than 2300 other references to the same word becomes the general way in which Israel began to know their God. "Moses [the author credited with writing the Pentateuch] wished to portray God as the Founder and Creator of all life. The account shows that the God who created Israel created the world and all who are in it."

How often do you stop and take inventory, weighing the implications of this identification of God. Today as I considered this and weighed it heavily in my mind, I found myself thinking about all the times I have counted the yard "mine," my children "mine," even this computer, the house I live in, the time I have to spend as my own. I reckon it all to my own account with little thought of God in the process. Psalm 50 is a great place to go and discover this Elohim, the God who founded and created all the world that we know and all of life as it now exists.

Psalm 50 [A Psalm of Asaph] (NIV)
1 The Mighty One, God, the Lord,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.
2 From Zion, perfect in beauty,
God shines forth.
3 Our God comes and will not be silent;
a fire devours before him,
and around him a tempest rages,
4 He summons the heavens above,
and the earth, that he may judge his people:
5 “Gather to me my consecrated ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
6 And the heavens proclaim his righteousness,
for God himself is the judge.
7 “Hear, O my people, and I will speak,
O Israel, and I will testify against you:
I am God, your God.
8 I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices
or your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
9 I have no need of a bull from your stall
or of goats from your pens,
10 for every animal of the forest is mine,
and the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every bird in the mountains,
and the creatures in the field are mine.
12 If I were hungry I would not tell you,
for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
14 Sacrifice and thanks offerings to God,
fulfill your vows to the Most High,
15 and call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”
16 But to the wicked, God says:
“What right have you to recite my laws
or take my covenant on your lips?
17 You hate my instruction
and cast my words behind you.
18 When you see a thief, you join with him;
you throw in your lot with adulterers.
19 You use your mouth for evil
and harness your tongue to deceit.
20 You speak continually against your brother
and slander your own mother’s son.
21 The things you have done and I kept silent;
you thought I was altogether like you.
But I will rebuke you
and accuse you to your face.
22 “Consider this, you who forget God,
or I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue:
23 He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me,
and he prepares the way
so that I may show him the salvation of God.”


Do you hear His voice in this plea with His creation to recognize His majesty, His sovereignty and His possession of all that is this world and existence we know today?

God Himself directs the rising and the setting of the sun, He stands before the earth and orchestrates perfectly its orbit, its atmosphere its very existence not just on those days He created, but now, right now He is there managing His creation just the way these verses describe. He is a God who desires to be appreciated. He wants us to recognize Him not only in our religious rituals and the prayers we pray in public, but in the basic needs of our very existence. He is God – majestic, sovereign and true. He is the one who formed us in our mother’s womb and ordained all of our days before even one of them came to be (Psalm 139). How do we repay Him?

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Do we carry on like life depends on us, like our children will benefit from the hours and hours we spend working to give them more without investing in who they are in Christ? Do we view our source as our employer and our home as our own? Is the money in the bank our own and God just the owner of the tithe, if we give that to Him at all?

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Do you rise early enough to savor the sunrise, the wonder of the vivid detail with which He creates your personal greeting every day? Have you considered the sunset? One of the things I love about our life right now is that most days I must rise before the sun rises and deliver my husband to work leaving me awake to visit with Him, God, on the ride home and the early morning hours. I don’t always catch a sunrise, but when I do I marvel at the way God made it so beautiful. Our home faces with the large open living are facing west. There are large windows in those rooms and that allows me to sit and stare at the beautiful colors that cast themselves across the sky as our Master lays the sun to rest for another day.

The day of my son’s accident, the one that claimed his life, I was staring out the window of my pastor’s truck praying to God for strength, peace and for my son to be alive when I arrived at the hospital. I can still remember today, 2 ½ years later the exact color of that crisp blue sky. I can still see the puffy white cotton clouds floating lazily by, and I can still hear these words as I expressed them thoughtfully to God, “If you can manage all of this, [keeping the clouds in the sky and the sun shining and the earth spinning round], then I believe you can take care of my son. I trust you to take care of him.” The marvel of life and death would speak to me again and again throughout the weeks that followed that day. I remember asking God to give us a bonafide, praise the Lord miracle complete with unexplainable healing. Yet, as I watched my son lay there and heard the prognosis for his recovery I realized that a miracle of complete restoration may not be in the cards for my son. I watched for signs of life, for the squeeze of a hand, twitch of an eye… the way he jerked his head when I rubbed a scab too hard and I praised God for every sign of life I found. I watched that life fade behind the veil over the course of 8 days, and I finally surrendered to the realization that my son had been taken to heaven when the doctors disconnected the machines that systematically pumped air and food and medicines into his body. His life on earth was over, but oh Glory the life in heaven had just begun.

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I praise God for all the days since that time, for the fresh revelation of His Word and the daily provision of His love. Lately, I have been surrendering my hold on the material things in my life. God is my source, everyday I pray for provision of everything from food to daily provision for our household expenses. I entrust it to Him, sanctify my home through anointing and prayer and I set aside places for study, worship and prayer. I spend my day tuned in, looking for the slightest sign that God is there… attending to my day and I never am disappointed. Look for Him in your daily walk, surrender all you have to Him and trust Him explicitly even when all that you can identify in your life seems difficult and crazy, God is in the chaos straightening out the edges. If He can keep this universe and every life in this world going on a daily basis, He can and will surely meet the very needs of your basic day to day existence. Trust Him, for He is Elohim. Sovereign, Just, Divine, Majesty. Our God, Our Creator – God Most High!

Prayer Closets and Prayer Requests

This fine morning prayer requests and prayer closets are weighing on my mind. You see, having been in ministry for a number of years and having been praying for all of those years, I had never found the need to go into a room and close the door to talk to God, but this past weekend - God arranged a wake-up call.

(The following is from my notes on "The Secret of First" a sermon message delivered to Gateway church on January 12-13, 2008 by Robert Morris. Blue highlighted material is taken directly from notes taken during the sermon and are my paraphrase of the material presented.)

My pastor, Robert Morris, was speaking on this very subject when he brought to our attention Psalm 91:4-7. Now Psalm 91 - I know... I pray often when I feel weak and frail to be kept in the shelter of His wings. But, here is what Pastor Robert brought to my attention: "the secret place" in Psalm 91:1 (NKJV) now in the NIV it is the "shelter" but this secret place got my attention... where is the secret place? So, he took us over to Matthew 6:5-13 when the disciples are asking Jesus to teach them to pray.

"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.

"But you, when you pray, go into your room and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in the secret place will reward you openly.

"And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think they will be heard for their many words.

"Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him." (Matthew 6:5-7 NKJV, emphasis mine)

The secret place is found behind "a closed door." Not necessarily a room or officially a door persay, but a specific time and place that you set aside daily to be alone with God in prayer, a time of uninterrupted fellowship, communication and worship.

Pastor Robert then proceeded to outline the elements of the Lord's prayer in this way. Matthew 6:9 are elements of praise as well as the latter part of verse 13. He said that Jesus taught the disciples to begin and end their prayers with PRAISE. The first element of prayer as Jesus taught it is praise, for who He is, what He has done and what He is about to do. Praise Him in all circumstances.

The next element he identified is PERMISSION. Jesus taught the disciples to ask for God's Will. Ask God for His opinion of what you are doing, asking for and the outcome, don't just pray according to your own will and desires, but ask God for permission to receive what you seek. (verses 10)

The third element he outlined was PROVISION. Jesus taught the disciples to ask for a daily provision. Even though you bought groceries on Friday, pray today for God to make the provision for the daily needs of your family: food, finances, health care, automobile maintenance, etc. Whatever you have need of basic to extraordinary, ask God to provide it daily. (verse 11)

The fourth element he outlined was PEACE. There can be no peace without forgiveness. If we do not request and receive forgiveness from God and do not extend forgiveness to others, we will never truly realize peace in our own lives. 1 John 1:9 says we need to daily confess our sins not because they need to be forgiven, but because they have already been forgiven and our soul (our mind, will and emotions) needs to acknowledge and receive that forgiveness as we work out our salvation. By doing so our souls are cleansed of the spot and blemish of sin and made clean and whole once more.

The final element outlined is PROTECTION. Asking God for protection. We are constantly subject to spiritual warfare aswirl around us in the Spiritual Realm, our lives are deeply affected by it. We need to be asking God for protection and restoration in these areas daily.

Then Pastor Robert shared this little nugget, "The best thing about the secret place is who you get to share it with." He did not discourage the practice of praying while you are doing housework or sitting on the front porch or in your car or any other type of continual prayer - he exhorted us to add this to our prayer life and find the wonderful pleasure of spending time uninterrupted with God.

Having heard this message on Saturday evening I started my Sunday morning with a secret place appointment...

I rose fairly early and pulled out my prayer journal (a book sized spiral notebook with 100 pages in it) and opened it to the first fresh page. I numbered out six sections leaving half a page to write in each: Praise, Permission, Provision, Peace, Protection and Praise. I filled in each section with prayerful consideration and then evaluated every room in my house. The kitchen pantry, a closet but with the current fasting conditions in my spiritual life I thought it better to not tempt fate, plus we keep our garbage in there. Then I considered the laundry room, but uninterrupted time in there is almost never found. I returned to our master bedroom and considered our closet, briefly, but my mind wold wonder to what I would wear for the day... not a good idea. I returned to the master bathroom content to kneel on the floor in front of the bathtub with my beautiful picture of Jesus carrying a weary soul across the beach when I noticed (for lack of a better term) our toilet closet. You know the little room that houses the commode in your bathroom with a door separating it from the rest of the bathroom. I went in and closed the lid settling down. I closed the door and realized this is the perfect place to pray. No one likely to bother me and I can kneel in the floor or sit or stand, whatever I need to do to pray. So I began. The first day was delightful, though my husband noticed I was missing and came to check on me calling out over my praying in the Spirit out loud - "Are You Okay?" He must not have been too concerned because he returned to his game of "Bejeweled" without an answer.

I have spent this week at various times in the day writing out my prayers and then submitting them to God in my new found prayer closet. Yesterday after a particularly wonderful time of fellowship with the Lord I sat silently listening. I then asked, "God, show me how you see me?"

Now to give you a hint of background. I am on a journey of complete testing for 40 days and ever since I began on January 1st all I have heard is "This is a time of preparation and dedication."

Well, as I lay my head against the wall and drank in deep, soulful breaths of the Holy Spirit - this is what I saw:

A schoolhouse that has been burned to the ground, and is being rebuilt brick by brick on a stronger foundation, even though it is branded and tested by fire. It is being built into a house of knowledge, learning and understanding, a place where people will find refuge from a broken, fallen existence and our Savior glorified.

It was the delight of my day. Confirmation of my calling to teach - and I have the call to write already confirmed. I am so taken by the Lord right now I can hardly stand it. He is the delight of my life and my days. He is all I need and all I want and more. He is my Lord, my God, my Savior and my Friend. He is everything to me.

The secret place is very special, if you don't already have one - seek it out today!

Blessings in Christ, beloved.

Identifying God by Name

** UPDATE: As of February 12th, the names of God study will be updated each week with a new name on Wednesdays. I appreciate your willingness to take this walk through the Bible with me.

Blessings.

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Hello All... the precious Beloved of Christ.

I wanted to start something here and throw it out there if you are willing. A study of the names of God. It will begin next Tuesday morning - January 22nd and each week we will consider one of the names of God. Learning what the name means, studying it in Scripture and then discussing it here. If you are interested please respond to this message or email me so I know to add you to the list. You may find it useful to get Ann Spangler's book "Praying the Names of God" as some of what we will cover will be from this book. In addition, she breaks it down in daily doses for those who are newer to Bible study.

I pray that God blesses and keeps you, makes His face shine upon you and gives you peace today!

Shalom!

Update: The Celebration for Baby Dylan

To read more about what happened to this little girl go here:

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The funeral was not a funeral. This family asked God to move heaven and earth to celebrate their baby's birthday with her there. A man at a local funeral home cut through all the red tape, got the child's body late Friday afternoon and had her looking like a precious baby doll in that small pink lined casket.

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Her hair was in dog ears and she looked as if she were sleeping. Beside her her favorite baby doll lay with a bottle in it's mouth and a small book, because she loved to be read to. "Read it again!" was the common request. One pastor shared that his picture of Dylan in heaven is her sitting on Jesus' lap and he's just read a book to her and she just keeps repeating, "Read it again." He said if you pan out, there are books scattered all about our Savior's feet. The parents led the atmosphere by praising and worshipping God in both Word and through physical praise. It was so precious to see them bowing at the casket as they sang worship to the Lord. Love and joy were expressed over and over again, we sang "Happy Birthday" and then a pastor from our church who has surrendered two children to the Lord gave a heart felt message about what we could learn from Dylan's life: 1. He said we could learn Joy because that is what her life was marked with, 2. He said we could learn that life is precious because we are not guaranteed time, 3. He said we could learn to view life from God's perspective - asking's what is a long and full life from His position?

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They opened the floor for a time of prayer and encouragement from the crowd - and many spoke. Then the parents rose a spoke. The expression of the mother was that the Lord should be glorified and though she is hurting through her own personal tragedy - He is always worthy to be praised and that is what she would do. The father admitted he didn't feel strong, that at times his wife had to help him pull himself together - but, they each reflected on what this baby brought to their lives and how they would remember her, that they were having a celebration of her life rather than a funeral for her death. It was beautiful. The father concluded with a list of things he is experiencing - especially after losing himself emotionally yesterday morning. He said he taught Dylan her ABCs by saying demonstratively that "A is for..." So he shared what he is experiencing through the alphabet, "A is for anger. The anger I feel, I am angry with God. But, I praise and worship Him anyway. A is for the affection He gives me instead." He went through the entire alphabet that way. It was so precious and raw. They prayed over the group present and then we met. It was again, a precious celebration of a dearly loved little girl.

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The newspaper ran an opinion poll on the trouble "lurking in backyards" and opened the floor up for discussion - there were those who made the accusation that this mother neglected her duty by allowing an older sibling to supervise her child while playing outside. It is bound to happen, but one precious pastor said the Lord gave him a word for them, "You are good parents."

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Anyway, that is all I have - I was so blessed by the experience. I pray you all are be the recounting.

Blessings and thank you for praying. Please continue even if you do not post it hear.

The Daily Dose

My daily dose may be a little more limited than others because I am rather new to blogging. Ask me about Myspace and I might be able to shuttle you around, but blogging is rather new and it is bringing such great opportunities into my life. I have met two siestas who are walking a tough journey and we are making the way together... they shall remain nameless, but if they are reading this then they know who they are!

So, here is my "Daily Does" as Ms. Bev so lovingly puts it:

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1. Bev - she shares such meaningful insights not only about God's Word, but also about her life and those she comes into contact with daily. She is a beautiful blessing and a dear new friend in our Lord.

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2. BooMama - I've just discovered BooMama, okay... okay... so I have not been on the blog block very long and so there it is. But BooMama is a hoot and a hollar that gives me a laugh so hard my sides ache and my eyes water. I just can't help it. She has southern style and charm with a dash of seasoning salt and I just can't wait to read her "writing" again!

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3. Twinkle - Twinkle encourages me to dig deeper, look harder and live freer - and that is worth more than anyone could ever know. She is a Barnabas and a woman after God's own heart.

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4. Jenny Hope - The picture in her header is the best reason for visiting - Precious! I tell you. Of course babies give me warm fuzzies everywhere and that baby is so darn cute you just want to pick her up and cuddle. Jenny's heart is so tender to God and her family - she is a blessing beyond measure.

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5. A View from the Mountaintop - Teri is a tender heart toward God. She has walked the hard roads of life, but as her blog currently points out - "It is well, with her soul" She is seeking freedom and the heart of God in so many ways and shares what she learns readily with others. The king is enthralled with her beauty and is a delight not only to her sisters but also to her God.

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If I am honest.... Beth's LPM blog is what brought me here - then I thought I would write a memorial blog about my son... but truthfully, God wanted me to discover something inside of myself. I just want to give an honorary shout to our Beth. I know Beth has been at the writing and encouraging thing a lot more than most of us have been, but having sat under and led her studies consistently for the last five years, she has become a friend and a mentor to me even though we never met. It is good to go and read her transparent and authentic posts and see her be as human as the next gal! She makes me laugh, cry and she always presses me hard in our Father's direction. She is an inspiration to all.

Well, I have to go... there are two babies coming into our family in the next few months and we are having a Baby Shower for one of them today! Oh Joy! Babies... Babies... Babies... Love them so much you just want to pinch there little rosy cheeks, but then that would make them cry so I guess I won't - but whew! Nothing like a baby to make your heart say, "Thank You Lord, bless my soul! He makes all things new!"

Blessings to all.

P. S. Be sure to read my post from yesterday, the Spirit is so sweet and he gave me such a word. It is precious when He shows up so huge. He usually does this a lot but these days it is in technicolor! Love ya'll!

Growing Up in Christ

I posted this story earlier this week, but this morning/afternoon God so spoke to my spirit and He gave me this:

As a child, my glimpses of God were found in a spattering of short-lived memberships in churches across the D/FW metroplex. However, I do not recall a time in my entire life when God did not exist for me. Jesus and God were real, but because I grew up with a lot of insecurity about my mother and a lot of fear of my dad - I had this idea that God was very big and very far away and very, very busy - too busy to be worried too much about me. Jesus, on the other hand, was more like Superman... a man, but somehow in my mind he was not vulnerable - just human because he had to be. He was, after all, God.

The earliest story about my experience in church is told with great joy by my father from when I was 3 years old. I had attended Sunday school long enough to have a good idea of who God might be. My family attended First Baptist Church of Wautaga then. The church was holding a week long revival. On the last night, my parents attended the service and were late forcing us to sit in aluminum chairs in the back of the auditorium. My mother, being the ever-doting mother and housewife, dressed me all in lace complete with patent leather shoes with wooden heals. My father said they had me sit between them on the metal chairs.

While we waited for the service to start I stood in the seat and danced making a loud noise with my shoes. As the pastor entered and walked up the aisle, he was the picture of authority. He had slightly graying hair at the temples, he was of Native American decent and when he preached the veins bulged at his temples. As everyone was seated and quieting down I caught a glimpse of this stern man and watched, still standing in my chair as he rounded the pulpit. When the hush fell, I pushed out my chubby little finger and announced with a proud voice, "Look, Daddy, there's God!"

Needless to say, the entire congregation turned over in laughter. The uproar was in full swing as my daddy grasped me by both arms and set me down hard in my chair. He said through gritted teeth, "Now, you sit there and don't you say another word, do you hear me?" He was incredibly embarrassed "that his seen but not heard" little girl had just disrupted the entire service. I had tears welling in my eyes as I said, "Yes sir."

And, just as the pastor got the entire group quiet again, I looked up at my daddy crying crocodile tears and said, "But, Daddy... I want to see God, too." My father reports feeling an inch tall as the pastor again had to quiet the entire congregation from another round of raucous laughter.

As I reflected on this story these last few days, I have found that over and over my mind returns to Jesus’ words in Matthew 19:14 (NKJV), “Let the little children come unto Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” My father learned this very principle that night in those metal chairs in a room full of people tickled by his daughter’s misguided interpretation. But, he never has forbidden me to seek God in my own way again. He may not agree with the means of my pursuit or worship style, but he honors my love of the Lord and desire to know Him more. Much of which, I caught from he and my mother.

As the years have passed, I have had many opportunities to consider how I went from that little girl in an aluminum chair declaring the pastor of the church God to a woman with a raw and sometimes still misguided pursuit of God and God brought me to several verses of Scripture. The first is found in Mark 10:15 (NKJV), “Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” And the way this spoke to me is this: If I had not had moments like this when I was little – trying to identify God in faith that He was real, I would never have come to know Jesus as my Lord and Savior. When I worked with children in a church after school program the director, who had been in ministry to children for many years, called these types of encounters “little steps of faith.” They were not actually a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ but they were a pathway to such a revelation. Just like in the old cartoons when a forbidden item was placed too high, the character would stack item upon item creating a tower until they could effectively climb up to the place where what they desired could be reached. So it is with children and faith.

The Scriptures do not suggest we should stop or remain at a childlike faith, just that we should start there. As I weighed this over and over again, I rediscovered a truth I had learned long ago and this is how God helped me to understand it. In 1 Corinthians 13:11 (NKJV) Paul writes, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly. But then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.” The more I pursue God through His Word and look for Him in my life. The more prepared I become to meet Him “face-to-face” in heaven… to know Him as I am now known in Him. It strikes me, too, that Paul suggests that when we look in the mirror the reflection of Christ stares back at us, dimly, but there will come a time of full recognition, full knowing in the purest of places.

As children in Christ, immature in our faith we desire or hunger after God through pure spiritual milk, just as an infant desires the pure milk of its mother’s breast to satisfy its hunger, we desire the feeding of simple truths from God’s Word, our source of life. 1 Peter 2:2 commends us to it, “as newborn babes, desire pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,” (NKJV). Pure spiritual “milk” taught from God’s Word is the key to growing up in your faith. It is ownership of the gift we have been given. A child unfed by the milk of its mother or some nurturing substitute will die of starvation and so it is with our Spiritual life. Once we are in Christ, we must begin to feed regularly on God’s Word. I believe one of the plights on the Christian community today is that when a new believer comes to Christ they settle for one meal a week. They are not encouraged to seek a regular feeding schedule the way a doctor tells a mother to nurse her baby a little at a time every few hours. How then, do we expect new believers to grow up in the Word when we are only encouraging them to receive the Word, their Spiritual nutrition, little more than once or twice a week.

As parents, when our children take those little steps of faith until they receive that revelation of Christ as Savior, we fail to grow them up by administering small bits of spiritual nourishment outside of church to our children. We do not take seriously that calling in those days the way we do the physical schedule for our children. So much is in the way, little league and girl or boy scouts, homework and the family routine. Somehow, a family time of devotion and nourishment from Scripture is lost along the way.

But milk is not enough to sustain our faith… We must learn to eat from the Table that God has prepared for us. We should commune there with Him and have a true relationship and not just an occasional meal. The writer of Hebrews exhorts us to not settle for milk only and stunt our growth, but instead to move forward learning to eat from the Spiritual Meat of His word, the weightier doctrines that carry us through the harder and the darker times of our lives.

Think of it this way. When it comes to food, milk comes from the cow, but it doesn’t require much. The milk is expressed and the cow is left relatively unharmed by the entire process. However, to produce the meat that brings protein and strength to our bodies, the cow must be slaughtered – taken apart. Now those of us living in America would hardly understand this concept since we pick up our meat at the supermarket, but my father was the child of a butcher. His father worked the kill floor of slaughterhouses and taught his sons to do the same. They would take the animal and do what was necessary to preserve the choice meats, the things that were easy to sell and most profitable. I liken this to those verses of Scripture that are quipped, quoted and paraphrased in conversation daily, like “I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord…” Jeremiah 29:11 is such an encouraging verse. Easy to stomach and helpful to all. But take the stomach or the tongue of the animal that is slaughtered. How many of you relish the thought of eating tongue… me either… yuck! But my father and his father would end their day by taking the less desired meats and delivering them to people who needed and enjoyed them most. I liken this to those Scriptures that get to us in times of suffering like the death of someone close or painful circumstances like divorce or abuse – times that are unappealing and create a pain in us at the thought.

Those are times when a verse like Hebrews 2:14-15 carry a weightier message, “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood. He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” (NKJV) If God’s plans are to prosper us and not to harm us then why does Satan have the power of death… now wait a minute. I thought God was the giver and taker of life. Hold on… does that mean – I asked the same question when I read it: “What if we are giving God credit for something He did not do?” The Scriptures also say that it is the enemy, not God, who comes to “kill, steal and destroy” and that Jesus came that we may have “life and have it to the full.” So what does this mean to us. Well, we have to take it apart, view it in light of our circumstances, the context in which it was written and the prospect of God’s plan being bigger than we can conceive – otherwise we will experience things in our immaturity that will suffer our faith and perhaps turn our hearts away from God.

I spent the last four years leading women’s in-depth Bible study, breaking Scripture apart and building principles and beliefs about God based on my experiences and those studies. I was just beginning a new season of study in the fall of 2005 when my 17 year old son passed away due to injuries he suffered in a car accident. Without that feasting on meat for all that time, I could not have told God, “If this is what You are preparing me for then You are going to have to be my peace and my strength as Your Word promises, because I cannot do this by myself. Please God, just let my son be alive when I get there.” He was, he lived for 8 days before succumbing to a traumatic brain injury. In those bittersweet moments, God was so real, standing over me – Jesus beside me holding my hand. The tears were the heart cry of a mother who said, “Have mercy, Lord, on my child and give me peace to accept Your will.” A mother who in those days in the hospital and through the funeral would find out what she was made of and if her faith talk matched her walk. A mother who would discover that her God was as real and as true as the Scriptures had said He was.

In those early hours of the second day in the hospital, my pastor stopped by and spoke with me, he said, “I knew you had a strong faith and I knew you could talk it… But now I know you can walk it. You would not believe the number of phone calls I received this morning commenting on the way you are holding up and walking through this thing. It is having a greater effect on everyone than you know.” I was so humbled in that moment, and took so seriously the position and place God had given me among those people. We would all learn in the days to come that sometimes are best hopes are not God’s best plan for our lives, but we walked through it together and I never would have been strong enough to walk through had I not learned to eat from the Table of God’s Spiritual Meat.

Hebrews 5:12-14 addresses this very subject, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the words of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

God may allow Satan to have access to our lives the way we see Him grant Satan access to Job’s life in that first chapter of his story. But Satan comes to steal and kill whatever he can to destroy not only our faith but our witness. I want to challenge you this day, in light of God’s grace and mercy in our lives to dig in with a fork and not a sippy cup. We need to grow up in Christ, not just receive the gift of our salvation through Him. We would do well to teach our children the same.