Mulling it Over - Romans 8:14-17

We have been working our way through the 8th chapter of the book of Romans in the New Testament. Paul’s letter to the Jewish Christians at Rome is full of doctrine relevant to the Christian faith including the infamous “Roman Road”, a miniature gospel in just a few verses (Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:23, 10:9-10, and 10:13). It also gives plenty of teaching on how to conduct ourselves with relation to others.

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Today we are looking at the following verses:

“14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.
15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”
16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified ”

— Romans 8:14-17 (NASB 1995)

These verses are essential to understanding our position in God’s kingdom. When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are instantly received into God’s family. What does this really mean, especially in light of the dysfunction of so many families in the world around us. Today it seems we know more broken families than whole ones; blended families than original families; families filled with struggles and heartbreak. Why would I want to be part of that? As we dissect these verses we will gain a better understanding of the beauty of being part of the family of God.

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For all who are being led by the Spirit of God…

These verses are meant to describe those who are believers in Christ. Not just belief that He existed, and was a great teacher, but that His purpose was to live, die and rise again so that we might be able to be part of His family. If we are part of this family we are led by His Spirit. Yes, we can quench and grieve the Holy Spirit, but if we are growing in our relationship with Him and becoming more Christ like, we will respond to His leading.

…these are the sons of God.

Right away in this first verse we receive our positional attribute. We are “the sons (and daughters, of course), of God.” Paul will spend the next few verses putting an exclamation point on this position.

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For you have not receive a spirit of slavery, leading to fear again…

This is an important sentence, so read it again! If you are a child of God, a daughter of God, you are not enslaved, no matter how you might feel; no matter your struggles, fears, addictions, bad habits, failures, or worries. When you begin feeling enslaved, know right away, that spirit is not from God. God does not want us to be fearful. Everything He has done for us was to raise us out of the valley of fear, so that we might wander freely on the mountaintops of peace.

The reason Paul wrote these words, by the inspiration and leading of the Holy Spirit, was in part to confirm to the Christians in the church at Rome that they were not enslaved to anyone or anything. Rome may be the governing entity, a believer might even by a slave in their socioeconomic standing, but they were not to be enslaved to any teaching or doctrine that tried to add to the gospel. Christ, and Christ alone.

Any time we add to the gospel of Jesus Christ we bring ourselves under the enslavement of ideas, thoughts and teachings that are not accurate. In turn this thinking leads to enslavement and that leads to fear. We will never be good enough. We will never do enough. Our purpose, worth and standing is given to us by God through our relationship with Jesus. To do anything else will find us never able to be that person, or attain that level of “goodness”. We will be enslaved, and that will leave us always feeling fearful.

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…but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons, by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”

Again, Paul reminds us we have been received into the family of God. He makes it legal by using the term, adoption. God didn’t just invite us to come dwell with Him, eating His food, using His resources, and in turn benefiting from His limitless wealth and love. He went so far as to actually adopt us. That adoption is both a binding legal act, and a practice is interesting. Not only do we legally belong to the family of God, but we can take on the characteristic of children belonging to their biological parent by calling God in the familial and familiar sense, “Abba! Father!” Calling God Abba is an intimate term and acknowledges Him as the one who knows us best.

But how can we be sure of all of this?

The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit, that we are children of God…

The Holy Spirit who dwells in you when you call upon the name of Jesus; when you believe in what He did on the cross and that He rose again; that Spirit testifies with our own spirit that we are children of God. There is a deep, solid confirmation within us when we turn off the noise and really allow God to speak to us that we are one with Him. We are His kin, His children, His daughters and sons.

…and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs of Christ…

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If the last few verses didn’t convince you, then this should. Adoption means we are not only children of God, but children of the King. We are fellow heirs with our brother, Christ. We will inherit, as He will inherit the glory and riches of His Father’s heavenly kingdom. This inheritance is not without cost.

…if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified.

Living life as a Christ follower in this fallen world means we suffer. But our suffering is not in vain. We suffer, as Christ suffered, for a great a mighty purpose, the glorification of our God and King, our Abba, Father. The beauty is found in the last phrase, “…that we may also be glorified.” You see, just as God the Father will glorify His Son, Jesus, He will also glorify us. What a glorious day that will be!

The Bee Keeper

This is a fictional work. These are my musings on the work of the Holy Spirit in prayer as written in Romans 8:26 - “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weaknesses; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings to deep for words.”

The man stood in the open watching the light bees streak across the darkening sky. As they fell, their luminescence began to fade. He had to capture them quickly before they went dark. He could still catch them after they fell by listening for their unique buzzing. He darted this way and that, scooping the bees into his sack which began to glow and buzz softly from within.

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“There are a lot of you tonight.” He said it out loud, in part to remind himself of this responsibility the Father had given him.

While the light bees weighed nearly nothing in their glowing state, he knew when he pulled each one from the sack it would weigh heavily on him until he had finished the plea. Each petition was different. Many were not heavy, but more the stuff of wishes and dreams. However, as time passed it seemed that more and more of them were bloated so full of pain and sadness, he often had to go to his brother to ask for help bearing the weight.

When his sack was full, he made his way back to his room. He lay the sack on the table near the window then began to prepare his floor and bed. He always made sure he had plenty of blankets and fluffy pillows. The Father spared no expense for he and his brother, because he had given them the most difficult tasks.

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It was an odd conundrum, to be so powerful as to create a world, but to know the depths of pain and suffering because of their love for the creation.

He went to the table and opened the bag. He pulled out the first bee. It was completely dun, but it buzzed softly. He sat on the floor and held it in his clasped hands. Raising his hands to his mouth he blew gently over the bee. The transformation was instantaneous. The bee became light, and sound, and color. It blossomed into whispers, tears and then rants. In that instant he knew for whom he was to pray. In that moment he was driven to his face on the floor where he began to groan and tremble.

There were times, like now, when the prayers were so heavy he could not stand under their weight. The more incoherent the prayer, the heavier it weighed. So many did not know how to pray, not because they lacked the knowledge, but because their hearts were so entangled with the ones they prayed for. Their prayers came out like mumbled, tear filled whisperings, or loud, frustrated, pain filled moans.

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“Lord, God Almighty…my daughter!”

“Creator in heaven…my marriage…help!”

“Father…when…when…when?”

As his heavenly breath breathed over each bee, their rants, moans and tears turned into the purest and sweetest prayers. He knew each and every need, want and desire. He lifted them up, his own body taking the toll of bearing each and every request.

He finished a particularly difficult prayer, his body still trembling from the weight of it. He was sweating, yet chilled. He heard the door open to his room, then felt a gentle hand on his soaked back.

“Brother, your work is heavy tonight. Let me help you bear these dear ones to our Father’s throne.”

He nodded as his brother knelt in front of him. His gentle face was filled with empathy. He knew what it was like to bear this weight. He had born their weight on a rough, wooden cross. He knew them in a way that he was only just beginning to understand.

“Their stings are potent tonight, Brother!”

He smiled. His smile always could light up the world around them. “I am all too aware of their stings, but they do not understand what they ask or what they do. It is in part due to the constraints their flesh puts upon them.”

“But why is it so hard for them to believe, to accept, to have faith? We know our Father is fully good.”

His brother nodded. “We do, but we abide with the Father. It takes them time to grasp the idea that they too can abide with Him…and truly, one day shall abide with us…for those who believe.”

He nodded in agreement. “For those who believe. Thank you, Brother.”

The brothers sat knees to knees cherishing each and every light bee pulled out of the sack. Their unity bore the pain, their brotherhood embraced the hurting, and their love turned all of it into a stream of light and rejoicing, a sacrifice of worship to their Father, the King.

Wonderful Words of Life - Partake of His Divine Nature

Today’s Wonderful Words of Life, take us back to the first chapter of second Peter. I did a series on verses 1-11. If you would like to see the introductory post on verses 1 and 2, you can see that here. I am focusing only on verses 3 and 4 today, for the specific purpose of sharing these wonderful words again.

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“3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”

— 2 Peter 1:3-4 (NASB 1995)

I would like to look at these wonderful words in phrases.

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seeing that His divine power - The words “seeing that” as they are used here could be replaced with “since”. It is used in direct correlation to the phrase, “His divine power.” This phrase applies to what follows. I find it wonderful that it is His divine power. God’s power is limitless, and His, referring to Jesus Christ, was that same power that raised Him from the dead.

has granted to us - He didn’t use His divine power to give good gifts (Matt. 7:11) to the trees or grass or animals, He granted them to us. The word granted, according to Webster’s Online Dictionary has these definitions:

1 - a - to consent or carry out for a person

b - to permit as a right, privilege, or favor

2 - a - to bestow or transfer formally; specifically to give the possession or title of by a deed

What is it, exactly, that has been granted to us?

everything pertaining to life and godliness - This is so encouraging to me. God’s divine power has granted to us everything…EVERYTHING…pertaining to life and godliness. When I don’t think I have the ability to go on; when I can no longer stand; when I don’t know what is going to happen tomorrow…His divine (heavenly) power gives me everything pertaining to living life and being godly. How is this accomplished, because obviously I still have to do things myself. I have to live life, go to work, take care of my family, survive the difficulties, so how does he do this?

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through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence - What does it mean, “true knowledge”? In a world with so much learning, so much knowledge, so many books, podcasts, how-to videos, and so many ideas, how do we know what true knowledge is?

The world will tell you true knowledge is only that which you learn through your own senses. Only the things you can taste, smell, hear, see or touch is true knowledge. However, our senses can be skewed. We might have a cold, or ongoing sinus issues that cause our taste and smell to be off. We may have poor vision or the day might be foggy or rainy causing us to not see clearly. Noises are not always perceived correctly either. What sounds like a baby crying, might actually be a tiny dog yapping, or a rabbit being attacked by a cat.

True knowledge can only be the truth which God has established. God has allowed us to share in that truth by giving us His word, the Bible. This is true knowledge. If you do not know Christ as your Lord and Savior, you cannot know true knowledge. Sure, you can read the Bible and you can have all sorts of PhD’s and certificates that give proof of your head knowledge, but true knowledge is only found in a heart that is walking humbly with the One True God.

We come to understand this true knowledge when He calls us by is own glory and excellence. He doesn’t call us to another glory…the glory of a professor, a priest or a preacher…He calls us by His glory, and His excellence.

For by these - This refers back to His glory and excellence.

He has granted to us - Once again, it is God Almighty who is doing the giving.

Image by Cheryl Holt from Pixabay

His precious and magnificent promises - We could spend an entire year looking at God’s precious and magnificent promises. His promises include things like, He is always with us (Hebrews 13:5), He will give strength (Isaiah 40:31), He gives us rest (Matthew 11:28-30), He delivers us and forgives us (Colossians 1:13-14), and so very many more. If you want a good study that encourages you from top to bottom, find all the promises of God in Scripture. It will leave you feeling overwhelmed with gratitude and amazed at His goodness and mercy.

So that by them - refers back to those precious and magnificent promises.

You may become partakers of the divine nature - How cool is that? We actually can partake, like drinking deeply of God’s very nature. Wow!! I am on the floor, prostrate before him in my heart as I type this. Why would such a powerful, mighty being allow us, allow me, to partake of His divine nature? Refer back to John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world….”

God says we are to be holy for He is holy (I Peter 1:14-16). We cannot strive to be holy. Only He can make us that way. Remember it is by His precious and magnificent promises that we are able to become partakers of His holy divine nature. We are not made holy by a new church program, by showing up for every service, by witnessing, by passing out tracts or helping at the soup kitchen. While all those things are good, only God Himself through the blood of His Son Jesus can make us Holy.

Having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust - Let’s sit here a minute. There are several things being stated in this phrase. First, the world is corrupt. We know this because of what happened in the Garden, when Eve listened to that slippery snake, and convinced Adam to listen as well.

We engage in this corruption in its many forms when we lust for that which we do not have. Think about it. Just about every sin that we can engage in involves some sort of temptation. Temptation is the lure that whispers to us all that we do not have…money, power, fame, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a big house, the perfect marriage, and on it goes. Lust takes over when we recognize we are dissatisfied and so we strive for all that we do not have.

Image by Pascal Laurent from Pixabay

I hate to break it to you, but we will always feel that emptiness and lust for what we do not have, unless we have Jesus in our hearts. Even when we do, we must claim those precious and magnificent promises to really begin to partake of His divine nature, and fully realize true peace and contentment.

I hope these words reminded you of several things:

You are not alone. God is with you and His is doing, moving, and working all the time.

You have His divine power, which can help you live this life.

You have all of His precious and magnificent promises.

You can partake of His divine nature.

You can escape the corruption of this world by delving deeper into the depths that are God.

You are loved!

Relentless - Part 6: Home

Laney, could hear the steady beep, beep, beep of the machine monitoring her heart. She knew where she was, and what was going on. She was dying, but an amazing peace surrounded her, a living, breathing presence. She thought back to all those years ago, the night Steve walked out on her; the night the Shadowed Ones tried to get her to take her life; the night she met her unborn daughter. That night she had given her heart back to its maker; the King.

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“GG?” A sweet, young voice called her name and she could feel the tender hand on her own. She opened her eyes.

Her youngest great grandchild stood next to her hospital bed. He was only eight, but his faith in the King was as strong and as deep as a mighty tree. She smiled at him.

“Silas.” Her voice came out in a raspy whisper.

“GG? Are you going to see Him? Are you going to see the King?” His eyes were wide with hopeful, childlike anticipation.

Laney managed a nod. “Yes, sweetheart. Yes I am.”

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Laney turned her head and saw the room filled with her family. She could see Steve in every single one of them. The thought made her smile. Steve hadn’t really given up on her, just like the King and His Son, he relentlessly pursued her.

For a long time she carried the guilt of her abortion, and it made seeing Steve even harder, but gradually, time, and the King’s soothing words reminded her she was forgiven. She was made new, and nothing ever captured her attention again, like His love.

Silas squeezed her hand. “GG, when you get there can you tell Gpa I miss him? Can you also say hi to Cocoa, and Nut?”

Laney managed a soft chuckle as she thought about the last two dogs she and Steve had rescued. The grandkids had been a little older than Silas when they adopted a dark brown puppy from a puppy mill, and a fluffy, white, very busy puppy from the Humane Society.

Image by carpenter844 from Pixabay

“Silas, I will tell them, and I’ll tell Myles, Sophie, Frito, and Chip.”

Silas’ brow wrinkled. “Were those your doggies when you were younger?”

“Oh, yes, Silas. Myles and Sophie were the dogs who helped rescue me. Frito and Chip were your dad and Aunt Evi’s dogs as they grew up.”

Steven Jr. stepped forward and put his hands gently on Silas’ shoulders. “Come on, bud. We need to let Gram rest.”

Silas squeezed her hand one more time then let his father lead him a way from the bed. Laney looked at all of the blessings the King had given her. His grace and mercy showed in every single face that stood in that room.

She lifted her hand towards her son. “Steven, come.”

Steven stepped to the bed and put his arm around his mother lifting her so she could see everyone.

“I love every single one of you, and I know you love me. You all know my story, because I never want you to go down the road I did…to run away from the King. No matter what happens in your lives, only He is truly trustworthy, and loves you completely. He alone makes you exactly who you are supposed to be. Always remember.”

Laney leaned back weakly on her son’s arm, and he gently placed her head on the pillow. “Good bye, Mom. We’ll see you again.”

Her daughter, Evi, came over and kissed Laney’s forehead, her tears anointing her mother for her last journey.

Laney closed her eyes.

* * * * * * * * *

When Laney woke, the first thing she felt was warmth. It was as though she was laying on a glorious Mediterranean beach, the sun beaming down on her with a gentle breeze blowing across her skin. She took a breath and realized she could breath without pain, and she could smell. A million different scents blended together filling her with a joy she had never known. She opened her eyes.

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She found herself in a garden, one that caused all the Better Homes and Gardens winners to look faded and tiny in comparison. She sat up. She was on a blanket, and laid out beside her was a picnic complete with gingham napkins, a wicker basket, and food that looked like nothing she had ever seen before. She felt her stomach growl. What a glorious feeling after years of having no appetite.

“Laney.”

She looked up. There stood Steve, and her daughter Elena. They had decided to name her, after they had gotten back together. Both of them looked radiant. Stepping out from behind them was the King, His Son, and their presence, Arabella. Arabella was luminescent, as though a million stars filled her very being.

The Son came to her and reached out His hand. “Laney, we are so glad you are here. We have been waiting for you.”

Love, all at once a force, a thought, a breath, a place, an entity clothed her as His hand touched hers.

She was home.

Relentless - Part 4: The Pursuer - The Prince

He paced the floor, as he often did when things weighed heavily on him. He could feel the cool night air filtering in from the open doors that led to the balcony. He could smell the fire as it flickered brightly, seemingly without a care in the world. There were moments he wished he could be that free, but he cared too deeply.

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He could not get her off his mind. She was his sister. She had become thus when she gave her heart to his father in the oath; an oath that could not be undone. Why did she not want to return to them? Why did she run away in the first place? Why did she not see how much they cared for her and wanted her to come home? Didn’t she know how her actions tore at his father’s heart? Didn’t she know the shadowed ones were always looking for an opportunity to destroy her?

The more he meditated on it, the faster he paced.

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his door.

“Come!”

His father entered. His face, always alight with passion and energy, was shadowed with care.

“Father! Do you have news? Has Laney returned?”

His father moved to the plush, oversized chair near the fireplace and fell into it with a sigh.

He quickly took the other chair next to his father and waited. It was never wise to push the King for information. He knew him like he knew himself. The King would speak when he was ready. The fire grew dim before the King finally spoke.

“These next few weeks are critical. While she cannot see it, she has crossed into their territory. They will take advantage of every single bad choice she makes. It will be dangerous for her. I need you to post a small company of the Guard around her. They are to watch and keep the darkness at bay, but not interfere.”

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“Father! Why can’t we just pull her out? Why must we let this go on, leaving her to her own will; watching her dive deeper and deeper into destruction?”

“You know why, my son. Her will is strong. Almost as strong as yours.” The king smiled gently. “But you used your will to accomplish my purposes. She is not there yet. It must be her choice. To take her back by force will only cause her to rebel more earnestly. Believe me, I know her inside and out.”

The king rose from the chair and he followed suit.

His father grasped his shoulders. “I know how hard this is for you. You have been there living among them as one of their own. You are intimate with their limitations and struggles, but you know I am trustworthy. You placed yourself at my behest, even though it involved great sacrifice.”

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He looked intently into his father’s golden eyes. He saw what he always did. Mercy, patience, forgiveness, and a love so deep it was unfathomable.

He nodded. “I know, father. You are right. I know that she is there by her own choice, but it pains me to see her suffer.”

“You are not alone in that, my son.” He turned to go. “When you are done gathering the Guard, go to Arabella. Together you can pray.”

Rebooting My Faith, and My Faith Page

Have you ever felt like you needed a reboot. For those of you who are Harry Potter fans, I have always thought it would be nice to have a magical pensieve like the one Professor Dumbledore had in his office. The pensieve was a magical basin of sorts where the Master of Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry could siphon off some of his memories to be viewed at a later date. There are times my brain feels so cluttered up with day to day life, dealing with illness, and taking care of my family, that I don’t think about other things. As I have aged, I have also taken to making lists to remember all the things I need to do.

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The last two years have been difficult. I have had unexplained health issues since the spring of 2021. I am on my second antibiotic for the sinus infection I got in December. I had a CT scan on December 30th and when my ENT doctor contacted me, he said that there was still infection simmering. The amazing thing was for a whole month after finishing the first antibiotic I was feeling good. My taste and smell were back in full working order and I was not having anything more than my typical sinus drainage. When we got home after my father-in-law’s funeral I got a call from the doctor and he said, I want you on another antibiotic. I told him I was feeling good and would rather not do the antibiotic. He agreed since I have a follow up appointment with him this month. By the next day, my sinuses were all inflamed, my throat was scratchy and I was very fatigued; the exact symptoms of my first go round. I sent the office a message and I was on this new medicine by that afternoon.

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There are times we need to just process. With the death of my father-in-law, I could see that 2023 was not starting off any further ahead than the last two years. However, I feel as though I have a new purpose and drive. Over the last two years, I have felt the pull of God to dig into His word and to have fellowship with other women who are also desiring to move deeper into the layers that are God. He provided my Saturday morning Zoom Bible Study and I also meet once a week via Zoom with a young lady in California who teaches Bible in her spare time. These women have, and continue to inspire me to move closer to the Almighty. My desire is to do the same thing for you.

This year I would like to organize my blog a little better and have given a bit of an outline of what that will look like for Fashion on that page. I would like to do a similar thing on my Faith page. I want to bring you, not just my own thoughts on Faith, but the wisdom and insights of others as well. More than anything I want you to grow a drive to know and love God with all your heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37). A relationship with Christ, His Father and the Holy Spirit makes all the difference in maneuvering this mess we call life.

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To mimic my Fashion page, I want to have a plan for more organized content for my Faith posts. The following are tentative. The reason I say that, is because I still want to be open to the leading of the Holy Spirit for what each week holds. There may be times where I need to spend a whole month on a certain passage of Scripture, or on a topic. However, this is what I was thinking:

1st. Thursday - Mulling It Over - a look at a portion of Scripture, a brief background and then ruminating on what it says to us.

2nd. Thursday - Faith Inspiration - drawing inspiration from other sources from teachers or preachers, to books and even music.

3rd. Thursday - Words of Life - looking specifically at passages or verses in the Bible that give encouragement. This would include many of the promises of God, His character, and who we are in His eyes.

4th. Thursday - Creative Christianity - this will be a place for my own creative writing, whether it be from journals, allegories, prose or poetry.

5th. Thursday (once every few months) - Topics - this will be a space for discussing some of the hard bits of walking the Christian life with a look at loving when it is hard, agreeing to disagree, religion or relationship and other things that come to mind. (Please let me know if there is anything you would like to see discussed under these topics.)

If you have been following me for a while, you know my faith in Jesus is real and important. Part of my sharing this blog with you is to let you know you are not alone. Just because I speak a good message, or have on a cute outfit doesn’t mean I don’t struggle. Just as the sufferings of Christ are ours to partake of, I want my struggles and difficulties to be out there for you to partake of as well. Suffering in unity is very important to growing and to living a life without bitterness.

I am excited about where this year is going to take this little blog, so I want your prayers more than ever. The enemy is real and he doesn’t want us to share life with each other. He thrives on isolation, manipulation and deceit. Please know, you are important to me, so if you ever have a prayer request shoot me an email and I will pray for you.

I hope you have a fantastic rest of your week and weekend. Be sure to check back next week for new content.

Capturing Wild Horses

Have you ever had one of those nights where you lay in bed tossing and turning because you just can’t turn your mind off? Everything suddenly comes front and center as soon as you lay your head on that pillow. My husband has more of a regular problem with insomnia than I do, but every once in a while I struggle with it as well.

Image by Emily Hopper from Pixabay

For many they can’t get to sleep at all; for others they wake up at about 3AM and can’t go back to sleep; still others sleep in fits and spurts interrupted by dreams, worries and night time trips to use the bathroom. What kind of a sleeper are you?

What about during the day time? Do you have trouble with your mind wandering when you try to sit down to have a quiet time with God? How about when you are out driving around? Have you ever suddenly had to ask yourself, where am I, because your thoughts were a million miles away, or your brain was trying to remember all the things on your to do list?

Image by inspirexpressmiami from Pixabay

These types of mind games are pretty ordinary for most people. Our lives are full of activity, responsibility, lists, and a long line of worries. God knows how important our minds are. He is the Creator. He designed the brain to be a complex web of cells and tissue that all work together to send messages 24/7 to the rest of our body. Our brains keep our lungs breathing, our hearts beating and every other organ working properly. If there is a misfire in our brain, the rest of the body will know.

God also created us in His image. We are meant to purpose, ruminate and understand. We are meant to create, love and explore. Unfortunately, just like our brains can run amok, our minds can also get off track and suddenly become like a herd of wild mustangs running from watering hole to watering hole trying to satiate an incredible thirst.

Image by B Snuffleupagus from Pixabay

Last night I was struggling with those wild mustangs. My mind flitted from one worry to another; one thing I needed to do to another task that waited to be done. The image of those wild horses running along the ocean on a sandy beach came to my mind: think Misty of Chincoteague. I read this book as a girl who grew up loving horses and my oldest daughter read this book as a girl who grew up loving horses.

I started to pray for each of the things my mind focused on and as I prayed God brought the vision to my mind of capturing the wild horses. Each thought was like a prancing filly or a rearing colt. In my imagination I saw myself lasso each of those thoughts with the tools God gave me and bring it in to the corral.

“We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,”

— 2 Corinthians 10:5 (NASB 1995)

It becomes problematic when we do not take those wild horses into captivity. When they are left to run free, the dust they leave in their wake becomes a wall; a wall that rises to heaven choking out our light and our ability to hear the master.

Before we look more closely at the above verse we need to see it in context.

“3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,
6 and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.”

— 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 (NASB 1995)

Verses 3 and 4 remind us of several things:

1 - We walk in the flesh.

2 - We don’t fight according to the flesh.

3 - Our weapons are not of the flesh.

4 - Our weapons are divinely powerful.

5 - Our weapons are for the purpose of destroying fortresses.

Lest today’s post get too long, we will only look at the beginning of verse 5, then pick up the rest next time.

We are destroying speculations -

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

In order to understand, why Paul is embedding this verse in a group of verses that talks about spiritual warfare, we must understand what the word speculate means. Webster’s Online Dictionary has multiple definitions for this word and I think they all apply.

Intransitive verb:

1 - a. To Meditate or ponder on a subject. b. to review something idly, or casually and often inconclusively.

2 - To assume a business risk in hope of gain. (Often in something risky like stocks that fluctuate hoping to make a large short term profit.)

Transitive verb:

1 - to take to be true on insufficient evidence.

2 - to be curious or doubtful about.

Image by Szilárd Szabó from Pixabay

Speculation is not just thinking about something the way we might think about whether we should order a pizza for dinner or make a pot roast. Speculating has the idea of sitting on a topic for a while. In addition, it seems to allow for doubt, misunderstanding, and risk. When we think about the things that worry us we need to ask ourselves, are these things causing me to doubt God? Are my worries the result of not understanding who God truly is and the truth He brings us in His Word? Are my anxious thoughts driving me to take risks, make decisions and participate in things that God would have never wanted for us?

Other synonyms for the word speculate include: assume, conjecture, guess, imagine, suppose, surmise and suspect. Do these terms bring you peace and comfort? Do they help calm your fears and bring your worries to rest? No!

Next time we will will look further at why it is so important to capture those wild horses and destroy those speculations.

Have a great week.

When Darkness Comes - Part 5: Finding God in the Darkness

This post will be rather long and contains aspects of my own experience in the darkness, but I share the details to help you understand the process.

We have been learning about the darkness. We have seen its beginning; created by an Almighty God for the benefit of His creation. Darkness was not meant to be bad. It was not meant to hide evil and torment the sinner, but our unseen enemy wanted to make the good bad. From the moment he became enamored with his beauty and too proud to place himself under the authority of the divine creator he has chosen to manipulate that which is good, right and true.

Image by Brigitte makes custom works from your photos, thanks a lot from Pixabay

If I came to you and said, “I am going through a very dark time,” wouldn’t you assume I was struggling? Wouldn’t you pray for the light to come back into my life, so I might once again be walking in the blessedness of my Savior’s love? Why do we assume, darkness is not the place we are meant to walk? How did we get to the point where struggle and disappointment in life is thought to be in our lives because of something we did or did not do? Why do we embrace the light, the sun, the beautiful blue skies and gentle breezy days, but not the night, the dark, the gray lumbering clouds over a storm tossed sea? Isn’t all of it allowed by our Heavenly Father? Doesn’t every circumstance that comes into our lives come first through the gentle and loving hands of our risen Lord?

“I form light and create darkness;
I make well-being and create calamity;
I am the Lord, who does all these things.”

— Isaiah 45:7 (ESV)

I will be the first to admit, I do not like this truth, but truth it is. The scripture is full of God’s truth. We are not allowed to take one truth, but not the other. We do have a free will and we can dislike some of the truths that are in the Bible, but that does not change the fact that they are the truths put forth by a holy and perfect God. Part of the key to being able to accept God’s truth is to really get to know Him. Many people read one verse and decide, God is fickle, or angry, or malevolent, but they are not seeing the entire picture. Just as we take time to get to know the person we fall in love with, falling in love with God takes time and a willingness to trust.

Image by S. Hermann & F. Richter from Pixabay

I want to take this part of my series on When Darkness Comes, slowly. These are the things we need to understand, and know with the very core of our being. This is where the Holy Spirit makes effective the work that Jesus did on the cross. This is the time when our head knowledge, must become heart knowledge.

My Experience

About a month ago, I was having a particularly difficult time. I have long struggled with my self image, often feeling worthless and useless. Over the last 34 years as a wife and mother I have struggled with the poor choices I made, my lack of love and compassion for both my spouse and our daughters. I grieved over the death of my father, the ensuing changes in my mother’s life and how that made life more complex. I witnessed divisions and strife in our church. I became aware of the trauma one of my family members suffered at the hands of a supposed “man of God.” I saw this same family member walk away from the church and begin a self-destructive path of rebellion against God and self-indulgent behavior. During this period I sought counsel from a licensed counselor and was told I was “mercy gone wild.” I learned about boundaries and letting go of many of the dreams I had for myself and my family. I was regularly building coffins, throwing my dreams inside, nailing them shut and burying them.

Image by Rob van der Meijden from Pixabay

Life slowly began to be less chaotic, but things were, and still are, hard. Recently, we learned our youngest daughter has a brain tumor. In addition to that she has been having a multiplicity of symptoms such as numbness, pain, tremors, dizziness and nausea. To this day, those things are still unresolved and the doctors do not believe her symptoms to be related to the tumor, which is very small and which, for now, they are keeping an eye on. This is just another straw on that proverbial camel’s back that makes the load heavier and heavier.

In my desire to draw closer to God, He lead me to see there is only one way to do this. I must take Him completely at His word. During that time a month ago, I had a three day period of a sadness so deep, I did not know how God was going to bring me out of it. I was hopeless. Hopeless for our country, hopeless for my daughter, hopeless for those who think they know truth, but are wearing blinders, hopeless for so many young people who have walked away from the church and from Him, and hopeless for myself. I never felt so completely lost in the darkness. I cried. No, I sobbed. I could not stop sobbing. Hour after hour I wondered how I could make so many tears.

Finally, when the tears began to dry up, I heard God’s voice telling me, “Get your journal and tell me what you know.”

This is the first step to finding Him in the deep darkness. Remind yourself of who God is.

Learn Who God is, and then Tell Him

Photo Rebecca Trumbull.

(excerpt take from my journal - Bible verses added after)

Lord, I know Your truth. Your word gives me that truth and it never changes.

“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.”

— John 17:17 (NASB)

“The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.”

— Isaiah 40:8 (NASB)

I know Your lovingkindness is everlasting.

“But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting for those who fear Him,
And His justice to the children’s children,”

— Psalm 103:17 (NASB)

I know Your mercies are new every morning.

“For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for a lifetime;
Weeping may last for the night,
But a shout of joy comes in the morning.”

— Psalm 30:5 (NASB)

I know Your grace is matchless.

“For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.”

— John 1:16 (NASB)

You have freely given, so I might freely receive.

“Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God.”

— 1 Corinthians 2:12 (NASB)

You have bridged the gap between our sin laden world and your perfect heaven. I know You gave us Jesus. It was Your plan that He be the perfect sacrifice.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.”

— John 3:16 (NASB)

I know all have sinned and fall short of Your glory.

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

— Romans 3:23 (NASB)

I know the punishment for sin is death.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gracious gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

— Romans 6:23 (NASB)

I know, whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

“for “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.””

— Romans 10:13 (NASB)

I know it is not by my own power and strength, but because of your mercy, that you saved me.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

— Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB)

I know you have removed my sin as far as the east is from the west.

“As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our wrongdoings from us.”

— Psalm 103:12 (NASB)

Every truth, I believe about God is backed by scripture and these are just a few of them. You could do whole studies on the attributes and characteristics of our Almighty Redeemer. It is important when we are in the darkness to go back to what we know is true and to cling to it.

Next week we will look at the next phase of our journey as we walk in the dark. Thank you for following along.

Be Encouraged! Remembering the Spirit.

The last two weeks, I have been taking you through a journey of encouragement by looking first at the characteristics of God, then the characteristics of Jesus. I find encouragement during these difficult times by remembering these unchanging characteristics of the triune Godhead. The reason these things are encouraging is based on Philippians 4:8.

“8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

— Philippians 4:8 (NASB)

Image by Jeff Jacobs from Pixabay

We are told in this verse to dwell on these things; the things being whatever is true, honorable, pure, etc. What I do know at this point in time is that not everything that is being written and put out by the media is true. Certainly, many of the goings on in our country are not honorable or pure. When this sort of chaos ensues, I think the best place to focus our minds is on God Himself. He characterizes every single one of the traits mentioned in Philippians 4:8. How do we know these things to be true? This is where we look at the Holy Spirit. One of His main jobs is the communication of truth to our spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the trinity. God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Each of these Holy Beings is separate, yet they all have one mind and one desire: our salvation and glorification. There are churches that place too much emphasis on the Spirit, claiming that without the filling and subsequent slaying of the Spirit we are not saved. There are also churches that don’t place enough emphasis on the Spirit, claiming that it is the mind that is influenced by God and emotions have little place in the Christian religion.

Image by Mediamodifier from Pixabay

My view, is one of balance. The Holy Spirit is just as important as God the Father and God the Son, but He is not more important than them. He is not mean to be worshipped as first and foremost, but is is also not meant to be excluded.

Let’s look at a a few of the traits of the Holy Spirit.

He is a helper.

“26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

— John 14:26 (NASB)

I think the Holy Spirit helps us in many ways, but Jesus points out a few important ones in this verse.

He will teach us all things. I believe that when we become a Christ follower, the Spirit comes and takes up residence in us. He then works to teach us things we didn’t know; things like what sin looks like, who Jesus is, and how we are able to relate to an Almighty being like God.

He helps us remember what Jesus said. Have you ever memorized Scripture? It is amazing how, the Spirit will bring it back again and again. even when we no longer remember exactly what book and chapter it is in. Even when our minds are cluttered with so many things, the Spirit can still bring to our memory concepts and truths, even when we don’t remember the actual scriptures.

He baptizes and fills.

Image by Ahstubbs from Pixabay

There is plenty of confusion and debate over the baptism and filling of the Holy Spirit, and I am not claiming to know exactly when and how each of these things happens. I believe we are baptized with the Spirit when we receive Christ as our Lord and Savior. This happens once, just as the literal baptism with water is a one time act to identify ourselves in the life, death and resurrection of Christ.

“for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

— Acts 1:5 (NASB)

Filling, seems to be a more repetitive act that occurs as we give ourselves to God and to His work, not only in ourselves, but in the world.

“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.”

— Acts 2:4 (NASB)

“Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people,”

— Acts 4:8 (NASB)

“And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.”

— Acts 4:31 (NASB)

“And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”

— Acts 13:52 (NASB)

He speaks and directs.

Image by Ryan McGuire from Pixabay

The Holy Spirit is the one who leads and directs us. He helps us to have wisdom, make decisions and understand the will of God. Some people will claim that the little voice inside our heads is our conscience. For those of us who claim to be Christ followers we believe those whispers and urgings are from the Holy Spirit Himself. This is especially true when we are faced with a temptation to sin. Have you even felt that tug or check from the Spirit I am talking about? Often, it is a thought that pops into my head. “Don’t do that,” or an urging in my spirit, “Go talk to that elderly lady.” Many times the Spirit brings back to my mind those Scriptural truths that I need to remember at just the right time. During this overwhelming time of Covid life, He constantly reminds me of Philippians 4:4-7 which is one of the best passages for dealing with anxiety.

“While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.””

— Acts 13:2 (NASB)

“So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia and from there they sailed to Cyprus.”

— Acts 13:4 (NASB)

““For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials:”

— Acts 15:28 (NASB)

He embodies fellowship.

Image by emailamyd from Pixabay

One of the things that many of us are missing right now is the ability to fellowship with other believers. It is good that churches are doing live streaming and a number of them are also doing outdoor services to provide another option for people to be together and still maintain social distancing. My spouse and I left the church we had been attending for over 20 years a few years ago, for reasons I am not able to disclose, so we have been without regular fellowship for a long time. We have looked at other churches, but as of yet have not found a new church home. I believe there are times that God leads us out into the wilderness for reasons only known to Him. While this journey has been difficult, I will say the Holy Spirit has been a true and faithful companion each and every day. There are moments where my fellowship with Him, the Lord Jesus, and God my Father, are sweeter than anything I have ever known with a person. If you are feeling alone and cut off from your family of believers, remember the Holy Spirit lives in you and you can have sweet, blessed fellowship at any time with Him.

He gives gifts to us.

Image by Michael Schwarzenberger from Pixabay

One of the reasons we are able to have sweet fellowship with and through the Holy Spirit has to do with the gifts that He gives to us.

“for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

— Romans 14:17 (NASB)

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Righteousness - It is through Jesus’ work on the cross and the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives that “we become the righteousness of God in Him,” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is such an encouragement to me and where Christianity differs from all other religions. It is not our goodness that makes us righteous and holy, but Christ’s shed blood and the Holy Spirit’s possession of our hearts.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Peace - Who couldn’t use a little peace right now? Yet peace is something we are guaranteed as a Christian, if we put our minds in the right place.

“These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.””

— John 16:33 (NASB)

“In peace I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.”

— Psalm 4:8 (NASB)

“The Lord will give strength to His people; The Lord will bless His people with peace.”

— Psalm 29:11 (NASB)

“Those who love Your law have great peace, And nothing causes them to stumble.”

— Psalm 119:165 (NASB)

“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,”

— Romans 8:6 (NASB)

“for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.”

— I Corinthians 14:33 (NASB)

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

— Philippians 4:7 (NASB)

If you are lacking peace right now, do a Bible study on the word. You will find many scriptures that talk about peace. It is definitely worth while to know some of these scriptures.

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Joy - This is another word that has been the focus of some debate in the Christian community. What is the difference between joy and happiness. I personally think joy is much deeper and more enduring than happiness. Happiness is based on our present circumstances or attitudes, whereas joy is ours simply because we are His, no matter what the circumstances. I am sure many of you have heard the phrase, “Choose Joy.” While this might seem a bit trite in our current circumstances, it is a good idea. Just as we need to think on those things that I mentioned at the beginning of this long post, we also can choose to focus on the joy we have because of our relationship with Christ.

“You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.”

— Psalm 16:11 (NASB)

“For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.”

— Psalm 30:5 (NASB)

He intercedes for us.

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

The Holy Spirit does many things for us, but this is perhaps my favorite. We went over this portion of scripture when we did our study of Romans 8.

“26 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;
27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

— Romans 8:26-27 (NASB)

To know that the Spirit is praying for me, not just praying, but interceding with groanings to deep for words makes me feel overwhelmed with gratitude. How many times, especially over the last few months, have you found yourself not even sure how to pray? I know I have many times, but it is during these difficult days our Holy Spirit is taking up the cause and praying to the Father on our behalf. The beautiful thing is, He is praying according to the Father’s will which is always for our good.

There are many other characteristics of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit in the Bible. If you are feeling discouraged, I want to encourage you to dig deep into the truth of God’s word. It will lift you up, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

Have a great week!

Spirit to Spirit

As we move along in our study of Romans 8, I hope that you are being encouraged to keep fighting the fight and running the race. It is very easy for us to let life knock us down, often to the point of not wanting to get back up. We often feel alone in our struggle, but today’s verses reassure us, we are not alone.

Image by DarkWorkX from Pixabay

“16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”

— Romans 8:16-17 (NASB)

We are taking this slowly as there is no reason to rush. There is too much information in this one chapter alone, to just fly through. We must savor each bite, delighting in the flavor and deliciousness of the words of God that He imparted to us through His servant Paul. To not do so would be to leave behind that scrumptious chocolate cake served to us for dessert.

Image by Kevin Petit from Pixabay

Let’s take a few bites.

The Spirit Himself

I like that this verse begins like this. We just got the message that we have been adopted. That adoption happened because we chose to place our faith in the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Because we made that choice we are now able to call God, Abba! Father! We are now allowed into the inner circle with the triune God head. We are now convinced of the intimacy we have with the Father and the Son, but what about the Spirit? This verse confirms that we are now intimate with Him as well. The Spirit isn’t sending someone else to do the job, He is doing it Himself. What is the job He is doing?

Testifies

We all have probably seen enough police shows or read enough murder mysteries to know, in order to put the bad guy behind bars, someone has to testify or give evidence against him. In addition, if we are applying for a job or trying to do something that requires character references, we want someone on our side who will testify to our strengths and why we are fit for the job or the new venture.

It is the Holy Spirit’s job to testify. He is the witness on our behalf and on behalf of the Son. He is the one who gives the evidence of our choice to follow Christ. He also gives evidence to us of the authenticity of Christ’s claim to be our Savior. How does He do this?

…with our spirit…

This truly is a spiritual thing. The testimony of the Holy Spirit is to our spirit. God created us with a physical body, a mind, a soul and a spirit. It is this spirit, that when nurtured and fed, will hear and understand the things of God. I have heard many stories of missionaries who have gone to native villages in countries all over the world where someone in that village was praying, or desiring to know God. This comes about because of the spirit God put within each of us. It is that spirit that is meant to fellowship with His Spirit. I believe that our spirit will shrivel up if it does not come into contact with the Holy Spirit of God. Sure we may still have “spirit” meaning more like a will to live or fight or win, etc. But the spirit that God created us with is meant to know His Spirit.

“We pursue God because, and only because, he has first put an urge within us that spurs us to the pursuit.”

— A.W.Tozer - Fellowship of the Burning Heart

When we believe in Jesus the Holy Spirit testifies with our spirit. In other words His Spirit and our spirit become one. We now have the ability to know things of God, not merely head knowledge, but true heart knowledge. Our spirit and His Spirit become a united entity. Knowing this, it suddenly makes sense that when we sin, we grieve the Spirit of God. When we choose to live by the flesh we quench His Spirit in us, like a pail of cold ice water thrown on a flame. We are meant to burn with the Spirit of God. This is no milk toast relationship, meant to pander to our little feelings of pride or self-righteousness; this is a burning flame meant to consume us.

“To have found God and still to pursue him is the soul’s paradox of love, scorned indeed by the too easily satisfied religionist, but justified in happy experience by the children of the burning heart.”

— A.W. Tozer - Fellowship of the Burning Heart

…that we are children of God,

The Holy Spirit of God, then, testifies to our spirit that we are children of God. Without His Spirit in us we do not have assurance of this familial link. It is only the Spirit that speaks to our spirit, letting us know that we are, indeed, His most beloved children.

Image by lumix2004 from Pixabay

I feel the need to save verse 17 for next week. I hope you don’t mind. Savor each morsel. Think about what these words and phrases mean for you as a Christ follower. Leave me a comment on what you came up with as you think this verse over. I’d love to hear from you.

Have a wonderful day.

Ready to Die

Dust and smoke rose into the air, creating a haze so thick the sun could barely penetrate. They had been fighting for days. Days that seemed to go on forever. They would push forward, but the enemy's forces always seemed able to push them back. She thought they were prepared for this battle. Her father, the King had thought they were ready, but now she wasn't so sure he had been right.

Pixabay

The enemy soldiers were not like any other she had fought. They had battled against them previously, but something had happened in those months since that prince of darkness had taken her daughter. She wasn't sure what it was. Maybe it was because they were in his territory. Maybe it was due to the long journey their own army had to traverse to get here. Whatever, it was, she did not feel confident in their ability to win this battle. 

The thought made her cringe. How could she even be thinking these thoughts. She had never struggled with doubt before. She always had been confident in her Father's abilities as both a King and a commander. Now, however, doubts seem to plague her like some sort of blister on her foot and she had a lot of those. Her feet hurt. Her legs were stiff and her arms felt like lead. Fatigue filled her being from toes to fingertips.

Pixabay

Now, her small battalion was surrounded. She was not even sure how it happened. They began the day's fighting in the clear, but now they were backed up against a canyon wall. They were hemmed in on every side. The only thing that kept them from being slaughtered was that they were on the high ground. Every time the enemy tired to attack, they sent a volley of arrows flying and the enemy retreated, but their arrows were running out. 

Pixabay

"Your highness?" One of her men had come up behind her.

"Yes?"

"We only have enough arrows for one more attack...then..."

She knew the time had come. She had to make the choice to surrender or to go down fighting. She turned to face the soldier.

"I want you to bring the men together. I want to speak to them."

The soldier nodded, bowed and quickly left her.

She went to her knees. "Father, I know you cannot hear me, but wherever you are, I want you to know how much I love you and how much I look up to you. I know that I have been angry, frustrated and impatient in this mission to rescue my child, but you have never wavered and for that I am thankful. I know there is no way out of this. My child might be dead and soon that will be my fate as well, but I will never surrender to that vile, son of filth. I will go down fighting. Thank you for never giving up on me."

Tears, brimmed her eyes. She clenched her fists rising to her feet. Turning, she went to where the men were assembled. She was shocked at how very few of them were left. She stood before them, her head high.

"I would like to offer you hope. The hope that I give you is not hope for life, but hope to die with honor. Today, we are going to die, but you have a choice in how you do it. You can go out cowering, or you can go out, sword in hand, taking as many of those cursed vermin as possible before you fall. If you do that, I will be proud. If you do that, my father will be proud."

Her voice grew loud and her words were clear. "Today, let us die, for the sake of our King!"

She raised her sword and the men raised their's, voices matching hers; a chorus of rebellion they hoped the enemy would hear.  

It was not long before they saw the dust of their enemies' horses, filling the small valley below their sacrificial high ground. She instructed the men to form two lines. The first line was made up of the remaining archers. They went down on one knee, nocking their arrows as they did. The second line was made up of what was left of the battalion. She knew they had no chance, but they would die with honor, fighting for their King, her father. 

"Hold steady archers!" Her voice rang out even as the noise rose ushered in by the approaching chaos. "Hold until I give the order!"

Closer the dust came and along with it the sound of pounding hooves, a battalion of enemy riders bringing death.

Her heart beat rose and sweat mingled with the dirt and grime trickling down her neck. It felt itchy. Funny, she thought, the things one thinks about before one dies. 

Suddenly, the sky seemed to turn dark. She lifted her eyes up and saw shadows coursing through the sky over her head. She felt confused, but then those shadows became the solid forms of horses and their riders. Her heart sank. They were surrounded...

But wait! Those riders wore the King's colors!

Her men looked just as confused as she felt, but more and more shadows flew overhead, diving straight into the approaching storm. She heard a shout.

"Daughter!"

Pixabay

A dusty figure on his steady mount appeared behind her. It was her father, the King.

He smiled at her, then held down his hand. Pulling her up onto his horse, he commanded others of his battalion to take up her remaining men. Once all the were mounted with other soldiers, the King raised his hand and his voice.

"This ends now!"

(This was a fictional work by Amy D. Christensen)

*     *     *     *     *      *

This fictional work is meant to remind you, when all seems lost, the King is behind you. When the dust storm of the approaching enemy brings you to the end of yourself, the King is above you. When you are severely outnumbered and you have very little left to fight with, the King is diving in ahead of you. He will be there for you, every day, every hour, every battle and especially when you finally lay down your weapons and face the last enemy of death. 

“ ....I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

— Matthew 28:20 (NASB)

For the other parts in this fictional series, click on the links below. 

Part 1: Return to Battle

Part 2: A Father's Perspective

Part 3: Waiting