IHOP-KC was amazing. We had a great time road-tripping (one of my fav. things to do), and once we got down there, we went to the Awakening service at the Forerunner School of Ministry. You can watch them Online from 6pm-12am CST Wednesday-Sunday. It was awesome to get the opportunity to sit in the presence of God and receive. Life can suck the life out of a person, ya know? LOL But there are places of Oasis in the desert, and IHOP-KC was that for me.
2 Corinthians 3:17 says, "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."
It's true. I can't really describe it any other way except that it's like coming up for air. Sometimes, in a really intense movie or conversation, I'll find that I'm holding my breath and I don't even realize it. And all of the sudden I get uncomfortable and unconsciously suck in this huge gulp of air. And it's such a relief!
I guess in life sometimes I hold my breath. But entering into a sanctuary of God's presence - there are people who have prepared the way, so all I have to do is engage - is like taking a deep, refreshing breath.
If you haven't experienced the manifest presence of God, I'd really start praying about it. We can't go too long without air. Getting into reading God's Word every single day is a huge part of that. The Bible is God-breathed. It's His Breath of Life. Like an oxygen tank for our spirits. I know it might seem boring and foreign, but that's why I do this blog. To create a community where we can all read together and talk about what we're getting, questions we have, or just know that you're not the only one chasing hard after God. Our church is doing the Bible in One Year program, and I've decided to post the listing here. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the Blog to find it. I was doing another program, but I'm excited about reading the same thing at the same time as my community. I'm inviting anyone who would like to join on in. There is an oasis in Omaha, NE, taking in this air together. (Did I just mix my metaphors?) And there's power in unity.
I'm also going to post the link to my pastor's last few sermons on the importance of God's Word. Trinity Omaha I think he does a really good job of breaking it all down to where it makes sense. I tend to ramble. :) He even played with swords today in church! LOL (Annie, you know you want one...)
It's only the 17th of January. It's SO not too late to start. Start with today's reading, and then go from there. And, if you have a day off in the next YEAR, maybe use some of that time to go back and catch the first 16 days. :) Then come share. We're all in this together (insert High School Musical theme song).
God's doing something huge.
I didn't forget about my curiosity on John the Baptist. I'll come back to that for sure.
For now, thanks for reading! Love you all.
(Oh, and PS: some of you email me or message me on Facebook instead of replying to the blog, and that's totally awesome, too! I love hearing from you.)
Showing posts with label facebook. Show all posts
Showing posts with label facebook. Show all posts
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Stinky Mango
Matthew 12:15 - 14:12
It's so funny that we read this portion today, because yesterday on Facebook, I commented on a friend's question.
But what I haphazardly quoted showed up in Matthew 12:33-35 "Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers (speaking to the religious hypocrites), how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him."
I know, in reading this in the past, the words "good" and "evil" really put me off. To me, it sounded condemning and judgmental; as if I had two options - to be "good", or to be "evil". Does that mean that if I blow up at my husband over something stupid, that there is "evil" in my heart? EVIL? Like the FRU-ITS of the DEVIL? EVIL? :)
So here's how The Message Bible puts it:
"If you grow a healthy tree, you'll pick healthy fruit. If you grow a diseased tree, you'll pick worm-eaten fruit. The fruit tells you about the tree."
I like the words "healthy" and "diseased" better. In talking to the dark, religious hypocrites who only had it in mind to trap Jesus, He was definitely talking to people who had chosen to war against God and His Christ. But I think this also applies to those of us who have chosen to live the life of a disciple, but still are "dis-eased" in our souls.
I had a transformed Spirit when I asked God to re-make me. But my soul was desperately ill. It was poisoned for years by abusive people in my life, and I ate the fruit of that poisoned root my entire life. There were toxins in me - unforgiveness, bitterness, self-hatred, suicidality, depression, shame, shame, shame. The fruits were an eating disorder, self-injury, insomnia, ruined relationships, suicide attempts, etc. I viewed the world through a filter of lies, the produce of my life wreaking.
I was going to heaven for sure, but my heart was sick, so the overflow was self-destructive.
Joyce Meyer has a book called "Beauty for Ashes" that talks a lot about the results of a poisoned "root system", following after the example of the "fruit of the tree". Neil T. Anderson also has a great book called "Victory Over the Darkness".
The latter describes very well the journey of healing I have been on. I've babbled on long enough, but let me say that God has been cutting off the unhealthy branches and ripping out the poisoned roots in my life, replacing them with healthy, life-giving nutrients.
I am definitely not perfect, but in learning what it means to release bitterness and anger, in letting Christ cover my shame, and in allowing the Word of God to pour into the desert inside of me, my health is being restored, and the fruits - the natural reactions, words, attitudes, and behaviors that flow out of me - are much, much more tasty.
So that's part of my testimony. LOL
I stand by my answer to Kacy. :)
It's so funny that we read this portion today, because yesterday on Facebook, I commented on a friend's question.
Kacy Aycock Do people act the way they do because of the events surrounding them or are their reactions the result of the kind of people they are?
I was just answering off the cuff, and I don't know that there is one "right" answer, because I don't know that it's a legitimate question. I mean, define "the kind of people" a person is.But what I haphazardly quoted showed up in Matthew 12:33-35 "Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers (speaking to the religious hypocrites), how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him."
I know, in reading this in the past, the words "good" and "evil" really put me off. To me, it sounded condemning and judgmental; as if I had two options - to be "good", or to be "evil". Does that mean that if I blow up at my husband over something stupid, that there is "evil" in my heart? EVIL? Like the FRU-ITS of the DEVIL? EVIL? :)
So here's how The Message Bible puts it:
"If you grow a healthy tree, you'll pick healthy fruit. If you grow a diseased tree, you'll pick worm-eaten fruit. The fruit tells you about the tree."
I like the words "healthy" and "diseased" better. In talking to the dark, religious hypocrites who only had it in mind to trap Jesus, He was definitely talking to people who had chosen to war against God and His Christ. But I think this also applies to those of us who have chosen to live the life of a disciple, but still are "dis-eased" in our souls.
I had a transformed Spirit when I asked God to re-make me. But my soul was desperately ill. It was poisoned for years by abusive people in my life, and I ate the fruit of that poisoned root my entire life. There were toxins in me - unforgiveness, bitterness, self-hatred, suicidality, depression, shame, shame, shame. The fruits were an eating disorder, self-injury, insomnia, ruined relationships, suicide attempts, etc. I viewed the world through a filter of lies, the produce of my life wreaking.
I was going to heaven for sure, but my heart was sick, so the overflow was self-destructive.
Joyce Meyer has a book called "Beauty for Ashes" that talks a lot about the results of a poisoned "root system", following after the example of the "fruit of the tree". Neil T. Anderson also has a great book called "Victory Over the Darkness".
The latter describes very well the journey of healing I have been on. I've babbled on long enough, but let me say that God has been cutting off the unhealthy branches and ripping out the poisoned roots in my life, replacing them with healthy, life-giving nutrients.
I am definitely not perfect, but in learning what it means to release bitterness and anger, in letting Christ cover my shame, and in allowing the Word of God to pour into the desert inside of me, my health is being restored, and the fruits - the natural reactions, words, attitudes, and behaviors that flow out of me - are much, much more tasty.
So that's part of my testimony. LOL
I stand by my answer to Kacy. :)
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