Someone pointed out to me recently that at some state of your life you will either be the prodigal son, the father of the prodigal or the elder brother. I really can see that.
Can you envision the Prodigal Father? He’s out waiting by the road. He’s had this huge upheaval in his life and he could choose to be a little embarrassed or ashamed. But he doesn’t “go there”. In fact, if he did people would accept it a little better. They think he’s “in denial”. Everyone thinks he’s crazy. Doesn’t he know God doesn’t do miracles anymore? Some of them tell him he’s being foolish; some of them encourage him to his face and then walk away shaking their heads, or say kindly to him, “Don’t get your hopes up!” But he has faith that his son will see the error of his ways and repent and return to his family. The elder brother is not happy because his dad just won’t “face facts”. While the younger brother was gone, he probably had a lot to say about how foolish the Father was for expecting him to return. His servants and friends probably did too. But He remained steadfast, loyal, faithful.
I have been studying II Chronicles 16:9 about how the Father’s eyes are continually looking to and fro across the whole earth to find a heart that is loyal to Him so that He can show up and show Himself strong on their behalf.
The word “loyal” can mean faithful. But as I looked it up in the Hebrew I was stunned. The word is “shalam”, a form of the word "shalom". It means complete, safe, peaceful, perfect, whole, full, at peace, in a covenant of peace with Him.
That is amazing. He will show up for the one who is in a covenant of peace with Him, whose heart is complete toward Him; whole, at peace, safe, whose mind is fixed on Him. He will keep in “shalom, shalom”, (perfect peace, or wholeness,) the one whose mind is safely in covenant with Him, because he trusts You. (Isaiah 26:3)
If my mind is not “safe” with Him, then nothing can happen. If I don’t feel safe I will not be at peace. My mind is fixed on my problem and not on Him. In Sozo ministry when there are walls of protection to be torn down, we ask them to ask the Lord if they will be safe, if they take down their protective walls. Until they make that decision, the walls will not come down. The walls of fear won’t come down in your life either until you feel that He is “safe”.
So, I need to ask myself, Is my prodigal SAFE with Him? Will I be SAFE if I trust Him. The Father could do NOTHING! He was helpless and could have been hopeless but he never gave up. There must have been rainy days out on that road, or cold days, or really, really hot days, when he was drained of every bit of energy, but he stayed in a position of expectancy.
I don’t know how long you’ve been out on the road waiting for your prodigal to come home. Don’t stop now. Don’t give up. Stay in your spot! Stay in a state of expectancy, not because of your prodigal, but because of your covenant relationship with Your Papa God. That person may not be faithful, but God is, and you have a covenant with Him that ‘whatever you ask of Him, He will do it.” His own Spirit is interceding on your behalf. I love the passage from Job 22 that says, “He will even deliver the one who is not innocent, Yes, he will be delivered by the purity of your hands.” That really is an amazing statement. And Jesus says the same thing in John 15. “Abide in Me, be present with Me continually. Remain in Truth and Truth will remain in you and set you free.
If the Father was a good Jewish father, he had scripture on his forehead. God’s word was hung around his neck. He may even have had his prayer shawl around his shoulders so that he could continually see God’s names, God’s nature and God’s promises. While he was pacing the road in anticipation, he was reciting those promises. He was like an expectant father as he paces the delivery room floor knowing there’s about to be a birth. That father has planted the seed of life and as surely as he knows anything, he knows there is new life on the way. The father of the prodigal was thinking about God’s faithfulness, and the seeds he had planted in his son’s life. He was bowing in prayer. He wasn’t inactive or passive, he was intently pursuing the promises he had from God. When people saw him on the road, their greeting was “Shalom!”, (be at peace, be whole and complete. Let there be nothing missing, nothing broken in your life). Every greeting was a reminder of what God’s heart was for him..
But you may say, I don’t feel safe. I’m scared. I’m just not sure that anything will ever change. This situation is overwhelming. And, in the natural, you could be right but aren’t you glad that your solution doesn’t rest in the facts of your circumstances but in the goodness and faithfulness of Papa God? Aren’t you glad that no one can separate you from His love for you AND your prodigal?
AS I was out walking one of the dogs this morning I was talking to the Lord and I said, “Lord, Thank you that even if I DON”T remain faithful, You remain faithful.” I really said a mouthful. As I was preparing for a major event in my life recently, God said, “Prepare for success”. It was a great word and every day I started out determining what that meant for that particular day. What He was really saying was: “Stay in your spot of covenant peace, and I will give you good success. Abide in Me, and all that I am will be in you; all My peace, faith, encouragement. Then you can ask what you will and it shall be done for you because you are asking from a position of peace. And even though you may slip out of position at times, I will NEVER NEVER NEVER be unfaithful to you. We have a covenant and I will never break it. I can’t it’s just not in Me. “I AM” is faithful, forever and ever Amen!
So today, get back in your “faith spot” where you can see, the goodness of God, and His good plans for your prodigal. Speak out what He has told you. Stay there. It will give you hope. Don’t allow yourself to be distracted or disappointed, especially when there are distractions or disappointments. He loves you, and He loves them. He’s working it out, perfectly. That’s His word on it. Stay there, in perfect peace. Get the feast prepared and the robe ready. Breakthrough Is coming.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Friday, June 18, 2010
Extraordinary Measures
Recently I watched the movie “Extraordinary Measures” with Harrison Ford. It was so out of my normal viewing. I’m a big Disney girl, or romantic comedy or happy and light. For some reason, I could not get this movie off my mind and as I watched it I understood why.
The movie is a true to life story about a family who has two children who have “Pompes’ Syndrone” which is a form of MS. Up to this point children have never lived beyond nine. The Crowley’s daughter is 9 and her brother is 6. The father in the story, John Crowley, loves his children so much that he gives up his executive job with an opportunity to become Vice President and tracks down a scientist played by Harrison Ford who is, to put it nicely, the most irritating man on earth, and the most difficult to work with. But Brendan Frasier, as John, presses through all that because his children and his desire to see them live means more than anything.
The doctors offer no hope. In fact in one scene, after a very serious health crisis, the doctor tells him that he should view it as a blessing if his daughter, Megan, dies. When he is in the process of negotiating with a drug company to buy them out and get the opportunity to see the drug in tests much sooner than they could do it on their own, they are confronted with the cold black and white issues. How profitable will the drug be? One of the men asks him, “What rate of patient death can be defined as “acceptable loss”?
When Brendon Frasier is discussing John Crowley, he says, “He wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. He was determined to turn “no” into “maybe” and “maybe” into “yes”. He did not stop at “no” but overcame extraordinary circumstances with extraordinary measures.
Recently we talked about Hannah, and the fact that she refused to give up. I began to think about how John Crowley was the perfect representation of Papa God. He saw his children dying and sick and at the point of no hope. And He sacrificed everything that was precious to Him to save them.
As Jesus hung on the cross, Satan must have laughed and said, “That really puts Him in His place!” He made God, and all those who believed in Him look foolish.
But it wasn’t over yet. Only 24 more hours and Satan would be singing a different tune. And all of heaven could rejoice because the battle was finished. And won.
In every one of our lives there has been, is now, or will be a battle for our minds and hearts. There will come a moment when everything seems lost and hope is gone. Some would call it the “crisis of faith” where the temptation is so strong to give up. At one point in the movie the executive of the drug company is incensed because John brought in children with the disease to show the people who were working on the cure that these were real people. The executive says, “You have to be divorced from the emotion of this.” John answers, “These children have names, they have dreams, they have families, they are real.
It is stunning to realize that the God of the universe knows your name. He never forgets you or leaves you alone.
Your bad news, and broken dreams are never viewed as a blessing by God. There is never a time when He views loss as “acceptable”. He looks into your eyes and sees pain and wants to remove it. He sees sadness and wants to release joy. The Greek word for “mercy” is “one who actively works to remove distress from someone’s life.” That’s who He was, who He is, and who He will always be. He never changes; especially for you
The movie is a true to life story about a family who has two children who have “Pompes’ Syndrone” which is a form of MS. Up to this point children have never lived beyond nine. The Crowley’s daughter is 9 and her brother is 6. The father in the story, John Crowley, loves his children so much that he gives up his executive job with an opportunity to become Vice President and tracks down a scientist played by Harrison Ford who is, to put it nicely, the most irritating man on earth, and the most difficult to work with. But Brendan Frasier, as John, presses through all that because his children and his desire to see them live means more than anything.
The doctors offer no hope. In fact in one scene, after a very serious health crisis, the doctor tells him that he should view it as a blessing if his daughter, Megan, dies. When he is in the process of negotiating with a drug company to buy them out and get the opportunity to see the drug in tests much sooner than they could do it on their own, they are confronted with the cold black and white issues. How profitable will the drug be? One of the men asks him, “What rate of patient death can be defined as “acceptable loss”?
When Brendon Frasier is discussing John Crowley, he says, “He wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. He was determined to turn “no” into “maybe” and “maybe” into “yes”. He did not stop at “no” but overcame extraordinary circumstances with extraordinary measures.
Recently we talked about Hannah, and the fact that she refused to give up. I began to think about how John Crowley was the perfect representation of Papa God. He saw his children dying and sick and at the point of no hope. And He sacrificed everything that was precious to Him to save them.
As Jesus hung on the cross, Satan must have laughed and said, “That really puts Him in His place!” He made God, and all those who believed in Him look foolish.
But it wasn’t over yet. Only 24 more hours and Satan would be singing a different tune. And all of heaven could rejoice because the battle was finished. And won.
In every one of our lives there has been, is now, or will be a battle for our minds and hearts. There will come a moment when everything seems lost and hope is gone. Some would call it the “crisis of faith” where the temptation is so strong to give up. At one point in the movie the executive of the drug company is incensed because John brought in children with the disease to show the people who were working on the cure that these were real people. The executive says, “You have to be divorced from the emotion of this.” John answers, “These children have names, they have dreams, they have families, they are real.
It is stunning to realize that the God of the universe knows your name. He never forgets you or leaves you alone.
Your bad news, and broken dreams are never viewed as a blessing by God. There is never a time when He views loss as “acceptable”. He looks into your eyes and sees pain and wants to remove it. He sees sadness and wants to release joy. The Greek word for “mercy” is “one who actively works to remove distress from someone’s life.” That’s who He was, who He is, and who He will always be. He never changes; especially for you
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Learning the Ropes
My grandson, Benny, always seems to provide me with the best illustrations of biblical truths. This visit was no exception. On a trip to Stone Mountain God showed me again that the things He gives us to teach our children have a purpose and when we are obedient to do what He says, those words will ground them.
The very favorite thing that the boys will remember forever, from their Summer 2010 visit to Gami’s house is the ropes course at Stone Mountain. The thing I will remember is that my grandsons were 100 feet high in the air, (okay, maybe it was 40) and I was responsible for them if anything happened. My daughter in law had taken Reagan to see another show and I had volunteered to take Ben and JD to the “Sky Dive”. Oh my gosh! At the beginning, I couldn’t see them and that gave me time to look up and see what they were actually going to experience. I nearly died. All I could hear was the sound of my son’s voice saying, ‘Mom, what were you thinking!” I was so glad Kim was NOT there, because I was pretty sure it would precipitate Hannah Joy’s entrance into the world.
At any rate, finally they appeared and the man put on their harnesses. Those harnesses were VERY important. and the people putting them on looked really young and inexperienced. My insides were like a volcano beginning to erupt. But it was too late now. Anyway, as you probably have figured out, they made it through, but every step was agony for me. I kept looking at what was ahead and how high it was and how hard and I really gave in to my fear. The truth is, I made them stop before they got to the highest level. My excuse was that we needed to go and do something else. The TRUTH was I couldn’t take anymore. The funny thing about all of it is that Kim called to check on us and was okay with it. I mean, she had seen the course before we began and was very calm about it. Her comment was, “We didn’t have to sign a waiver so I figured it was okay”. I wish she had said that BEFORE I spent twenty minutes scared silly. I later realized that they had done a ropes course on vacation last year so she was not as intimidated as I was. I had never even seen one, and quite frankly, never hope to again!
Of course, they made it but the main thing they wanted to do before we left was to finish that last level. This time, I wisely offered to take Reagan to the Foam Zone (much easier on my heart) and Kim took the boys to the “ropes”. When I showed up later, Kim’s face was as white as mine had been. That thing looks really different when it’s your kids that are on it! Anyway, they made it and we made it and that was their favorite thing of the week. We decided that next year it was David’s turn to take them. After all, why should we have all the fun?
Afterwards, Benny and I were talking and I asked him what was the most scary part of the ropes. He immediately said, “nothing”. I asked him why and he looked at me and said, “I told myself “I think I can”. Well, this grandmother’s heart melted right there. A couple of days before, we had taken time for a family devotional. I read the story of “The Little Engine that Could” whose thought that kept him going was, "I think I can!"and then we talked about Philippians 4;13, “I can do all things through Christ who is my strength.” We had mentioned it a few times but I was totally blown away by my “soon to be 6” grandson. What I love most about this story is that God gave me exactly the phrase that combined a “story truth’ with a scriptural truth and it had connected. At the time, I thought JD had understood it more than Benny, but boy was I wrong! Benny “got” it and when he was faced with a pretty big obstacle, he didn’t even think twice; he thought he could and he did.
The ropes course consisted of four levels of continual obstacles. You would complete about a twenty foot obstacle, land on a platform, and look ahead and decide how you were going to complete the next part. Of course once you started there was no stopping. As I think back over that time, I realized that all I could do was watch. I had to trust that those harnesses would hold them if they slipped, and that if they slipped they wouldn’t fall. I had to trust that those ropes were strong enough to hold them if they did slip, and I had to trust that they would go forward carefully and with determination, which they did. Believe me, they were not going to stop the second time.
Truthfully, as parents, is that not what we are supposed to do anyway? At some point you have to trust that God has everything under control. You can’t stop them, or help them or protect them. Their path is their path. No matter how difficult it may look to you, God is with them, and He promises not to let them slip or fall. If they don’t go through the scary parts with Him, they’ll never figure out that He will take care of them. And if they don’t figure that out, they’ll never know what faith is.
In Proverbs it says, “The Word of their parent’s God shall lead them”. I believe at some point on their path, your child will turn to you and say, “Mom, Dad, remember when you told us “this”? I remembered it when things were really tough and it got me through.” Just like our Benny. He thought he could and he did. After all, isn’t that what our heavenly Father does with us? The difference is, He is with us the whole time. Everything we do, we do together, with Him. While I have to stand back and watch, He loves getting right into the thick of things. Obstacles don’t bother Him. He’s not worried in the least. In fact, He likes them, because they give us opportunities to trust Him more, and He gets to add a little “super” to our “natural”. In fact, sometimes He’s the one who gives us an encouraging shove off the platform before we think we’re ready. When we take that leap of faith, He’s already there to catch us. You think you can, He knows you can, together.
I have a little sign in my house that says, “Do one thing every day that scares you”. I’m taking time off from that until July! Believe me, I’ve earned it.
The very favorite thing that the boys will remember forever, from their Summer 2010 visit to Gami’s house is the ropes course at Stone Mountain. The thing I will remember is that my grandsons were 100 feet high in the air, (okay, maybe it was 40) and I was responsible for them if anything happened. My daughter in law had taken Reagan to see another show and I had volunteered to take Ben and JD to the “Sky Dive”. Oh my gosh! At the beginning, I couldn’t see them and that gave me time to look up and see what they were actually going to experience. I nearly died. All I could hear was the sound of my son’s voice saying, ‘Mom, what were you thinking!” I was so glad Kim was NOT there, because I was pretty sure it would precipitate Hannah Joy’s entrance into the world.
At any rate, finally they appeared and the man put on their harnesses. Those harnesses were VERY important. and the people putting them on looked really young and inexperienced. My insides were like a volcano beginning to erupt. But it was too late now. Anyway, as you probably have figured out, they made it through, but every step was agony for me. I kept looking at what was ahead and how high it was and how hard and I really gave in to my fear. The truth is, I made them stop before they got to the highest level. My excuse was that we needed to go and do something else. The TRUTH was I couldn’t take anymore. The funny thing about all of it is that Kim called to check on us and was okay with it. I mean, she had seen the course before we began and was very calm about it. Her comment was, “We didn’t have to sign a waiver so I figured it was okay”. I wish she had said that BEFORE I spent twenty minutes scared silly. I later realized that they had done a ropes course on vacation last year so she was not as intimidated as I was. I had never even seen one, and quite frankly, never hope to again!
Of course, they made it but the main thing they wanted to do before we left was to finish that last level. This time, I wisely offered to take Reagan to the Foam Zone (much easier on my heart) and Kim took the boys to the “ropes”. When I showed up later, Kim’s face was as white as mine had been. That thing looks really different when it’s your kids that are on it! Anyway, they made it and we made it and that was their favorite thing of the week. We decided that next year it was David’s turn to take them. After all, why should we have all the fun?
Afterwards, Benny and I were talking and I asked him what was the most scary part of the ropes. He immediately said, “nothing”. I asked him why and he looked at me and said, “I told myself “I think I can”. Well, this grandmother’s heart melted right there. A couple of days before, we had taken time for a family devotional. I read the story of “The Little Engine that Could” whose thought that kept him going was, "I think I can!"and then we talked about Philippians 4;13, “I can do all things through Christ who is my strength.” We had mentioned it a few times but I was totally blown away by my “soon to be 6” grandson. What I love most about this story is that God gave me exactly the phrase that combined a “story truth’ with a scriptural truth and it had connected. At the time, I thought JD had understood it more than Benny, but boy was I wrong! Benny “got” it and when he was faced with a pretty big obstacle, he didn’t even think twice; he thought he could and he did.
The ropes course consisted of four levels of continual obstacles. You would complete about a twenty foot obstacle, land on a platform, and look ahead and decide how you were going to complete the next part. Of course once you started there was no stopping. As I think back over that time, I realized that all I could do was watch. I had to trust that those harnesses would hold them if they slipped, and that if they slipped they wouldn’t fall. I had to trust that those ropes were strong enough to hold them if they did slip, and I had to trust that they would go forward carefully and with determination, which they did. Believe me, they were not going to stop the second time.
Truthfully, as parents, is that not what we are supposed to do anyway? At some point you have to trust that God has everything under control. You can’t stop them, or help them or protect them. Their path is their path. No matter how difficult it may look to you, God is with them, and He promises not to let them slip or fall. If they don’t go through the scary parts with Him, they’ll never figure out that He will take care of them. And if they don’t figure that out, they’ll never know what faith is.
In Proverbs it says, “The Word of their parent’s God shall lead them”. I believe at some point on their path, your child will turn to you and say, “Mom, Dad, remember when you told us “this”? I remembered it when things were really tough and it got me through.” Just like our Benny. He thought he could and he did. After all, isn’t that what our heavenly Father does with us? The difference is, He is with us the whole time. Everything we do, we do together, with Him. While I have to stand back and watch, He loves getting right into the thick of things. Obstacles don’t bother Him. He’s not worried in the least. In fact, He likes them, because they give us opportunities to trust Him more, and He gets to add a little “super” to our “natural”. In fact, sometimes He’s the one who gives us an encouraging shove off the platform before we think we’re ready. When we take that leap of faith, He’s already there to catch us. You think you can, He knows you can, together.
I have a little sign in my house that says, “Do one thing every day that scares you”. I’m taking time off from that until July! Believe me, I’ve earned it.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Leaves But No Fruit
In Luke 18:8 Jesus is saying: Will I really find confident assurance and conviction in God when I return?” Or, on the other hand, will He find confident assurance that God doesn’t care, won’t act on their behalf, or that the problems that exist in my life are too big for God to handle?
Jesus is actually teaching the disciples about the fig tree in this passage. The thing is-it looked like a fig tree. There were a lot of green leaves but it was missing the very thing that Jesus needed from it, and the thing for which it had been designed. The root system was deep enough to bear leaves but not fruit.
I know that there have been times in my past, when I have heard a Word from God, and got so excited about it. It really sounded good. But when the test came in order to establish that word in my root system, I caved in. I only looked like a believer. I may have sounded like a believer when I was praying with someone but in my heart my confident assurance was in the power of the circumstance or the person to defeat me. I had leaves but no fruit.
The funny thing is I have a fig tree in my back yard. It is HUGE right now. There are leaves everywhere. But no figs. Not one, NADA! Zilch! You know why? It’s not the season for figs. But if I go out there and search diligently I will find the seeds preparing to grow the fruit. Later this summer, I will be able to go and pick tons of figs. In fact, there will be so many that my friends can come and pick figs too. It will be doing what it was designed to do.
Right now you may be more leaves than fruit. It’s okay, the seeds are there, ready to be cultivated into the fruit Jesus has designed you to bear. The thing is, you have to have confident assurance of that. He’s already planned for your success, so you can’t look at your “now” and predict your future. Like Hannah, you may look a little foolish believing God in impossible situations. You may sound crazy to other people. In fact, people may tell you, “Don’t get your hopes up!” But Hannah’s confident assurance in God brought the greatest prophet of all time into the earth. She didn’t give up, give out or give in. Don’t you do it either!
One of my favorite scriptures for many years is II Timothy 1:12: “For I know Whom I have believed (am fully convinced of) and am persuaded ( convinced and confident) that He is able (strong, mighty, and powerful) to keep that which I have given to Him.” It places the emphasis where it should be, on God. Just like Jesus said. Your job is to believe, be convinced and confident and give the situation into His keeping. His job is to be who He says He is and to be strong, mighty and powerful to do what He says He will do. And He will. I LOVE that about Him!
Jesus is actually teaching the disciples about the fig tree in this passage. The thing is-it looked like a fig tree. There were a lot of green leaves but it was missing the very thing that Jesus needed from it, and the thing for which it had been designed. The root system was deep enough to bear leaves but not fruit.
I know that there have been times in my past, when I have heard a Word from God, and got so excited about it. It really sounded good. But when the test came in order to establish that word in my root system, I caved in. I only looked like a believer. I may have sounded like a believer when I was praying with someone but in my heart my confident assurance was in the power of the circumstance or the person to defeat me. I had leaves but no fruit.
The funny thing is I have a fig tree in my back yard. It is HUGE right now. There are leaves everywhere. But no figs. Not one, NADA! Zilch! You know why? It’s not the season for figs. But if I go out there and search diligently I will find the seeds preparing to grow the fruit. Later this summer, I will be able to go and pick tons of figs. In fact, there will be so many that my friends can come and pick figs too. It will be doing what it was designed to do.
Right now you may be more leaves than fruit. It’s okay, the seeds are there, ready to be cultivated into the fruit Jesus has designed you to bear. The thing is, you have to have confident assurance of that. He’s already planned for your success, so you can’t look at your “now” and predict your future. Like Hannah, you may look a little foolish believing God in impossible situations. You may sound crazy to other people. In fact, people may tell you, “Don’t get your hopes up!” But Hannah’s confident assurance in God brought the greatest prophet of all time into the earth. She didn’t give up, give out or give in. Don’t you do it either!
One of my favorite scriptures for many years is II Timothy 1:12: “For I know Whom I have believed (am fully convinced of) and am persuaded ( convinced and confident) that He is able (strong, mighty, and powerful) to keep that which I have given to Him.” It places the emphasis where it should be, on God. Just like Jesus said. Your job is to believe, be convinced and confident and give the situation into His keeping. His job is to be who He says He is and to be strong, mighty and powerful to do what He says He will do. And He will. I LOVE that about Him!
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