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“Can You be Toxic Spiritually?” Part 10

Toxic?

The truth of the matter is we are bombarded every day with so many things that are toxic to our spiritual lives.  Even if we are striving to live a clean non-toxic life we are bombarded with ungodly music, advertising, food, people, emotional stress, etc.  You might be saying, “Food, what do you mean.  How can food be toxic to my spiritual life?”  I will get to that question in a few minutes.

There are so many spiritual toxins that we may not be able to control.  Every time we go shopping we cannot control what we hear, music is everywhere.  We may even have music to contend with at work and it may not be the kind of music that brings health to our spiritual lives.  And then there are people.  Can people be toxic?  Yes, they can!!  But we can’t always control what people we are around.  It could be someone at work or it may be someone right in your own home.

What can we do?

“Breathing” (prayer) is a key component.  For more details on this component read part 6.  Just like we need to have fresh air breathed into our lungs to deal with toxins in the body we need “fresh” prayer to deal with our spiritual toxins.  We can’t expect to do a quick prayer in the morning and maybe a short prayer at night and expect that to deal with the problem.  We should naturally be “breathing” (prayer) throughout the day.  What would happen physically if you stopped breathing?  I will take a big breath in the morning and I will be fine throughout the day.  Breathing once a day doesn’t work and neither does praying once a day.  Prayer is just as important as breathing.

What we “eat” spiritually can also affect the toxicity within our spiritual lives. Read part 2 for more details on this subject.   We need to be careful about what we take in.  We know that we can be safe with God’s Word.  But even then we need to be sure that we are being “washed” with “soap” (Holy Spirit).  Just like we need to wash the wonderful foods that God has given us to get rid of any toxins that may be present, we need to be “washed” by the Holy Spirit to get rid of any “toxins” that may be present.

You may be asking, “Are you saying the Bible has the wrong things in it?”  My answer is no.  But without the Holy Spirit, we can get toxic ideas that are really not good food.  So the good food of God’s Word can become toxic without the direction of the Holy Spirit.  We also need discernment about any other books that we read, other than the Bible.  There are a lot of spiritual books we can read but we need to make sure they are not toxic to our spiritual growth.  They need to be in line with God’s principles laid out in His Word.

The rest we get…

The rest we get physically is very important.  But the rest spiritually is just as valuable and important.  They are really both intertwined.  Lack of physical rest affects our spiritual rest and lack of spiritual rest affects our physical rest.  How many times have you stayed awake at night because you are not spiritually resting?  If we are not resting in Christ our spiritual lives will become very toxic.  We have to be doing all the foundational things that I have talked about above in order for us to have that spiritual rest.

Exercise is another aspect that helps in eliminating our physical toxic load.  The same is true in our spiritual lives.  As we exercise our spiritual muscles with memorizing God’s Word it will help reduce our toxic load.  It will also help us rest in Christ.  We will have the help we need for us to rest physically as well as spiritually.  I have been awake at night struggling with worry.  I have found that as I pray and dwell upon Scriptures that I have memorized I go to sleep and have a peaceful rest.  It can also help you resist temptations that will bring more toxins into your life.

Emotional stress…

Emotional stress seems to be more powerful than anything.  Because it doesn’t matter what you are going through it affects you emotionally.  Emotional stress can be the biggest toxic load to our spiritual lives.  I believe that our moral character is made up of two things, thoughts, and feelings.  Our thoughts affect our feelings and our feelings dictate how we respond.  So one of the big things we need to control is our thoughts because that is where things begin.  “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:…” Proverbs 7:7.

We need to control our thoughts.  Now, this is way easier said than done.  And that is where memorizing scriptures and prayer come in handy.  It is like anything in life.  If you want to do something you learn how to do it and then you do it.  Take any career.  You go to school or someone trains you into a position.  If you don’t work in the area that you have been trained you start to lose the ability to do it.

I know that prayer and memorizing God’s Word are keys to keeping my thoughts where they should be.  But knowing it does not accomplish it.  Doing is what brings about success.  It will be a challenge at first just like it is in any career.  But when you do it every day it suddenly becomes a habit and you tend to do it without even thinking about it.

We need to flood our bodies…

Just like we need to flood our physical bodies with water to help get the toxins flushed out we need to flush out our spiritual lives with God’s Word.  “…Christ…loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” Ephesians 5:25-27.”

God’s Word is like water washing out the toxins in our lives.  Drink from it daily and not just in the morning.  If you were to drink only a glass of water in the morning and not drink anymore the rest of the day you would become dehydrated.  It would affect your body in so many ways.  The toxins would buildup, your brain would not function as it should, and you would be all together sluggish.  You might be able to get by for a little while but your health would fail.  The same is true with our spiritual lives.  This is one of the reasons why it is so important to memorize God’s Word so you can drink it in several times a day.

What about…

What about the cleaners in our homes?  Now in my last writing, I talked about ridding our homes of the toxic things that we use physically, like cleaners.  How does this apply spiritual speaking?  If the washing of God’s Word cleanses are there other things that we use in its place to “cleanse” us, maybe to get our thoughts on something else besides our problem we may be facing.

We want to cleanse our minds of the toxic thoughts that we are having.  But do you use God’s Word or are we browsing Facebook, watching YouTube clips, movies, music, religious DVD’s, etc?  In and of themselves these may not be bad but can they become toxic in our lives along with many other things.  If they are robbing our time from doing those things God would have us to do, spend time with Him, family, homeless, widowed, helping others, etc., then they are getting in the way.  There are some things that we need to totally eliminate and others refine how we use them so that they don’t control our lives.

I am grateful for all the options for us to keep spiritually healthy.  God has given us His Word as our guide.  Another guide that has so many lessons for us is nature.  The health that we can gain spiritually as well as physically is profound.  It doesn’t matter what time of year it is there are lessons for us to learn through nature.

Dear Father,

Thank You for Your Word.  I give You thanks for the nature You have provided for our enjoyment as well as for great lessons that can empty us of the spiritual toxins within our lives.  Lord, show us those things that are toxic to our spiritual lives and help us to eliminate them.  Prompt our hearts to fill stay in Your Word and allow Your word to wash us clean from all the toxins of this world.  The worldly toxins are all around us Lord and we need Your help to guide us.  Convict our hearts and keep us in Your will as we surrender to You.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Cleanse your life of all those things that are toxic to your spiritual life.

Love you all.

Is there a blessing you can share of something you eliminated from your life that helped you spiritually.  Please share below.  If you feel uncomfortable sharing publicly feel free to email me.  I would love to hear your story.

This is part 10 in a several part series “Maintaining Healthy Immune Function”.  There are many things I have shared with you on how to support your immune system, both physically and spiritually.  Although what I have shared has not been exhaustive, I have been sharing just a taste from my own experience.  In part 9 I talked about the toxic products that we use in our home every day and things that we can eliminate to maintain healthy immune function.  This concludes this series on how to maintain healthy immune function both physically and spiritually.  I pray that you have gained a blessing.  And as you make changes in both your physical and spiritual lives I pray that you will be drawn closer to Jesus and be ready for His soon coming.

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“The Rest That Can Bring Complete Rest!!” Part 8

Rest?

Yes, rest!  There is a rest that can give you the most out of each day and out of each night sleep.  And this rest goes beyond just relaxing.  The fact is we can do all the right things for our bodies to be healthy, eat right, exercise, get plenty of sleep, etc, but if we do not learn how to deal with the stresses of everyday life it will affect our immune systems and ultimately our health.

The question is how can we get rid of our stresses.  We are bombarded with different stresses every day.  But I believe there are some stresses that we can eliminate.  I don’t know what those might be for you.  Maybe you have a very stressful job that you need to eliminate.  How about the news, maybe you need to eliminate it.  There are always some things that we can control.  We are bombarded with so many negative things that bring stress and we don’t need to fill our minds with those things.

But the question is what about the things we can’t eliminate.  At that point, it boils down to trust. And I am talking about trust in Whom, not what.  I am not talking about trusting in you, that is the worst kind of stress you can bring on yourself.  “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give your REST.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find REST unto your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” Matthew 11:28-30.  Now there is some serious rest.  We need to be yoked up with Christ.  As we lay our burdens on Him, He will carry them for us.   And we need to trust Him with our burdens and quit taking them back.

While Resting

There is a difference between physical sleep and the rest that Jesus wants to give us.  We should sleep a certain amount of hours every 24 hours.  But resting in Christ should be 24/7.  There are so many things that take place when we are resting in Christ.

The growth that takes place in our spiritual life is best accomplished when we are resting.  As we rest in Christ in all circumstances healing begins to take place in our spiritual life.  The toxins of our past begin to evaporate and repairs take place.

Now we can’t just rest in Jesus.  We need to be doing all the foundational things that I have already talked about in previous writings.  We need to be feeding ourselves wholesome spiritual food, reading God’s Word being the best option.  Exercising our spiritual muscles by memorizing God’s Word helps us in time of temptation, especially when we are struggling with resting in Christ.  And most of all, we need to make sure that we are “breathing deeply” (praying).  These are foundational for getting the rest we need in Christ.

Our spiritual immune systems can’t even begin to keep up with the toxins of this world.  And the repairs, if we are bombarding our spiritual life with things that our poisons to us, will never be accomplished.  We can’t avoid or control everything we are subjected to every day in this world but we need to control what we can.  Evaluate your life and make sure that you are not poisoning your spiritual life with the choices that you are making.  We can’t get proper spiritual rest when we are filled with toxins and poisons.

Preparing for proper rest

It is so important what we put into our spiritual life.  And we are not going to be able to rest properly if we are putting in the wrong things.  Just like it is good to eliminate bad foods for our physical health, we need to eliminate bad reading material.  We should not be filling our minds with things that do not uplift us spiritually or draw us away from God.  Most of us know deep within our hearts that we cannot have proper spiritual rest if we filling our minds with ungodly things.

There is another factor that can affect our spiritual health and whether we can rest properly.  How much time do you spend in God’s Word compared to other material?  There are many wonderful foods that we can eat for our physical body.  But when we eat too much at night too close to going to bed it affects whether we get proper rest.  I believe it works the same for our spiritual life.

There are many writings out there that are good and wholesome.  But as we are approaching “night” (Christ coming) we need to make sure that we are “eating” less of the good wholesome writings and more of God’s Word if we are going to be able to have proper rest through the darkness of night.  We need to know God’s Word so well that when we no longer have it to read it will be hidden in our hearts to bring us through the night in restful peace.

More Factors

For proper physical sleep, we need to have a room that is void of all artificial light so that we have total darkness.  But for proper spiritual rest, we need something a little different.  We do need to have our lives void of any “artificial light”.  But we do not want any darkness in our spiritual lives.  Proper rest for our spiritual lives we need to be void of all “artificial light” and filled with the light that comes from God.  God’s light will shine in all the corners of our lives and sees all the dark corners that need to be eliminated with His truth.  And when we are filled with His light we get the proper spiritual rest we need.

Now some people may think I am crazy on this next point but I have seen the results in my own life.  There are studies that show that we have to be off our electronics 1-2 hours before going to bed to get proper rest.  It is best if you are going to read before going to bed to read an actual book.  I believe this it is true spiritually as well.  Now don’t get me wrong I think electronics have helped us in many ways when it comes to studying God’s Word, in one sense.  But I also believe it has been a hindrance.

I thought it was really great when I got a smartphone.  I could carry my Bible with me everywhere.  But I started to use it all the time instead of opening up my Bible.  What I found started to happen is that when I did pick up my Bible I couldn’t remember where to find the books of the Bible.  As “night” is drawing near, I think we need to be more in the Word in its natural state.  There is something about picking up that sacred Book and holding it in our hands and actually reading from its pages.  I believe we can rest better.  What screens do to our brain compared to just picking up a book is profound.  We can rest better physically as well as spiritually if we pick up the actual books and read them.

Helpers

God has given us things in nature that we can do that can help calm us or relax us so that we can get good physical rest but what about spiritual rest.  What are the helpers that we can use?

Believe it or not when our bodies are in the physical condition that God would have us to be in it actually helps us with our spiritual rest as well.  So it is very important for us to be following God’s health plan.  And even if we are eating all the things that God has made for us to eat but there is one of those food items that our body can’t handle we need to eliminate it.  We live in a degenerate world.  And because of that some of us may have sensitivities to some foods that we need to eliminate.  When we feel good physically it is amazing how much that affects our spiritual life.  And the same is true when our spiritual life is where it should be it affects our physical life.

Resting in Christ is really a choice.  No one can force us.  And it takes faith in the One Who created us, trusting that He knows what is best for us.  “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” 1Peter 5:7.

Reading the promises that God has for us can be a helper in resting in Him.  A really good book in the Bible to use for this is Proverbs.  The great thing about Proverbs is that it has 31 chapters.  Now take that book and read one chapter each day of the month, matching up the day of the month with the chapter.  Some months you will just read through 30 chapters and other months 31 chapters.  You can either read it just before going to bed or in the morning.  Better yet read the chapter twice in the day, once in the morning and once before going to bed.  After a while, you will have the book of Proverbs memorized.  Proverbs is full of wisdom, instruction, and comfort.

Getting out in God’s nature can help us rest in Him.  When we see the birds of the air and how they are filled with joy we see God at work.  Look at the flowers and how beautiful God has made them and how they still give off their beauty even in a storm.  Nature is God’s remedy for our physical as well as our spiritual lives.

Dear Father,

Thank You for being there for us.  And for being Someone we can rely on in every situation.  Thank You that we can rest in You if we so choose.  You are the only One that can give us rest.

Thank You for Your patience with us.  Continue to guide us through our lives.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

No matter what your circumstances give all to Christ and let Him carry it.  You can find rest in Him only when you realize Your weakness without Him.

What do you do that helps you rest in Christ?  Please share below.

This is part 8 in a several part series “Maintaining Healthy Immune Function”.  There are many things I will be sharing with you on how to support your immune system, both physically and spiritually.  Although what I am sharing is not exhaustive, I am sharing just a taste from my own experience.  In part 7 I talked about how important proper physical rest is and how it helps us maintain healthy immune function.  Coming up in part 9 I will be talking about toxic load.  We are bombarded with toxins every day and our bodies can become overwhelmed.  What can we do to help reduce toxic load so that we can “Maintain Healthy Immune Function”?  Stay tuned!

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“Please, I Want to be With You Even if It Kills me!!”

Please!

Have you ever wanted to do whatever it took to be with someone?  You knew the hardships that it would take but it did not matter because you loved them.  The love was so deep that the difficulties seemed small in comparison.

Then there is the other side where you have put all the effort into being with that person that you love.  You finally were able to be with them and then they reject you.  It is hard for you to believe that this is happening but it is.  The agony that you feel is beyond words.  It seems to them that it just takes too much effort on their part to accept you so they leave you to suffer with no thought what you have done for them.

Our Dog

We have a wonderful golden retriever that we got in 2006.  He has been the joy of our family’s lives.  Rascal loves everyone he meets, on the most part.  He has recognized two bad people that have come to our home in the almost 13 years we have had him.  Rascal is a protector of his family and he has an unconditional love that is beyond words.

He has had many trials in his life.  He was backed over accidentally when he was sleeping in our driveway, which broke his back.  After much agonizing pain and surgery, he was put back together.  I wouldn’t say he was normal but he repaired well.  I remember how much pain he was in and how he couldn’t walk.  He slept on our living room floor.  I remember sleeping beside him and how he would nudge me to be comforted.

Then I remember the time that he had a tumor the size of a soccer ball in his tummy.  It turned out to be a big blood clot and not cancerous.  But he had to have surgery again.  And then he had cancer in a toe, which they removed.  Despite all these things he loves his family and wants to be with them.

Walking

One of the things that he has always loved to do is go walking and hiking with whoever will take him.  He gets so excited!  He recognizes the signs when someone is getting ready to go for a walk.  Even in the summertime when you are not grabbing a coat, he knows.  He knows when you’re putting your shoes on to go to work or to go walking.

Rascal has gone hiking up our mountain with us, taken mile hikes or even several mile hikes.  He doesn’t seem to care as long as he can go with us.  If we were going somewhere and the van door was open we would be sure to have an extra passenger. And getting him back out of the vehicle when he was not allowed to go was tough.  He just wanted to be with us no matter what.

But because of age and all the things he has been through walking has become more difficult.  He still gets excited like a puppy.  And he will still head out on a walk with you but often turns around and goes home after a short time.

But not today

But this day was different.  The whole family, excluding one, was home and headed out on a walk.  As we walked down the private road he was coming with us.  But when we started up the side of the mountain he stayed down on the road and just wondered farther down the road.

We were visiting and taking our dear time getting up the hill to a landing before going farther up the mountain.  Once we got to the landing we stood and talked and played a little with the snow.  As we started up the mountain again we saw Rascal laying in the snow on the other side of the landing.  We realized what he had done is gone to the end of the private road and headed up the neighbor’s driveway.  Once he got to the private drive that headed to the landing area he hiked up near to the area where we were.  The problem was is this driveway had not been plowed so there were several feet of snow.  He was only going down into the snow probably 6-12” but it still made for a hard hike.

He couldn’t walk

By the time we found him, he could no longer walk.  His back legs were done for and he could not even get up.  We thought if he rested for a little bit that maybe he could walk but he still could not.  So two of my sons each took turns carrying him down the mountain the way that we came up, while I ran back to the house to get a sled.

He has never liked to ride in the sled but when we brought the sled and sat it next to him he immediately started crawling into it.  He realized his need and realized we were trying to help him.  We brought him back to our house and dumped him on the living room floor because he couldn’t even bring himself to get out of the sled.  He lay there for several hours before he finally tried to get up.

Life will never be the same for him.  But what amazes me is his perseverance.  He loves his family so much that he wanted to be with them and he was willing to do whatever it took to be with us, no matter what the cost, even if it killed him.

It made me think

How much do I really want to be with God?  How much do I really love Him?  The reality is that if I really love Him I will want to be with Him all the time.  I will go where He wants me to go.  And whatever He asks me to do I will do it.  I will do everything no matter the cost.  No matter how rough the road and the trials that may come my way I will continue to go toward God not away from Him.  Just like our dog Rascal kept pulling himself up the hill I will continue to persevere in my walk with God.  I won’t give up when the way gets hard, no matter what pain may come.

But even though I will not give up and keep persevering I will not try to do it on my own.  I may feel at times that I am on my own but I trust His promise that He will never leave me or forsake me.  Rascal has had his share of BIG “trials” that he could not have made it through if we had not carried him and guided him.  When he was run over we had to carry him from the house to outside several times a day so he could go the bathroom.  It was hard for him because he wanted to do things on his own but we could not let him.  And even though he really couldn’t he would want to try but we had to stop him so he would not get more damage.

To me, that sounds so much like us.  We don’t want to give up we want to do things on our own even though it is going to cause us damage.  There is a difference between Rascal and us.  God does not force us to allow Him to carry us through as we forced Rascal.  So we go ahead and do things on our own and cause more damage to our lives.  And here is the crazy part.  A lot of times when things don’t turn out and we go through more pain we blame God.  We can learn a lot of lessons from God’s creation.

I want to come to the point that I want to follow God and stay close to Him even if it kills me.  And the reality is that is where we need to be. How many people have died because they stood true to God?  We need to come to the point that He is all that matters in life.  He is our all in all.  Does that mean life will be smooth and easy? No!  But He will carry us just like we carried Rascal.  And just like Rascal did not resist we need to allow the Lord to carry us and not resist.   The most wonderful thing is no matter what has happened in life when you come to God for help He does not reject you.  Nothing is ever too bad for God.  He loves you more than you or I can even imagine.

Dear Father,

I believe we have such a short time left on this earth and we need you more than ever.  Please bring us through whatever it takes to help us trust You and allow You to carry us through the tough times.  We need to have a heart for You and we need You to help us even to have that heart.  Take our stony hearts and give us a heart of flesh.  I want to thank and praise You for what You are going to accomplish in our lives.  Thank You for always being there and never rejecting us when we reach out to you.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Make the decision today to stay connected with God even if it kills you.

Love you all.

Have you had a time in your life where you knew God carried you through?  I would love to hear your story.  Share it below.

For those that were looking for the next in the series that I have been writing, it is still coming. After having the experience shared in this blog this last week it was on my heart to share so I have.  Stay tuned for the next in the series of “Maintaining Healthy Immune Function” not only physically but also spiritually.

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“How do You Exercise Spiritually?” Part 4

Sitting!

So how do you exercise spiritually speaking?  We talked last week how that when we have a sedentary lifestyle how detrimental it is to our physical health.  But how does that apply spiritually?  The reality is that when we are taking care of our bodies in a physical way it actually has an effect on our spiritual lives.  If you don’t feel good physically it affects every area of our lives.  We just want to live for self because we don’t feel like doing anything different.

What does it feel like when you have been sick for a while and you have done nothing?  I can relate to this very much.  A little over 10 years ago I got very sick.  And I was sick for a very long time.  I was so sick I could do nothing.  For several days I was even too weak to eat.  I finally started eating out of principle, not because I was hungry.  But even when I was eating I could hardly lift the spoon to my mouth.  It took so much energy that I would sleep for a long time afterward.  I was sedentary physically as well as spiritually.  I was unable to do anything.

Moving

If we are not moving spiritually our spiritual immune system gets down and we can easily get spiritually sick.  When temptation comes along we are drawn in quickly and fail to overcome.  We get angry with those around us a lot more easily.  And we can also have a depressed feeling.

But after a while of not moving spiritually, you can start to have a false sense of ease.  The temptations seem to be less frequent and things seem to be going relatively easy.  It all depends on what our goal is.  Is our goal to win the race of life?  And if it is, what race do we want to win?  Is it the race of ease and security or the race of eternal life?  If we want to win the race of eternal life it will take courage, discipline, and moving.

Exercise

I talked in part 2 of this series about the importance of spending time in God’s Word.  And how we need to chew on it thoroughly so that we can understand it through the power of the Holy Spirit.  But I also believe there is another aspect and that is exercising the muscles that the Lord has given us.  And as we exercise this muscle it will become stronger and help keep our spiritual immune system healthy so that when “sickness” (temptations) comes around we will have such a strong immune system that we can keep from getting spiritually sick.

I believe that as we are memorizing God’s Word we are exercising our brain muscle so that we can run the race with confidence.  I am not saying memorizing is easy.  But as you do, it will become easier.

When I was ill with the sickness that I talked about above, it affected my brain.  I lost a lot of my memory.  Even today after so many years my family will remind me of things that we did as a family or incidents that happened and I no longer can remember them.  So when I do memorize it is very difficult.  I have to trust the Lord that He will bring it to my memory when I need it because I have put forth the effort.  There are times when I forget how to do something that I do every day and I have to try to bring it to my mind.  Sometimes it takes me 2-3 minutes or longer before I can think of how to do it.  I know as I age it also is a factor as well.  But when I first was sick it was way worse and happened to me quite often.  Now, due to some supplements that the Lord led me to it happens less.  It happens mostly now when I feel under pressure.  And remembering people’s names can be one of the worst.  But I keep persevering with the memorizing and as I do I see the Lord’s blessing.

Energy

When we physically exercise it can bring us more energy.  The same is true of spiritual exercise.  When we memorize and study God’s Word it brings energy into our spiritual life.  Because when our brains are being exercised they will not be sluggish and sedentary.  You will be alert and energized to fight the battles of the day.  Now you have your armor to go forth for the day and God can use that armor that you have chosen to put on to help you win the battles.

Will there be “pain” and “discomfort” with memorizing?  Absolutely!  Just like physical exercising we need to persevere.  And just like our muscles get built up when exercising physically our spiritual muscles will also and it will become easier and less painful.

Dear Father,

Thank You for Your Word and Your ways that can help us in this race of life so that we may win the race.  And the amazing part about this race is that we all can be the winners.  You have given us all the necessary provisions for us for which I am grateful.  Thank You for Your love, Your patience as we run, and for Your forgiveness when we fall.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

If you are not already memorizing God’s Word I would encourage you to do so.

Love you all!

What ways do you use to memorize that helps you in the process?

This is part 4 in a several part series “Maintaining Healthy Immune Function”.  There are many things I will be sharing with you on how to support your immune system, both physically and spiritually.  Although what I am sharing is not exhaustive, I am sharing just a taste from my own experience.  In part 3 I talked about how physical exercise helps in maintaining a healthy immune system.  Coming up in part 5 I will be talking about how fresh air plays a role in maintaining healthy immune function.  Stay tuned!

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“Can I be Spiritually Sick?” Part 2

Sickness!

Last week I talked about the possibility of getting sick, what to do to help support your body to prevent sickness, and things you can do when you’re sick to help you get through it sooner.  What about spiritual sickness?  Are there things you can do to support your spiritual life to help prevent sickness?  And if you do get spiritually sick what can you do to get spiritually well.

Actually, there can be some similarities between our spiritual and physical bodies. They are intertwined in many ways.  I know for me that when I am fighting spiritual sickness it brings on some physical reactions, the most common is a depressed feeling.  Now I am not saying that all depression comes from a spiritual sickness but there are times when they are related.

For myself, I have never been really far from God or come from some of the evil things of this world that people experience before they find the Lord.  So I can’t share what that is like.  But I have had those times where I have been fighting a spiritual sickness.  A time when I wasn’t fully committed and taking preventative measure to stay spiritually well.  When I look back at those times they are not pleasant memories.

There can be all kinds of excuses.  I don’t have time to “exercise”, “eat right”, etc.  But it seems we always have time for those things we really want to do.  So what it really comes down to is how important is it for you to stay well.  Is it more important to eat your “sugar” or “junk food” rather than eating lots of “fruits & veggies” and more healthy “foods”?

Foundation

What is the foundation for spiritual health?  We keeping our physical body healthy with good wholesome food that God has made for us to eat.  In the same manner, the foundation for keeping our spiritual health is good wholesome spiritual food.  The good wholesome spiritual food that God has given us is His Word.

The digestion of our food starts in the mouth as we chew.  That is why it is so important for us to chew our food well before swallowing it.  In the same token as we read God’s Word we should be “chewing” it thoroughly.  Then we can properly digest it.

When you sit down to eat a meal and you are in a hurry how do you feel after you eat?  I don’t feel so well myself.  When I rush through my meal it affects my digestion.  But we know we need to eat so we just sit down and shovel it in as fast as possible.  The reality is that it would be better for us not to eat.  And then come back later when we can relax to eat and spend the time it takes.

In the same turn if we sit down to spend time in God’s Word and we feel rushed but we know we need to do it we are not going to gain much.  We should be thoroughly “chewing” each verse so that it can be properly digested.  “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts” Jeremiah 15:10.

Real Food

Just like you want to eat real food for your physical body, the same is true when it comes to your spiritual life.  When it comes to our physical health we need to stay away from refined foods, junk food, and eat less of the processed foods.  The same is true for our spiritual health.  The Word of God is the real food that our spiritual health needs.  We need to stay away from material that is refined to fit the taste, junk that fills our minds with unholy thoughts, and we should be careful of the material written by others, “processed food”.  The more we stick to God’s Word the safer it is for our spiritual health.

Supplement

Are there other writings that we can read beyond the Word of God?  There are many other writers that God has given great insights to that can help us grow spiritually.  Just like when you are looking for a good supplement for your physical body you want to make sure that it is whole food and not synthetic you want to be careful with other writers.

When it comes to your spiritual health it can be detrimental to be reading things that seem good but there is some “synthetic” things sprinkled throughout that can be unhealthy to our spiritual health.  There are also “synthetic” reading out there that is very detrimental to our spiritual health.  That is why this needs to be our criteria, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” Philippians 4:8.

We need to make the Word of God our foundation for everything we read.  As it says in Isaiah 8:20, “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”  The Word of God is what we should compare everything to that we take in, whether it is reading, listening, or watching.

Digestion

Prayer is really a foundational part also to our everyday lives.  And we should be much in prayer.  But prayer is also what helps us in the digestion of God’s Word.  We can chew on God’s Word but it is the Holy Spirit that helps us in the digestive process.  This is why it is so important to ask God for His Spirit to guide us into all truth.

“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you” John 16:13.  And God is so willing to give us the Holy Spirit if we just ask.   “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” Luke 11:13.

Dear Father,

We want to strive to fill our minds with the best spiritual nutrients.  We need your Spirit to help us be discerning and to understand Your Word.  Guide us with Your Spirit.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Do those things that are going to give you the best spiritual nutrition so that your spiritual immune system is strong.

What do you do that helps support your spiritual immune system?

This is part 2 in a several part series “Maintaining Healthy Immune Function”.  There are many other things I will be sharing with you on how to support your immune system, both physically and spiritually.  Although what I am sharing is not exhaustive, I am sharing just a taste from my own experience.  In part 1 I talked about the foundation of how to support a healthy immune system physically.  Coming up in part 3 I will be talking about how physical exercise plays a role in maintaining healthy immune function.

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“The Partial Rest of the Story!!”

What about internal?

Last week I talked about distraction and the external damage that takes place.  “We can get distracted with life and quit exercising and before we know it our bodies are out of shape.  We can get distracted eating what looks appealing and the next thing we know we have some extra pounds that we are carrying around.”  What about the internal damage?  A lot of time what is going on inside can be what is coined a “silent killer”.

The reality is there are people that can eat all the junk, garbage food they want and never exercise and look slim and trim.  But they are a walking time bomb.  It is just a matter of time before everything is going to fall apart and when it does it is not going to be pretty.

Internal

When I went off the road last week my husband did not want me to drive the car.  He wasn’t sure how much damage there might be.  So I drove our van.  The van that is questionable.  We have been driving it with care for a while knowing that there is a questionable head casket.

I made it to work without a hitch.  After work, I headed to an appointment.  When I was heading home I notice a light that had come on the dash.  I call it a check engine light but technically there is another name for it.  I asked my husband if it had been on before now.  He thought it had but couldn’t remember for sure.  I didn’t think I saw it that morning but I wasn’t sure.  Thankfully, I made it home without a problem.

The next morning after the van had warmed up I went out to go to work.  When I got into the van the light was now blinking.  I told my husband so he checked a couple of fluids and said it should be fine.  He didn’t know why it was blinking but he told me to go ahead and go to work and hopefully everything would be fine.

When I got to the end of our driveway I just could not bring myself to drive it to work.  Because was worried,  I got out the book for the van and started to do some looking.  I didn’t want to be late to work so I called my dad and he took me.  On my way, I looked in the book some more and found that when the light was blinking you could lose power at any time and that you should take the vehicle in immediately.  I was glad I did not take the van.

External versus internal

In all appearances, everything looked okay on the outside of the van.  In fact, it looks quite nice.  But on the other hand, the car looked concerning to drive.  What the outside looks like maybe an eyesore but it doesn’t affect how the car runs.  Of course, there is the exception if you have had a major wreck it could have done internal damage.  But I am just talking about the looks.  We always buy used cars and yes we like it to look nice but what means most to us is how the internal parts are.

We can even go back to people.  The kinds of people you want to spend time with and be around are those that have good internal qualities.  If you are just looking for a person that is perfectly shaped and has great looks to be around you will probably be disappointed.  It may make you feel good to be seen with them, especially if they are popular. But what is their character like.  That means more than what they look like.  Many young people get caught up with wanting to be with the most popular and beautiful or handsome kids but a lot of times they are treated badly by them.

What about spiritually?

Can we, as a Christian, look good on the outside?  We come to church looking happy and everyone may think we are doing great.  We eat healthily, dress modestly, worship God, go to midweek service, involve ourselves in all the church activities, etc.  But the question would be what is going on inside.

There may be someone else that doesn’t look so good on the outside.  Maybe they don’t eat the way we think healthy eating requires, dress like we think a Christian should dress, come to midweek service, get involved with all the church activities, etc.  But they seem so on fire for the Lord and we don’t understand it.

So now we have the outside that looks good like my van does.  And we have those that look cosmetically bad like my car does.  But the question becomes what about the inside?  Just because someone looks cosmetically good does that mean he or she is in a saving relationship with Jesus?  And if someone looks cosmetically bad does that mean they do not have a saving relationship with Jesus?

The bottom line is what the cosmetic of my vehicle does not tell me what the true car condition is.  The same is true for people.  The cosmetic does not tell us the true heart condition.  God is working with each person and you do not know where they are in their journey and they could be in a better saving relationship with Jesus even though you are doing all the “right” things.

But Jesus said…

You may be saying, “But by their fruits, ye shall know them.”  Yes, this is true.  But we need to be very careful.  If we are sitting in the judgment seat we are already where God doesn’t want us to be and we are on dangerous ground.  As Jesus warned a few verses before, “Judge not that ye be not judged.  For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again” (See Matthew 7).

We need to be examining ourselves and making sure that our hearts are where they should be.  If our hearts and not just our exterior are right with God we will look at people like Christ look at people.  And it will not be with a judgmental, critical attitude but with love and compassion.  We need to pray, love them, and be a living example.  It is easy to overlook our own faults as we look and dwell on others faults.

We cannot even be of service and help to others if what is on the outside does not match what is on the inside.  And we need to go to God in humility and let Him lead and guide us with how to reach those around us.  A moment of wrong actions can destroy a person for a lifetime.  That is why God has given us warning about us being on the judgment seat for others.  Self easily gets in the way.

Dear Father,

Please forgive us for not always representing You as we should.  Help us to make sure that we are not cosmetically following You but that our hearts are surrendered to You.  And that we are doing everything we do because of our love for You and what You have done for us.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Make sure you are right with God today in every area of your life.  It is the heart condition that counts the most.  As your heart is right the works will follow.

Love you all.

What vehicle trouble have you had?  And what spiritual lesson came out of it?  Share below I would love to hear your story.

As a note, I still don’t have the outcome on my vehicles so I am still on this journey.  I don’t have the full rest of the story but someday soon.  And when I do I may share it with you.

 

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“Distractions Cause Damage!!”

Distractions!

We live in an overly complicated world.  There are distractions everywhere.  We can get distracted with life and quit exercising and before we know it our bodies are out of shape.  We can get distracted eating what looks appealing.  And the next thing we know we have some extra pounds that we are carrying around.

Most people think and worry about what things look like on the outside.  But the damage that happens on the inside is way more concerning.  What is on the outside is just a symptom of the root problem.  And until we see those visible symptoms we tend to ignore those things that are bringing a lot of harm to us.  It also comes so gradually that we tend to not focus on it until it is major and we realize if we don’t make a change it is going to be a life or death matter.

Damage

The other day there was some snow coming down on my way to work.  I was thinking that I should probably be more careful but since it was just starting to cover the road I thought it probably was not that bad yet.  The one thing that I had not taken into account was what the weather had been doing before there was a skiff of snow on the ground.

As I was heading down a hill that curves to the left as you go down, I did not go in a lower gear as I normally do.  And as I was going down I got distracted with something else along with my thoughts and I was going faster than I should have been.  I ended up not curving to the left but straight into the bank.  I was unable to back the vehicle out so I had to call my husband.

Help arrived

When my husband arrived he and my daughter got in front of the vehicle and started to push. By this time we had an audience.  All the little children that stand out for the bus had arrived and they were staring.  Soon there were some parents that showed up as well and were asking if we needed help.  How embarrassing!

Finally, my husband and daughter had me pushed out.  After the school bus passed by and all the children were loaded up and gone, I pulled the car across the road to a parking lot.  My husband came and looked things over.  Surprisingly the right side of the car that went into the bank the most appeared to have no damage but the left-hand side had enough damage he was afraid to have me drive it until he could check it out.  The left side already had damage from my father-in-law when he was driving it years ago so it had more weakness but also the chunks of snow appeared to be larger and harder than the ones that hit the right side.

Spiritual distractions

What about spiritually?  Do we realize how bad the road of life is?  Are we going through life carefully or are we being distracted?

We are living in a time in earth’s history like never before.  The “road” is getting more dangerous to travel.  It seems like things are okay and we go oblivious on our way not staying focused and “driving” to fast for the conditions.

We are so busy with work, the pleasures of this world, keeping the house in order, doing church duties (oh, but church those are good and right things, correct?), maybe staying fit and maybe even having “family” time that we forget the most important thing that keeps us on the “road”.  Here is the question, Are we on the right road?

Which road is right?

When my son heard which direction of our loop road I had been traveling on he let me know he never goes that way this time of year.  It is steep and more likely to be a problem in the winter time.  For me, I have traveled that road for more than 25 years and never had a problem.  But that day I was so distracted with my thoughts as well as looking away.   Looking away from your driving is hazardous.  I had already almost hit a deer because I was adjusting my heat.

You might say that we are living in the “winter” of this world’s history.  We don’t have time to be taking the wrong road.  We need to be taking the road that is safer, leading us to heaven rather than taking the road that leads to destruction.  “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life and few there be that find it” Matthew 7:13, 14.

The most important

The first and most important thing in life is keeping our relationship with Christ.  The devil wants to keep us distracted by the things of this world that we forget our connection with Christ.  And he can keep us distracted even with good and right things.  But we have to make God our priority.  We need our priorities straight.

You may be asking but isn’t my family supposed to be my priority? There is a place for family but not before God.  “If any man come to me, and hate (love less) not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple” Luke 14:26.  We need to love God above everything and everybody including ourselves.  He needs to be the priority in our lives.  And the reality is we cannot truly love others or ourselves without Jesus dwelling in our heart through His Holy Spirit.  Our own love is filled with selfishness.

Prioritize

Taking care of ourselves is a priority after God.  You may be saying,  “Isn’t that selfish?”  Making our priority God is taking care of ourselves first spiritually but we also should take care of our physical needs as well.  Many people will say I don’t have time to exercise or eat right because I am too busy trying to take care of everyone else.  Wrong thinking!  We cannot properly take care of others if our physical and spiritual life isn’t in order.

After our spiritual and physical has taken priority then our family comes next.  If you’re married your wife or husband is your next priority and then your children.  If you’re not married yet your parents and siblings are your next priority.  We have to keep our priorities in the right order.  Now we cannot neglect our family by saying that we are taking care of our spiritual and physical needs and we don’t have time for the family.  We have to cut things out of our lives so that we do have the time to do what God intends for our lives.  It starts by making a plan, making out a schedule, and following it.

Dear Father,

We need Your help in prioritizing our lives.  I know from experience that as I set my priorities to spend time with You and to take care of my body temple, that You want to dwell in, my time multiplies.  But I still struggle to trust You.  Give me Your strength and courage to follow Your ways.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Don’t let the things of this world distract you.  Make a commitment today to take the right road and to stay focused on the priorities.

Have you ever gone off the road?  What did you learn?  I would love to have you share below in the comments.

Stay tuned for my next blog to hear, as Paul Harvey would say, “The rest of the story.”

 

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Maintenance Required!!

Maintenance!

There is really nothing in life that does not require maintenance.  If you want to keep your car in running order it requires maintenance.  Things in your home start going bad and it requires you to maintain it.  Some examples are if you want a toilet, sink, or lighting working properly. The other thing that we have to maintain is our body.  We can’t just go on with life as usual without maintenance.

For me, I fall into the latter category.  As a child, I got Scarlet Fever and Rheumatic Fever.   These brought damage to my immune system and my heart so I had to be more careful than others.  Then in 2008, I got Lyme disease and it did more damage to my body.  It has made it more of a struggle for my immune system.  So maintaining a healthy lifestyle has been a must.  But it also did damage to nerves and muscles that affect the right side of my body.  It totally deformed my body on the right side, which took therapy to get it back to some normalcy.  But it requires maintenance to keep the pain at a minimal.  It brought more damage to my heart so exercising is paramount.  And trying to have less stress is also helpful but seemingly impossible.

Requirements

With those that are generally healthy you can get away with a lot of things for a long while and it seems okay.  But it will eventually catch up with you in your older years.  For me, it is work to stay where I need to be.

For me, there are requirements if I want to stay in less pain and to be functional.  All my muscles have never been the same since I came down with Lyme.  But my right side is the worst.  The muscles stay very tight and easily pull things out of alignment.  So there are two things I need to do to get back to somewhat normal.  I need to go to a deep massage therapist who gets really deep into the muscles to try to loosen them.  Anything other than that will not get them to loosen up some.  Then I also need to go to a chiropractor (I have a great one)  and get an adjustment.  I do have to do these fairly often to maintain.  But because I want to save the money, I often don’t which causes me more discomfort.

Daily Routine

Once I am loosened and adjusted there is a daily routine that helps keep things where they should be for longer and that is exercise.  And I am not talking about just walking, although that is great and needed.  I am talking about muscle strengthening exercises.  I need to do weights and anything that will strengthen those muscles.  It does help make the adjustments and message last longer.   But I still have to get that maintenance every so often.

Our bodies are amazing!  Our spines have nerves running through them.  And it sends messages to the brain and the brain sends messages back.  Like if you poke your finger it travels to the brain.  Then a message is sent back to say that it is pain and what to do about it.  Wow!  And it happens in less than seconds.

Misaligned

Think about if your spine is misaligned.  What exactly will happen?  There are so many things that can go wrong.  The nerves that have certain jobs to do get crimped and those jobs are not done as they should be and things go wrong.

I understand that very much because of my own health.  When things are not aligned as they should be I feel the results.  I already have nerve damage from the Lyme and it increases the results when there is crimping of the nerves going on.

Example

I have a good example from my daughter.  Just before she was born I got into a rear-ending accident.  I was hit pretty hard and it took therapy for the damage that had been done. I was still receiving treatment when my daughter was born.

She had a problem right from the start that seemed really unbelievable to me.  I was nursing her but she was not pooping.  I finally took her into the doctor and he told me that I would need to use a depository to get her to poop.  He told me that this was a condition that some people have and that she would have to deal with constipation for the rest of her life.  I was really devastated with that but went forward and did what I had to do.

I was at one of my chiropractic treatments one day and somehow the subject got brought up about my daughter.  The gal told me to bring her in the next time and let her take a look at my daughter.  I did so and she did an adjustment in her hip area.  I was so amazed it took care of her problem and I no longer had to use a depository for her to poop.  The gal had me bring her in one more time and that was it.  I asked her how that would happen.  She told me that when a baby is born it can be rough on their bodies and sometimes misalignment takes place.

Due to my condition, I must have ongoing maintenance and I am so grateful that chiropractic and message are available to help me through my journey in life.  And as I exercise with walking and weight lifting I can help maintain my health so that I don’t need as much of the maintenance.

Thinking

But all this got me to thinking about my Christian walk.  The concept for our Christian walk is the same.  Lyme disease is not much different than sin. Lyme disease attacks the heart, mind, muscles, nerves, etc. And sin “disease” also attacks the heart, mind, muscles, nerves, etc.  I have to spend time in prayer and study of God’s Word to keep my spiritual muscles strong.  If I don’t do it every day my spiritual muscles start to get weak and I get misaligned with God.  When this happens things don’t go as well.

In order for me to get back in alignment, I need to go to the “Chiropractor” (God) and get an “adjustment” (forgiveness).  Sometimes if we have allowed ourselves to get too far those spiritual muscles have become so hard and stiff that it takes more than just a simple “adjustment”.  You really have to get in and get a “deep massage” (agonizing on your knees).  Sometimes we need God to dig deep into our lives and reveal to us those things that are causing the misalignment.  Our spiritual muscles have become so tight we can’t see why but God knows and can show us.  Just like a deep massage can be physically painful for a temporary time, when we go to God in need of a deep spiritual “massage” and “adjustment” it can be emotionally painful as we allow Him to show us why our spiritual muscles are so tight.

Just like if we try to exercise and lift weights when our body is misaligned it will do damage so spiritually if we try to get close to the Lord without first aligning ourselves with His will it will do spiritual damage.  It will make us feel like we are okay because we are doing the “works” but we are not.

Maintain

Once we have made things right with God we can maintain our connection by spending that time each day in prayer and the study of His Word.  So the question is do we still need to get a spiritual “massage” and “adjustment” if we are exercising and building our spiritual muscles every day?  I believe that we do.  I believe that now and then we need to go to God asking for Him to reveal to us ways that we can have a deeper relationship with Him.  He will give us a spiritual “massage” and “adjustment” that will give us an even deeper connection with Him.

I am grateful for His grace and mercy that does not reveal to us every aspect that we need to change in our lives all at once.  He brings things to us as we can handle them.  So now and then He does a “deep massage” and “adjustment” when He can see that we are ready.  So one time you may go to Him and He reveals nothing and the next time He does.  And you may wonder why He didn’t show you that the last time because it was in your life then too.  It is His grace and mercy.  He knows when the time is right to show us the changes that we need.

Dear Father,

Thank You so much for Your grace and mercy.  I am grateful that I can come to you for a spiritual “massage” and “adjustment” and I know that You will not give me more than I can handle.  It may seem, at times, that it is more than I can handle but I know that I can trust You and that You will walk through it with me, for which I am thankful.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

You can trust God with your life.  Go to Him today and allow Him to give you a spiritual “massage” and “adjustment” so that you can be fully aligned with Him.

Love you all.

Do you have an experience that you can share that would express God’s grace and mercy?  Share it below in the comments.

 

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“Get Rid of the Clutter?!!”

It’s hard to believe…

It is hard to believe that we are already in 2019.  Time has passed so quickly and now we have to get started writing a new year.  Just about the time I am doing well at remembering the correct year to write the year it changes again.

Most people make some kind of New Years resolution or change that they hope to keep.  It seems that it is not always easy to do.  One of mine has been to exercise more regularly.  Exercise is so important and the older I get the more I realize it.  I know that when I regularly do cardiovascular and aerobic exercise, which I do by getting on my treadmill and lifting weights, I create more energy, have less pain, and get more done in a day.  You may be thinking, “How can you get more done in the day?”  It is really simple.  If you feel better and your mind is clearer you can accomplish more in less time.  It’s amazing.

Clutter

The other area that I wanted to work toward is to de-clutter my home.  With me working part to full time and homeschooling, besides doing a home business and helping my husband with his businesses, things have gotten out of hand.

One of the excuses I have made for not exercising is that I can’t even get to my treadmill because stuff is in the way.  So I took some time off of work to work on de-cluttering.  Now that my kids are older there have been lots of things that I could take to a second-hand store or just put in the trash.  So I have ended up with several boxes of second-hand items and several bags of garbage and I am not even done yet.

What I have learned through this whole process is that it would be easier if a person de-cluttered more often.  Maybe make a commitment to do a little de-cluttering every day or once a week.  It is less overwhelming when it is done a little at a time than waiting years and then doing it.

Our lives

It made me start to think about our spiritual lives.  Do our spiritual lives ever get cluttered?  I believe we do.  And it is easy to keep ignoring it.  But as we ignore it, it gets harder to actually make changes because it looks and feels too hard to do.  And we also start to get comfortable with the clutter.  But we don’t need to get discouraged or have it feel as if it is impossible.

As I have been de-cluttering areas of my house I have gotten some help here and there from my family but most of the work has been done by me.  My daughter was going to help me and she did some but she ended up getting sick.  So the main bulk of everything I de-cluttered was left to me.

God is our helper

But in our Christian walk, it is not the same, “Praise the Lord!”  Although doing stuff ourselves may be hard but it seems easier and automatic.  Humanly speaking we want to be in control so it is hard for us to let go and let God.  But He is the One that does the bulk of the work if we allow Him, and we are just His helpers.  So what is our part compared to His?

1.  Be much in prayer.

We need to be in prayer each day.  Asking God for forgiveness, cleansing, and for Him to fill our lives with His Holy Spirit.  We need to ask for the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth before picking up and studying God’s Word.

2.  Study God’s Word

We need to be in the word everyday.  As we are studying God’s Word He will show us areas in our lives that need to have a cleaning.  The great news is that He does the cleaning as we cooperate with Him.  Our job is to surrender each area of our lives to Him as He shows us.

3.  Memorize His Word

We need to hide God’s Word in our hearts.  If there is an area in our lives that we are struggling with we can find a verse that we can claim whenever we are tempted.  Believe me, the devil is not going to leave you alone.  But you can have peace in surrender.

Let God clean

When God shows you areas of your life that need cleaning surrender it to Him.  Ask Him to take away the desire, claim His promises, and let Him work.  One thing about God He is a thorough cleaner.  We don’t have to worry about any area being left no matter how deep it is buried.

It is not easy to allow God to do the cleaning because that means we have to die to self.  Self has to go.  But God can even help us get rid of self as well.

Dear Father,

I want to surrender every area of my life to You starting out this new year.  Give me the strength to allow You to work within my life.  I do want to be clean so that I can be ready for Your soon coming.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender all to God today and let Him thoroughly clean up your life.

Love you all.

Do you have a testimony about how God has helped you in the cleaning process?  I would love to hear it.  Write it below.  Also, do you have a favorite promise that you cling to in time of temptation?  Please share it.

 

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“I’m Afraid!! What’s Next?”

Fear?

There is a lot of fear in our world today?  There is this fear of what is going to happen next?  And there is also the question; do I really need to be afraid?

When I was in the grocery store the other day I was talking with the cashier, which we have known for years.  I was telling her that I have a son in Africa right now and he will be coming back soon.  But then in January, he is going to India for 2 months.  She had a question for me and I can’t remember it exactly.  But she wanted to know how I could handle him being gone to those other countries.  She felt that I must be full of fear.  I have to say here that I am human and there are times the fear can start to grip me.   But what I told her is that I have to trust the Lord otherwise I couldn’t make it.

The reality is God loves my son way more than I ever could.  His goal is to bring about the Salvation of each soul and He allows only those things into each life that can bring them to the point of realizing their need of Him.  And once a person’s life is fully surrendered to Him it doesn’t matter what happens.  It doesn’t change the pain of losing a loved one if that were to happen but it can take away the sting.  So my prayer for my family is always the same.  “Bring into their life whatever it takes for their Salvation.”  And then I have to trust Him.

What’s Next?

There are so many things going on in our world today that can bring fear.  And it is not just in the political world it is also within the religious world as well.  Everyone has their own opinion of how things should be and how things should go and they are out trying to force their agenda.  And on top of that, they are angry with anyone that does not agree with their opinion.

So there is all this unrest and people fear what is going to happen next.  And is what happens next going to affect my family and me.  It seems so unsafe!

Now we are in this season of celebrating the best gift that was ever given to man but the focus is on fear for the future and self.  The focus is on what “my” agenda is about and I don’t care what I have to do or say to get what I want.  And amongst all this what is the truth.  Which news or social media post are you going to believe?  Is there a political party that you can trust?  Or how about a “religious” party?  Where do you put your trust?  And do you have have to fear about what is next?

What should we fear?

I don’t think we have anything to fear unless we forget how the Lord has led us in our past history.  There is something for us to fear but not what is going on politically or religiously.  “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” Matthew 10:28.  We need to fear anything or anyone that can destroy our spiritual connection with God.

We don’t need to fear what is happening we need to fear are we ready.  Are we ready for what?  Are we ready for what all this unrest is going to bring?  I believe what is taking place is signs that the time of the end is near and we are soon going to see Jesus coming in the clouds of Glory.  Do I know when? No, but we can know when it is near and I believe it is near.

The devil knows he has such a short time.  “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” 1 Peter 5:8.  The devil doesn’t care how he devours us as long as he can keep our focus on everything except what our focus should be on.

I believe our biggest fear should be where and what our focus is on.  We can get so caught up in the religious and political problems that we let slide our own personal connection with God. Being right with God so we are ready when He comes is not based on whether someone else is doing the right things and having the right agenda.  We are only saved by our own choices.

What can we do?

So the question may arise, then what can or should we be doing?  We need to make sure that we are in God’s Word and being fully surrendered to His will for our lives.  Prayer needs to be a major part of our lives.  Praying not only for us but also for others.  We need to take our focus off of others and what they are doing right or wrong, in our opinion.  And keep our eyes focused on the One that came to save all men.

The church and the world are being shaken and who is going to be able to stand?  Only those that keep their eyes on Jesus and pray will be able to stand.  We need to “…weep between the porch and the altar, and…say, Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them:” Joel 2:17.

We need to be as Daniel as we pray.  He prayed for the sins of his people and he included himself (Read Daniel 9).  Often times we look at ourselves more righteous than someone else but the reality is we are all sinners saved by grace.  So when it comes to the church we need to be crying and sighing for the abominations, praying God to forgive us all and ask for His leading.

We need to be lifting up in prayer our spiritual and political leaders and then leave them to God to do His work.  When leaving them with God then we shall speak no evil thing of them or anyone else.

“If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.  Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” Ephesians 4:21-32.

Dear Father,

Your ways are beyond our human thinking and ways.  We need You!  Without You, we cannot do Your will.  Please forgive us where we have fallen short.  Give us the strength to do Your will.  Help us to not get caught up in the things of this world whether it be religious or political. And help us to keep our focus on what matters most, our connection with You.  The devil doesn’t care how he trips us up.  He just wants to get our focus off of You and onto something else so that we don’t see our own deficiencies.  Help us, Lord; we cannot do this without You.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Keep God #1 in your life.  Surrender all your plans, thoughts, and ideas to Him today.

Love you all.

What keeps you from being afraid of what is coming next?  Please share below.