Tuesday Truths vol. 10

Leviticus 26:13New International Version (NIV)

13 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.

I read this verse last week and I'm going to be honest it hit me like a ton of bricks. I was like God in Leviticus...and He said yep. There are nuggets throughout the entire word of God. I sat there reading this the second time and God just said.."What's your Egypt?". God knew the answer to that question...but He wanted me to think about it. The Israelites were often found complaining of wanting to go back to their Egypt. They wanted to be comfortable again because that's where they thought they were happy. They didn't realize that God had brought them out of comfortable so that they could find their promised land. Often times we have to move out of what we deem comfortable to truly grasp what God has created us for. We have to move out of the boat to truly see that we can walk on water with Him. Comfortable is not where growth happens and sometimes we listen because our feelings dictate our actions, but oh if we would remember where He has brought us from. That's a shout right there.....

I don't know where your Egypt is or what it is, but you and God both do. You know where God has brought you from and what He has delivered you from. It may be anxiety, insecurity, fear....but if God brings you out of it (and He will if you ask Him and take that step...) He breaks the chain and gives you peace to walk forward. Sometimes we just need to get still and let Him remind us of just how far we have come with Him. He didn't leave you in Egypt to stay a slave, God created you Child of His for Freedom...and in Him we are free indeed. The enemy may remind you of your Egypt, but remind him of his. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Walk in the freedom that He gave you when He brought you out of your Egypt. If you are still in Egypt, if you are ready to leave what has kept you in bondage behind....He's ready to take it and give you what you need to walk free with your head held high. 

Stronger still....

This weekend a sisterhood is gathering not on a mountain, but close to it. We all have a story that we took to the mountain this summer and left there. We came down off of the mountain different, changed. Some found the encouragement they needed to keep moving forward, some realized finally they weren't the only ones in the middle of a mess, some found the fire that they had been searching for, and some found their breakthrough. Since we have all left the mountain, we have taken the enemy back there a time or two. We've taken him back and reminded him of what God started on the mountain, what God carried on the mountain, and most of all what God delivered on that mountain. We've reminded the enemy that what God started, He finishes...and God started something on that mountain. He breathed life into an army, a sisterhood that became Stronger. Stronger not because the mess went away, but Stronger because God said let me have the mess. Stronger because God said "I'm walking this with you....step where I step.". Stronger because God said....I can do more than you can imagine THROUGH you if you'll let me have it. Stronger is looking at the mountain through God's eyes and not your feelings.  Yes, this sisterhood is getting together and as the scripture says where two are three are gathered...yep God's already there.

I went up to the mountain not sure of what to expect. My friends were leading the retreat, but I was way out of my comfort zone. I knew God was in it though and had already been working on my mess. See I'm a stuffer and up until the time I registered for the retreat, I was perfectly content to keep stuffing. It was comfortable until it wasn't. At some point as children of the Most High, He will let us walk so far on our own before He makes it uncomfortable enough that we get still and listen. God is a good, good Father (Yes I'm loving that worship song right now...). He knows what we need and He knows when we need it. He knows just how long that chain will reach before we look up to Him and go...can we break this now? He knows and the timing doesn't surprise Him. It may make us go really God?...but then again His ways were never ours to understand. For this I'm just simply thankful. Thankful that my steps are ordered by a God who planted a purpose and an anointing in me before I was even born. Thankful that He doesn't waste a moment and uses all of them for my good according to His purposes. When we step where He says to step, it may not always feel right or make sense, but He never promised it would. I went up to the mountain with an open heart, God had already started peeling back layers......and the healing started on the mountain. Years of stuffing how I felt about things, putting on the smile that "was expected", and living life in a box...had taken it's toll. The band-aid had been ripped off, and the great Physician had brought the peroxide to the mountain. Peroxide doesn't feel the best when poured into a wound, but it's cleansing and brings up healing. Sometimes it bubbles and brings the yucky stuff to the surface, so that the washing can take place...and cleanse it all away. If we are never willing to let God take our band-aids off, true healing can't take place. It takes time and doesn't always feel great, but it's freedom. The mountain started the healing that God had ordained for this season, the chains had been broken, and this girl was learning what freedom truly looks like(and it wasn't feet glued to the floor anymore!)

Healing doesn't mean the enemy doesn't try to remind you of the past. (Remind him of his future at that point...). I've learned since that mountain time, this Jesus girl is a threat to the enemy...and therefore there will always be bumps and darts. My God is stronger and the same power that He had, I have. Let that sink in Child of God....when we received as our own what Jesus did for us on the cross, we became joint heirs with Him. That means what HE has, we have....let's walk in that authority and victory. It doesn't mean we will always feel it, but God is stronger than our feelings. For every feeling (anxiety, doubt, discouragement, fear, insecurity etc.) God has a truth. At some point, how we feel about ourselves can't be our measure of how we see ourselves. God's truth is that measure and that makes us stronger.

If you are a regular reader, you have seen my posts from this summer forward. God has been working. I let go of a lot of things on that mountain and the weeks after. I let go of anxiety, of fear, of insecurity, and of people pleasing. I let go of control, let's face it I only thought I had it anyway. I let go of who I saw myself as and embraced who God said I was. The enemy had taken two days and called them his own, but God said I've redeemed those days. I called you and equipped you for those days. They may have knocked you down for a minute, but you came up stronger. (Blog to come soon with more about that...) . If you are wondering more about this Stronger sisterhood (check out my Nashville mom's site: Stronger ) God gave her a vision on the mountain months before this summer and it has spread. I've watched this woman go through some of her "it". What should have knocked her down, God redeemed and made her stronger. She's sharing that strength with women across the country and it's a fire that is spreading.

I don't know what mess you may be feeling your way through today, but God does. He knows that smile you put on because it's expected. He knows why you do what you do and who you are trying to please. Let's not forget readers, He knows the desires of our heart. He knows when we set out with the right intentions and when we set out to please someone else. God knows what you have stuffed down and what you have covered up with a band-aid. He knows why you keep the band-aid on, but He also sees the trouble you have keeping it on and how many times you have had to replace it. (Let that visual sink in...it's deep). Let Him take it off sweet friend...yes it's going to hurt at first, but the freedom that comes with His healing is priceless. The freedom that comes when you let Him take that pain and make it into something beautiful. The freedom that comes when He empties you of all of your "stuff", so He can fill you with all of His "stuff".  I'm thankful for what He started this summer, because His word says He will be faithful to complete it. I'm thankful God redeemed what the enemy tried to take for a time, and in return gave me purpose, His. This season isn't without it's struggles, but there is a peace knowing that God knows just how high I can handle the waves and as long as I keep my eyes on Him, they will stay under my feet.

God speak life into those reading this today. You know where they are at on their journey and in this race we call life. God know you alone know their hearts and what they have poured out to you. God speak strength to those that are trying to figure out how to pick up their feet to take the next step. Speak healing to those that have taken the band-aid off and gotten real with their "stuff". Speak peace to those as that need it and remind them You alone can speak to the wind and the waves. God thank you for who you are. Thank you for being that good, good Father that loves us more than we love ourselves. Thank you for staying after us when we try to walk it on our own and for catching us when we fall. Thank you for picking us back up and reminding us our steps are ordered. Thank you for giving us a spirit of power and of a sound mind. Thank you for moving some of our mountains and for climbing the others with us. Thank you for being You Jesus. In the name of Jesus fill us up so that we can pour out from the overflow of your presence. We aren't moving back Jesus because we know You are calling us forward. ~Amen...

Tuesday Truths vol.9

It's a week off and that means reflection and revelation time. There are a few blogs in the works, but none ready for publish yet. Here are some thoughts from the heart today with a Tuesday Truth:

Revelation 12:11
11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

I've heard this verse more than once over the last couple of weeks. It's a truth that has started to take root as I've reflected over the last month through His eyes. God can see what we cannot see and knows what is headed our way. Things, Moments, Situations may surprise us but they do not take God by surprise. He is not shaken, stressed, or frustrated. He knows just how high that wave can rise and He knows when to tell it to be still. As I think back over this past year, there is a shout that rises up in me. A shout that makes me excited to look back over where God has brought me from and through. This time last year insecurity, anxiety, and fear were constant companions. Discouragement and Frustration came soon after their companions because the ground was ripe for them to take root. You may be looking at that word fear and trying to see how that fits in....but people pleasing is just that. If we are so fearful of what someone is going to say or do that we do everything in our power to keep them happy...it's fear. Those companions had taken root and the blooms were stress, frustration, and the blahs. The enemy had slipped in through some situations that instead of giving to God I tried to handle on my own. In our own strength...we can do NOTHING. This life was never meant for us to do on our own, but with the One who created us. Fast forward to earlier this year and the blooms had continued to come back even after I would lay them down at His feet. (Thankful for the wise counsel from a friend that said I had to take God back to the place..to the root of things). Through some serious time with Him, some pulling back the layers, God started rattling the chains the enemy had latched around my ankles. You can be a child of God, saved, hearing from Him...and still chained to what is comfortable. I'm thankful God loves us like He does, but He loves us too much to leave us comfortable. He loves us too much to leave us asleep in the boat. July came...and one word from God, several moments in His presence....and the feet finally unglued from the floor. A simple prayer from 10 years ago was answered....God truly honors when we seek more of Him. He knew what I needed...and His plan always prevails.

I'm thankful for God's perspective. I'm thankful and humbled over the past couple of months. I've watched things that He has revealed in the spiritual take place in the natural. I'm thankful for feet that He unglued from the floor this past summer and for the blinders He continues to remove. I'm thankful for protection that He saw what the enemy had headed in my direction and He stepped in just in time.  I'm thankful He loved me too much to leave me in the boat. I'm thankful He knew the calling, the purpose, and the anointing I had planted on the inside and He pushed me to see it through Him. I'm thankful for war moments of intercession where an Almighty Creator stops to listen to this Child of His. I'm thankful for moments period where He listens when I need Him or just want to talk. I'm thankful He fights the battles I can't see, the ones I can see, and the Ones I can't even imagine.I'm thankful for the bumps that He uses for My good. I'm thankful that our steps have been ordered even before we were born and now is the season to walk out the calling He has placed within us. I'm thankful that He saw what I was carrying and made it uncomfortable enough that I gave it up to Him. I'm thankful He loves us not because we are perfect, but because He is. I am nothing without Him. He makes the bumps from the enemy worth the tears and fears.I'm thankful He has already covered every step I'm going to take (even the ones that I shouldn't). I'm thankful for new constant companions of grace, discernment, and freedom. I'm thankful that God orders our steps even when we don't understand it in the moment. He knows the steps that will make us stronger. I'm thankful as the song by Matthew West says..."Grace wins every time" I'm thankful that I can see Him moving each and every day. I'm thankful for the peace that comes when I trust the One who says..."This way child".

You may be reading this and you are in the middle of something....praise Him anyway. If you are a Child of the Most High, He hasn't quit working just because you can't see Him. The enemy wants our Focus because with that we start paying attention to what he is doing and not what God is doing. With our focus comes our attention, and with our attention comes our devotion, and our devotion comes our adoration....are you starting to see how he slips in? Oh sweet reader...protect your focus. The enemy may be attacking, but God is bigger than the attack. He truly fights our battles when we give them to Him and stand still. (Blog in the works). Speak truth and remind the enemy what God has already done for you and what He is doing for you right now. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He didn't work on your yesterday, plan out your tomorrow, to leave you in today. He's right there beside you.

Knees...

Battles are won and lost on our knees....

Let's get personal for a minute...the enemy is on a prowl. The battles are becoming intense and if you aren't feeling one of your own right now, flip on the news. Our adversary apparently senses that the last days are here as well because time is drawing near. The liar knows his time is about up period. As Children of the Most High, the battle isn't ours to fight. His word promises us that. Take Him at His word sweet child...God said stand firm, don't be afraid, and don't be discouraged. He never said the battle was ours to fight. God never promised it would be easy, but when it starts to feel like a battle...one it probably is and two it's probably not anything He intended for you to fight on your own. He knows what you can handle, He knows what you are ready for, and He knows how strong you are. Let that truly sink in....so many times we say God don't you know I'm not strong enough...when He's sitting there going oh but Child I know you better than you know yourself. God knows the timing of everything, EVEN the things the enemy is throwing in your path. That is a shouting truth right there....God's not surprised by things even the the things that hurt. Sometimes it's a battle you need Him to fight, sometimes it is tears that you need Him to dry, and sometimes it's carrying time. There are moments that hit in life when God doesn't expect you to fight the battle, He knows it hurts, and He just says Child let me Carry you. 

There are also going to be battles when your flesh wants to respond. When your flesh wants to defend and stand up...it's in those moments when we have to breathe. We have to take that minute to let God be God and remember who Our Defender really is. He didn't create us to have to defend ourselves, He died on the cross to take care of that for us. He loves us that much. 

We are living in the times Joel wrote about in verse 28. I know I have said that for a couple of months, but turn on the news....it's happening. There is a war going on that we can't see. Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but it's in a realm we can't see. That's why we have to stay connected to what God is saying...cause it's a realm He can see. He can see what's going on, that's where that whisper of "Child Hang on.." comes from. He can see what's being said, that's where that whisper of "Child just be still" comes from. 

I don't know what you are fighting this week or even what you are feeling, but God does. He gets it. He knows right where you are at...and guess what He knows how you are going through this thing that your feelings told you was going to take you under. (God is bigger than feelings..). Trust God with the details and then leave it with Him. He can handle it...and He can also give you the strength to do it His way. When His power rises up, you respond with His response and you engage in the battle He designed for you to fight. Your armor was meant for the battle He designed not the one you choose to fight. (ouch..that'll preach...). Take time this week to let Him speak peace and confidence in you. Not to anything you can do, but to everything He can do through you. Greater is the One on the inside of you than he that is in the world. Walk in victory period! 

Open hands....trusting heart...

"Far be it from me to not believe...even when my eyes can't see...."

I have come too far for you to tell me My God doesn't know what's in my heart even when I don't. Sometimes He sings a song to us to calm us so that He can whisper to us. He gets our flesh, He understands when we don't understand. Too often times we think we have to be able to feel it to trust Him. The closer we get to Him, the more engaged in the battle we become...the more we will realize that's not always the case. A lot of times when we aren't feeling it, is when we must trust Him. The enemy is out there seeking to devour...and he knows his time is drawing near. We have to be on guard....we have to pay attention to that still small voice that says hands off child. What happens when we don't listen? The enemy slips in and begins to drain. When God is flowing through us, we can give more than we  think we can, do more than we thought we could etc. When the enemy starts draining, he starts wearing down our physical and emotional. The natural reflects the spiritual....oh we have to pay attention. Feeling out of balance physically (tired, stressed, overwhelmed etc.) can affect other areas because we tend to focus on what we can see and feel. That's why God said in His word to fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen...for what is seen is temporary and what is unseen is eternal. When we fix our eyes only on what we can see our focus is narrowed and we start to lose sight of who God created us to be. When we fix our eyes on what is unseen, what God is doing through us, around us, for us, and with us...we focus on our Creator and He promised everything else would fall into place when we seek Him first.


"So let go my soul and trust in Him..."

This line got me tonight...so let go my feelings and trust in Him is in essence what it means. For it to be well with us, we have to trust the One who made us. We have to quit listening when the enemy wants to shift our focus to the good and off of the God ordained tasks. We have to quit listening when the enemy speaks to our feelings, because the power on the inside of you says God's already covered that feeling. If I've learned anything over the last two weeks its that nothing that happens to a child of God has surprised God. Let that truth sink in for a minute....the enemy may be sneaky, but God knows it because God is omniscient. He isn't surprised and guess what...He already knows how to handle it...So why child are you letting the enemy push the stress button? (Yes I know easier said than done...but I have learned the quicker I do the God take it....the quicker I can move forward with what He's called me to do. The enemy wants your purpose, your passion. If he can make you forget what God has called you to do...to forget that fire you know is on the inside of you...he is winning. Well devil you have been defeated yet again....Take it back child of God...It's yours anyway. God made it for you....claim your promise and then walk in it!

Walking in the anointing and the calling God has for your life is going to make the enemy mad. (Period no question mark or comma). The enemy dreads the day when the Child of God lets go of the past, unlocks the chains(or even better...breaks them!) and takes hold of the promise seed that was planted within them the day they were born. God started watering it when you entered into a relationship with Him. He's just been waiting on the day when you noticed it was blooming and grabbed a hold of what He had started on the inside of you.

I'm thankful more tonight than anything for revelation. I'm thankful God's purpose and plan will always prevail. I'm thankful God finishes what He starts and when we need a whisper He whispers. I'm thankful when we feel dry, God waters. I'm thankful when the enemy has gone after our shout, God presses in until we can push back and take hold of what was ours from the start. The enemy has already been defeated child of God. Walk in that victory and power....

#thankful

It's thankful month and rather than do the daily post on FB of something I'm thankful for..last year I did a couple of thankful posts during this month. Here's the first ;-)

This year I'm especially grateful for brokenness and perspective. I'm thankful for God stepping in this year and going "It's time child.". I'm thankful God saw in me what I couldn't see in myself and forced me to see it. I'm thankful God wasn't content to let me stay comfortable and pushed me to where He knew I was created to walk. I'm thankful that I'm learning to not take myself so seriously or to focus on things I cannot change. (Some of you reading this just said an Amen!). God reminded me this afternoon of the verse so we fix our eyes not on what is temporary, but on what is eternal. God will lead you what the eternal things are.

I'm thankful that I am finally at a place where I am happy. Has everything gone according to plan? Why no...Is everything going according to plan? Umm..no that's not the case either. See I've learned what that verse meant that says I've learned to be content in all things. The day does not have to be going our way for us to praise Him during it. This is a hard truth that I have had presented to me multiple times in the last couple of weeks. (That is usually God's way of going...it's time to pass it child). When we have a relationship with God, we know who has our day and that's all that we need to know to walk it out. Honesty, transparent moment....your flesh/my flesh/the flesh will most of the time not feel it if the day is out of your comfort zone. Your flesh is going to want to stay where everything feels happy, which is not necessarily where you are happy. Your flesh may feel tired and exhausted, but your heart is happy. Your flesh may feel confused about something, but your heart is content and thankful. The Holy Spirit on the inside of us gives us the power to tell our flesh to hush it. It's a power we do not use as quick as we should or as often as we should. God is faithful and for that I am thankful. I'm thankful that's He's patient too and that even when I can't always see the me He sees, He gives me a glimpse that keeps me moving forward. Life doesn't always turn out the way we think it should, because we plan our lives a lot of times with our eyes and our perspectives. I'm thankful my steps are ordered by the One who has the ultimate perspective.

My FB feed for the last couple of days has been filled with things that make me think. I'm not going to get into the debate of the "cup" or how tear jerking it is to read about Joey and Rory. Both of these things though make me thankful. Thankful for perspective to step back and pray for that family and to go out and do something for someone else. The world isn't looking at what's on the side of a cup. When Jesus said to give a cup of cold water in His name, He meant at any time...not just at Christmas. Yes we as the church, we as Christians have to take a stand, but the world needs to see actions behind our faith. Our words aren't enough if we don't have love behind it. The holidays are rough for those that have lost loved ones or are losing loved ones as Joey and Rory are living out in front of us. Let's keep them all in our prayers and be His hands and feet to those that God puts in your path. God is looking to flow through His children this season not just to them. Let's be Jesus first and God will open the door for us to share about Him.

A heart of thankfulness and an attitude of gratitude are not something we can achieve on our own. The verse right below the being content in all things is one that we quote a lot. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. God didn't say we could do it without Him, but with Him we can have a heart of gratitude.

I challenge you to take time over the next few days to think about being thankful. So many times we go through the posts on FB and post something each day, but we don't ever stop and truly think about all God has done for us over the past year. How has God moved for you this year? Thank Him for it...even those things that seem trivial. God loves hearing us say thank you for everything and doesn't put a label on it. 

Trust, Fear, and Steps

Our steps are ordered by God..that's a promise from His word. So why do we doubt sometimes that He may not be leading us down the steps we should take? We trust God to protect us each day in the car when we drive, but we doubt when something out of the blue hits us. Oh my if we could only take a step back and see things through His eyes, through His lens, through His timing. He doesn't have a piece out of place that He is in control of and there is not a piece that He hasn't planned perfectly. Did you catch that part..that He is in control of? So many times we are holding pieces to our puzzle (that God created..) in our hands and trying to force them into place. God never planned it that way..He didn't plan on us taking on things that were only meant for Him, but that's where freedom of choice comes in. God chose for us to have a way of escape when He sent Jesus to the cross for our sins. Our choice is to choose to accept that way, that gift. When we do that, it doesn't mean that life suddenly becomes easy, but it means the One who ordered your steps is in control. You have the power of the One who raised Jesus from the dead living on the inside of you. You may not feel like you can do anything, but with Him you can do all things.

This week started off with a sucker punch from the enemy. Let's face it, the enemy knows when we are tired, worn, and already feeling like the weight of the world is getting close to our shoulders. My heart knew that God had it all under control, but my flesh was screaming louder. Those are the moments of battle when it takes putting flesh aside and remembering why God called us to this race. Sometimes the battle isn't one we can always see, but we can feel it in our Spirit. Messes in God's hands always turn into a message. I've seen Him move yet again this week and show out in ways that only He could. God is faithful to do what HE said He would do. At some point in our walk, that has to be the loudest truth in our hearts and our thoughts. Our steps are ordered by the One who gave us the ability to step. Let that sink in.....

You may be reading this thinking, oh but she doesn't know the kind of week I have had. Well no I don't, but God does. I know what it's like to trust Him to work it out and I know what it's like to take it into my own hands to work it out. Hear my heart when I say His way really is the easiest. There is a line in a song that has been my go to this week that says..."I don't know how He's going to move, but I know He knows what I need.". There will be some moments in our journey when we know exactly how to pray and how we desire God to move. Then there will be some moments in our journey, when we simply go...God just move. Maybe you are at that point sweet reader.....where you don't even know how to pray, you just need God to show up and do what HE does best. Ask Him....tell Him what you need, what you want, and most of all how you feel. (He already knows anyway, but He longs to hear it from You.). Then once you tell Him, once you pour out your heart to the One who made it, leave it in His hands. Leave the feelings, the thoughts, and the control with Him...and then pick up your armor and keep moving forward knowing that the One who loves you the most has already gone before you.

God I pray right now for the one reading this post. You alone know just where they are at...meet them there. God speak life to their individual situations, to their fears, to their doubts, to their insecurities, to their discouragement. Speak to those feelings and remind them Father who is stronger. You never said we would feel our way through things, but that we could do all things with You. God thank you for ordering our steps and for giving us the strength to step when we don't feel like it, can't see it, or may feel like it's too deep. Thank you for covering those steps with your blood, but most of all with your love. In Jesus name...Amen