August 11, 2010 The Secret Pavilion

I will share something about the book of Nehemiah that will revolutionize it for you, in case you've never seen it before.  I learned it while doing my degree work in Christian Biblical Psychology.  It's all about restoration, and it is pertinent to the rebuilding of a broken person, as well as the entire Church.  As are all the histories of the Jewish people, they are all written for our instruction.

Today I saw something a little different that I hadn't noticed (maybe I was taught it before, but I don't remember).   All the different people who worked on the wall are like all the different people we come in contact with when we are "under construction."  The Lord will use various people to be His hands in our life when we need help.  A great many people have been devastated emotionally and spiritually, and even physically (often as a result of those) and are in need of being healed and put back together.  God doesn't use any one person (such as a counselor or pastor) to "fix" someone; otherwise I think we would take credit for "building" someone or for making them who they are to become.  God uses teams, and He gets all the glory for it.    The teams are organized by the Holy Spirit, and not necessarily in a way we can see.  I can testify that while I was going through the greatest part of my restoration, that many people had a part to play in different areas in my life.  Sometimes they didn't even realize that God was working through them for the purpose of healing and restoration.  Others didn't realize they were getting in the way.

Notice that first Nehemiah assessed the damage, and then they began to work on the wall.  Most people who have been through life traumas don't have anything in the way of proper defenses.  This might be noticed in the lack of good boundaries, in behavior lacking in any kind of normal sense about what is healthy, and in the tendency to be overrun by harmful agents.  The picture of a war-ravaged city, burned down and with the walls in ruins, is a powerful image to help us understand how damaged people can be.  If you haven't been there yourself, I guarantee you know someone who is.  Likely, you are one of the people who is working on your little section of the wall.  When everyone does their part, a person is able to be restored to functioning more quickly.  The deeper issues of healing then, are dealt with in a safer environment.

While all this work is going on, God nurtures us in the Secret Pavilion.  It's the secret place of His presence, and it's there for all who fear God and trust Him.  It's for the workers and well as those "under construction."  Sometimes it takes a person a while to learn to trust God, as well as have the right kind of reverent awe of the Lord.  When those around them are living in this place, it's a lot easier for them to be led to into it.  No matter who's trying to do you in, or who's speaking evil against you, you're hidden from it in the Secret Pavilion.  Even plaguing inner voices are shut down in this tent of peace, where the love of God surrounds you and protects you.

In the Secret Pavilion, you can also receive a vision of the Heavenly City, the New Jerusalem.  "Blessed be the LORD, for He has shown me His marvelous kindness in a strong city!" Psalm 31:21  This vision of  the wholeness, holiness, and oneness of the finished product of God's people-- what Jesus is working on and will finish--  is what gives the workers and the people being restored, hope enough to continue.  It's what gives us courage, strengthening our hearts.  And Satan will be just as surprised about the results as he was when Jesus was resurrected!

Questions to ponder:
Have you ever noticed how many loud and opposing voices there are all around you all the time?  Have you ever experienced the peace and quiet of God's secret pavilion?
Who do you know that is in a broken and ruined condition?  How is God moving through you to help rebuild the wall?
What was your impression of how Nehemiah communicated with the king?  What kind of instruction does this give you for your own life? 

August 5, 2010 When All Seems Lost, God Makes A Way

I was suicidal once, years back; for a month or more, I struggled with thoughts of how I could end my life because chronic depression had left me hopeless, and my circumstances seemed unchangeable.  I had lost connection with my faith in God, although I would not have denied it consciously.  The only thing that kept me going was that I needed to take care of my children.  I thank God for a dad who heard God, comprehended where I was at, and offered to pay for therapy.  This was the beginning of a long journey of healing and restoration for me.  That I now have abiding peace and joy in my life, and a stable environment and relationships, is a great example of the power of the cross of Christ.  It is in Him alone that I have found reality, sanity and purpose.

I share this because it is the first thing I thought of when I saw the heading for today's reading in Ezra: End of the Babylonian Captivity.  What I saw in the passage was that if God could stir up the spirit of Cyrus, He can do whatever needs to be done to rescue us from our distresses.  He did do that for me.  When I thought no good could come from my life (that was of course, a deception), God broke through my darkness and brought me out.  My sinful choices had gotten me into captivity in the first place.  God used it for good in my life anyway. 

When humanity had fallen into the depths of depravity, God made a way.  When Jesus went to the cross to die, He took upon Himself the whole of mankind's mess.  He came back from the depths of death bringing our deliverance with Him.  As Paul said, it sounds like foolishness to a lot of people, but I say, foolishness or not, it's wisdom and life.  I can testify first hand-- I'm only alive because of Him.

The Corinthians passages are some of the most powerful and hopeful I know of: I love them!  When you put them together with the Ezra account, the Psalms and the Proverbs, today's reading packs a powerfully hopeful punch! I completely embrace being a "foolish thing"!  It means I'm chosen to put to shame the "high and mighty" things of the world.  I just said to my husband this morning, that I didn't belong in the big, bad world-- that I just wanted to hide out "in a cave" and be a little girl.  The fact is, I am God's little girl!  I don't have to fit in with, or be accepted by, the world (that's perishing anyway); I don't belong!  I belong to the Kingdom!  I'm in Christ and Christ is in God.  I can be strong in the power of His might!  I  can glory in Him!  I don't have to be anything, because He is everything.  However, as I keep pressing into Him, the foolishness that is me gives way to the wisdom that is Him.  I begin to realize that in the Kingdom I have substance, significance, sustainability.

If you are lost, Jesus is the Way.  If you have been found by Him, Jesus is still the Way.  Along the Way you find Truth and Life.  These things are worth living for!  Whether you know it or not, Jesus already died for you and proclaimed you "forgiven."  Your future love relationship with God began at that moment.  Whenever you awake to this reality and say "yes," the adventure begins.  Never give up on your life!  You will be totally surprised at the wondrous things He has in store for you, even if you feel like a foolish thing right now.   

Bonus: Negativity is the beginning of the suicidal road; here's how not to get there, ever:

"I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD."
Psalm 27:13-14

Questions to ponder:
Have you ever struggled with despair or suicidal thoughts? How did you get out from under them?
If you have had victory in this area, have you ever shared it with others?
Do you know anyone who struggles with depression or suicidal thoughts?
How do you deal with that? 
Even if these things are far from your own experience, what have you learned that is applicable to you?

Truth: Whatever you've overcome in your life is what the Lord will use to minister life to others through you.

July 2, 2010 Life in the Strong Tower

Did you feel the refreshment in the Psalm today?  After such dark histories of human failings and selfishness, idol worship, the shedding of innocent blood, the uproar of a sea of humanity fighting against God-- we're thrilled by the pure, brilliant excellence of a simple call to praise God instead of rail against Him!  This is the atmosphere of heaven, which we can bring to earth through our faith: by words, songs, actions, attitudes.  Light and life overcome darkness and death.  They are in God.

"The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10  I've always loved this verse, and I like how it dovetails with the meaning of the Psalm.  Since the name stands for His character, nature and authority, a great way to "run into" the name of God is to meditate on His goodness and His mighty acts, and to speak, sing or shout them out in praise and thanksgiving.  This praise brings us into a strong tower of His presence--an awareness of who He is and that He is there all around us.  It brings us into the place of remembering to love and trust Him, and in this place of remembrance, we enter into a deep place of worship.  It is here we know that there is no place like God.  Here we are safe.  What evil could ever harm us in heaven?

Once we discover that we may live in this tower always-- we never have to leave it, that it goes with us everywhere when we are in communion with God-- we gain the courage to live a meaningful and selfless life. 

June 26, 2010 Rated R for Spiritual Warfare

I wouldn't want to see today's passages from Kings on the big screen!  Rated R for violence!!  Even with just a mental picture, it's hard to forget the gruesome end of Jezebel.  If you think God hates evil any less than He did back then, you're wrong.  We're still in a war against wickedness-- it just looks different right now, unless you're seeing with spiritual eyes.  I'm reminded of one of Jesus' parables, and a line quoted from it: "But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them-- bring them here and kill them in front of me." Luke 19:27  By the time you get to the end of the Bible, your understanding of Jesus will have expanded.

Make no mistake: we still are to be grieved over evil!  "Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols." Acts 17:16  And remember how he felt about the girl with the spirit of divination who was following them around?  He was irritated.  Did he kill the girl?  Of course not!  He cast the evil spirit out instead.  He knew the demon's time was coming.  God's purposes at present are to deliver all (who are willing to be delivered) from the grips of evil.  We are in the Age of Grace, and we have a different approach: mercy.  

Paul taught in one of his letters: "Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching." 2 Timothy 4:2  He demonstrated this in his address to the Athenians.  He talked with them, even though they had darkened minds and called him a babbler!  "Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there." Acts 17:17 NKJV  People were won to Christ through his discussions, but also he was persecuted.  It really does take longsuffering (patience).

Sometimes we forget how merciful God's ways are with us.  We get tired of hearing correction.  I'm happy to take my Father's chastening over having His fire break out against me!  I am thankful beyond words to Christ for taking my punishment-- my deserved gruesome death-- and extending God's heart of grace and mercy.  That IS God's heart, you know!  Why else did Christ die?  God's still killing off evil in me though, and in all of His Church.  The more we "reckon ourselves dead to sin" through the cross, the easier it is on us.  (see Romans 6-- this is deep and important doctrine here, and if you need help with it, please go to your pastor.)

A lot of "hellfire and brimstone" preaching has turned us off, perhaps because it was done without love.  We are to speak the truth in LOVE.  Is it truly love not to warn people that evil will finally be destroyed?  How can we truly preach the cross of salvation if we don't let people know that God hates evil!  The "world" is trying to make tolerant wimps out of all of us, trying to make us afraid of telling the truth (politically correct "tolerance" is not the same thing as God's grace and mercy!).

We are becoming, as a culture, much too concerned with our safety!  This alarms me!  If we are not willing to share the true Gospel of the Kingdom-- of the coming Righteous King and of salvation from evil, sin and death through Jesus Christ alone--because we're afraid of the "consequences," (we should be much more afraid of what God thinks) then we have already come under the influence of a Jezebel spirit (which is an anti-christ spirit).  And the future of that demonic spirit is parallel to the doom of said queen.

Today, the spiritual war is just as gruesome and bloody as it was in the Old Testament days.  I've personally witnessed what happens when a human being, given over to a Jezebel spirit, gets into a Christian assembly (church) and tries to take over.  It's ugly.  You want to get the person free if you can, but you have to get rid of the demonic infiltration.  You have to protect the sheep.  The warfare is difficult, painful and dangerous.  But Jesus Christ has already won!  Victory is assured (if we'll actually fight)! 

"The Kingdom of Christ" is the greatest epic ever!  [speaking figuratively here] I dare you to watch the Special Features and see what's happening "behind the scenes"!  I guarantee you'll take "wearing your armor" a lot more seriously.  But you will begin to realize how great it is to serve the King-- and you will never be a wimpy Christian again.

I pray that the spiritual eyes of the whole Body of Christ will be opened, and that we will seek Him for His strength and courage to do His will.  The eternal destiny of this generation is at stake.  Are we willing to lay down our lives for them?

June 16, 2010 Politics, Prophets and Provision

It's troubling to me to read about the dreadful split between Judah and Israel, and of the horrendous works of the evil kings.  It makes me sad to realize it was all due to Solomon's wandering heart and idolatry later in his life.  With all his wisdom, he should have known better.  It just goes to show that "you can fall from any level," as Rick Joyner said in The Final Quest.  How serious we need to be in maintaining the fear of the Lord, and a pure love for Him and His Word!

All the turmoil of those Old Testament days reminds me of modern times, even of American politics.  If you look just under the surface of current events, you will see the seeds of civil war.  The trouble is, so many of the issues are spiritual, just as they were back in Ahab's day.  God's people today seem to have just as much trouble in dealing with ungodliness in society and government as they did in Bible times.   Why is that, I wonder?  Do you think, perhaps, that most of us are just too concerned with trying to survive to do anything to confront the evils that are trying to gain power over us, individually and as a nation?  [and I'm not talking about "rebellion," I'm talking about submitting to God and following Him.]

In order to be free from evil domination, we will have to be willing to see what is really happening around us and to us.  We will have to be willing to see evil, not close our eyes to it.  Seeing it and liking it, or just going along with it (as well as simply closing our eyes to it), is what leads us into slavery.  Seeing it and hating it is the beginning of getting free. 

God expects us to love what He loves and hate what He hates.  This, of course, must be established in our own personal life, but after that, what?  I would say, no matter what, start with prayer.  Prayer is the launch pad.  None of us will know what He is doing, or what we ourselves are to do, without seeking the Lord in prayer.  If you don't really trust God, now's the time to dig down into the Word and get your roots planted into Him.  Every time you obey Him, you get a little more rooted.  You're going to have to trust Him in order to stand godly in the evil day.

The truth is, while Christ's Kingdom is being established on earth, the worldly kingdoms are crumbling.  Can you feel the foundations being shaken?  Do you see the chaos beginning to take hold of the world's systems?  Of course, all those with worldly power, not to mention the evil spiritual entities that hold sway over the nations, are trying to tighten their grip.  Controls will strengthen, and when people rebel against control, flattery will try to win them-- but only so that even greater control can be exercised.  There's no getting away from this.  It's the times we're in!  That's why it's so important to see the Kingdom of God and go for it.  It's time to see what kingdoms are what, and choose. 

Whatever you're called to do in the Kingdom of God, God has provision for you.  It takes a lot of courage to take a stand for God in evil times, or even to support one who openly does.  But as Jesus said, Be not afraid!  We saw how the Lord provided for Elijah-- He sent ravens to feed him!  Then He asked a poor widow to care for him, and miraculously provided for her too.  Not only was there enough food for them, but there was also provision for healing (her son was raised).  Even if the Lord were to call for judgments (such as famine) against an idolatrous nation, His people will be provided for if they will trust Him and obey Him. 

As we read in the story of Peter and Cornelius, the Lord even has communications covered: prayer, the leading of the Holy Spirit, visions, and angelic visitations will keep God's people "in the know" and the Kingdom of God running according to His plan.  And remember how Stephen got transported by the Spirit, and he just found himself somewhere?  Who needs cars, planes, cell phones and the internet when you have such efficient modes of communication and travel?  We might as well get used to it-- we're called to live in a supernatural Kingdom!  It's not science fiction, it's real!  We'll see more and more of it as the return of the King draws nearer.

I know it's normal to say, "Well, I'm not Elijah!  Maybe that guy over there is!" but each of us has been given a place of authority in our life, whether large or small; and in this place of rule, we are each called to declare the Word of the Lord and to resist evil, no matter what the apparent cost.  We must trust the Lord to provide all that is needed, even when the world from which we have been gaining our support is falling down around our ears.

"And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead." Acts 10:42

May 27, 2010 The Overcomer's Cheer

Could there be a more impacting statement than Jesus' saying, "I have overcome the world"?  The outcome of believing His statement is "good cheer."  I had to look that word up in the Greek-- it's tharseo: the root is "courage, confidence."  Tharseo can also be translated "be of good comfort." 

So, the sense I get from this is not a "cheer" that ignores all what's going on (the end of that path is a drunken "ignorance is bliss" mentality), but a joy and comfort that comes from having courage.  Our courage comes from our knowledge that He is in control, He wins, and He is with us, and in us, to help us and strengthen us.  His goal is for us to be overcomers in Him, Who has already overcome.  We can go through whatever we have to with this assurance, with peace, joy, and confidence.