Have you ever had one of those moments when you find out that what you thought you knew, you really didn't know?
I know, I know, a little early for such a statement but I know that I am called to share my "aha" moment with you. So you just grab your cup of coffee and join me on this little path of discovery I am on this morning.
As the years have passed God has taught me many lessons. Some I was smart enough to grab on to rather quickly and some I grabbed on at the last minute much like a shirt tail flapping in the breeze. Sliding in by the seat of my britches you might say.
One constant struggle has been applying my faith to events, circumstances, happenings that are personally and wholly mine. For example - a friend battled a life threatening health issue and together we stood on faith in prayer to see God move in her life. My mind immediately picks up the gauntlet and runs forward into battle on her behalf. I got you cher......
Not so long ago I was moved to Stage 5 renal failure. The beginning of the end so to speak. My mind immediately becomes weak and says, "but healing isn't for you."
Say what? Surely to my goodness if I can believe for another and stand in faith with them I can believe for myself. But sadly, tis not true. At least not for me. It was more along the lines of this: Don't you know how often you have failed God? Why would God heal you? If God did heal you you would become proud and not give Him the glory. And on and on and on the defeating litany would ring in my ears and in my heart. Successfully stealing the victory that Jesus won and gave to me.
Like most Southern families I was raised going to church every Sunday. So this last time when the litany once again made its rounds through my thoughts seeking to take hold of my heart I fell back on things I had heard, and honestly probably did not even really understand, oh so many years ago. Taking a verse and plucking it out of it's surroundings and grabbing onto the surface meaning as if it was solely truth. One such verse is Mark 9:24 "help thou my unbelief." I grabbed on to the surface meaning and ran with it right into untruth. Naturally. Can you see me rolling my eyes at myself? Ha, you are probably rolling your own eyes at me!
Somewhere along the line I took on the belief that I needed God to give me more faith. That I did not have enough faith. That I wasn't as good as some of the heroes of the faith therefore God would not give me the powerful, believing faith that they had.
I tell ya, sometimes my own foolishness leaves me shaking my head. Today God opened my eyes and showed me truth in it's fullness. There it was, all along, shining it's many facets just waiting for me to pick it up and make it mine. Instead, I had allowed the enemy to steal it from me. But praise God ~ NO MORE!!
Here are a few things you should know about faith:
* It is for believers who have a relationship with Christ. Romans 12:3 "God has given every believer the measure of faith."
* There are not different kinds of faith depending on who you are or the role you play in the body of Christ. Some believers may have already strengthened and developed their faith over time but their faith is NO different than yours.
* Only you can build your faith. Faith comes from one place and one place alone. Romans 10:17 "Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God."
In short, do not listen to the same lies I did. The enemy is always quick to paint an unworthy picture of us in the mirror. He does so to keep us from stepping forward into belief, obedience, and blessings. He will do literally anything to keep us from realizing the uniquely wonderful creature that God has created us to be. To shackle us with lies so that we do not walk into the truth of the freedom that Jesus bought for us with His life.
I say enough, is enough, is enough.
So this morning, lift your banner of faith high. Let it wave lifted by the strength of Gods love and mercy. You keep walking on your journey of faith. When you falter, just reach out your hand and you will find me by your side to encourage you.
You got this cher...... And you know what? So do I!
Boots on, feet in motion, flag of faith flying high....
much love to all of you....
me
Wednesday, July 17, 2019
Tuesday, July 16, 2019
Life as a Country Girl
It is no secret that I call Louisiana home and draw great strength and comfort from my roots. Those roots have allowed me days of sunshine, showed me the value of hard work, and sheltered me from the storms while teaching me how to survive them.
Just as growing up country in a deeply Southern town has taught me many lessons, so too, have I learned lessons that stretch me and cause me to grow through experiences as well as pain in the life I live based on the foundational relationship I have with Father God.
Through the years, I have noticed that God speaks to each of us based upon our physical roots so that we can easily understand what He is saying to us. In my case, He clearly speaks "country girl" to me.
As I was sitting in the quiet this morning reveling in the moment of solitude, He came to me calling me to go deeper with Him. To pursue the deep things.
Hosea 10:12 Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, til He comes and rains righteousness on you.
To sow means to be intentional. To work toward producing or growing something. In country terms... I am going to sweat a massive amount as I work to break up the ground and get it ready to receive the seeds I will plant. It means making sure the soil has the right nutrients to grow what I am planting. It means the soil is loose and no longer hard and compacted. When all this is done and ready, then I can plant the seed. Now the easy part is done and the real work begins.
Once the seed is planted it must be nurtured and tended daily. Always making sure that there is the right amount of rain, sun, and nutrition so that the seed is able to grow and thrive. In addition, there is hours of back breaking work as you keep weeds away so that nothing comes to choke out the life of what was planted. As if that isn't enough along comes pests, fungus and an abundance of other things to cause the plant to be unhealthy.
In this verse in Hosea God is reminding me to work towards obedience to the revealed word of God. Sounds pretty simple but then so does planting tomatoes. If you have ever had a garden, you know the truth of these words. It is work. Pure and simple. Without the work there is absolutely no way to enjoy the reward.
So it is as I allow God to bring me to full obedience in Him. This can only, and I do mean ONLY be accomplished through daily pouring His word into my heart. Daily hitting my knees in conversation with him. Notice I did not say in talking to Him but used the word conversation instead. This means I will choose to spend more time listening than I will talking because I can guarantee that what He has to say is what I desperately need to hear.
As I grow better at listening to His instruction, He is faithful to teach me. In order for me to learn I must first be willing. Then when I am willing I must add to that obedience. It takes both in equal abundance in order for me to be in a position to hear the words that the Father places deep within my soul to take root so that I might be rooted and grounded in Him and not in self.
As I listen to His instruction then I will begin to reap mercy. And not in the way that I first thought I would. Being the inherently selfish being that we as humans are, naturally I had thought of all the ways that mercy would be brought to me.
But what if? What if mercy was given to me so that I might share it in ABUNDANCE with those around me? What if when mean shows up it is rewarded with kindness? What if when hate shows up it encounters genuine love? What if?
So this morning as I am preparing the soil, planting the seed, and tending the plant, may I remember how God loved and how His mercies are new every morning....
Faith with boots is a lifestyle not a momentary thing....
love you all....
me
Just as growing up country in a deeply Southern town has taught me many lessons, so too, have I learned lessons that stretch me and cause me to grow through experiences as well as pain in the life I live based on the foundational relationship I have with Father God.
Through the years, I have noticed that God speaks to each of us based upon our physical roots so that we can easily understand what He is saying to us. In my case, He clearly speaks "country girl" to me.
As I was sitting in the quiet this morning reveling in the moment of solitude, He came to me calling me to go deeper with Him. To pursue the deep things.
Hosea 10:12 Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, til He comes and rains righteousness on you.
To sow means to be intentional. To work toward producing or growing something. In country terms... I am going to sweat a massive amount as I work to break up the ground and get it ready to receive the seeds I will plant. It means making sure the soil has the right nutrients to grow what I am planting. It means the soil is loose and no longer hard and compacted. When all this is done and ready, then I can plant the seed. Now the easy part is done and the real work begins.
Once the seed is planted it must be nurtured and tended daily. Always making sure that there is the right amount of rain, sun, and nutrition so that the seed is able to grow and thrive. In addition, there is hours of back breaking work as you keep weeds away so that nothing comes to choke out the life of what was planted. As if that isn't enough along comes pests, fungus and an abundance of other things to cause the plant to be unhealthy.
In this verse in Hosea God is reminding me to work towards obedience to the revealed word of God. Sounds pretty simple but then so does planting tomatoes. If you have ever had a garden, you know the truth of these words. It is work. Pure and simple. Without the work there is absolutely no way to enjoy the reward.
So it is as I allow God to bring me to full obedience in Him. This can only, and I do mean ONLY be accomplished through daily pouring His word into my heart. Daily hitting my knees in conversation with him. Notice I did not say in talking to Him but used the word conversation instead. This means I will choose to spend more time listening than I will talking because I can guarantee that what He has to say is what I desperately need to hear.
As I grow better at listening to His instruction, He is faithful to teach me. In order for me to learn I must first be willing. Then when I am willing I must add to that obedience. It takes both in equal abundance in order for me to be in a position to hear the words that the Father places deep within my soul to take root so that I might be rooted and grounded in Him and not in self.
As I listen to His instruction then I will begin to reap mercy. And not in the way that I first thought I would. Being the inherently selfish being that we as humans are, naturally I had thought of all the ways that mercy would be brought to me.
But what if? What if mercy was given to me so that I might share it in ABUNDANCE with those around me? What if when mean shows up it is rewarded with kindness? What if when hate shows up it encounters genuine love? What if?
So this morning as I am preparing the soil, planting the seed, and tending the plant, may I remember how God loved and how His mercies are new every morning....
Faith with boots is a lifestyle not a momentary thing....
love you all....
me
Friday, July 12, 2019
Which Comes First?
Do you remember that old joke? Which comes first the chicken or the egg? Sparks a world of debate depending on who you are talking to. 😀
As I was studying through the book of Psalms, Proverbs, Daniel, and 1 John today, a great reminder was brought about.
All to often we get caught up in our actions and emotions. More often than not, emotions lead the way. Especially if we are in the midst of an especially hurtful situation. Our emotions scream out it's version of right, our actions react based on those emotions, and you can bet that it is rarely has anything to do with God.
The reality is that faith proceeds works and feelings. Every. Single. Time. When we step forward in faith, we are humbling ourselves in obedience to God. When we are obedient to God and we are humble, then we are able to accurately hear God. We become teachable.
Have you ever noticed when trying to teach a puppy, a horse, or even a child that first they must know your love? Then they begin to hear. Not only do they hear, they begin to understand. Once they understand, they can obey Once they obey their actions and emotions follow suit.
So it is with our faith. In all things, but never so evident as when we are hurting. So we must make a choice to lower the volume of our emotions and allow our faith to be loud. Remember, we have all the faith we need. Even if it is tiny as a mustard seed.
Once we tune in to our faith, God can speak because our ears are now unplugged from the turmoil and we can accurately hear His voice over the noise.
As we put that first boot forward (hence my blog called Faith with Boots On) we will find that our path becomes illuminated so that we can see His leading. Some times a few steps ahead, some times a day ahead, and some times we can see far ahead. No matter what we can see, we must determine to keep putting one foot in front of another.
As we travel the path you will find that your emotions and actions begin to fall into line. Now just to be perfectly clear, I want you to notice that no where in here do you see the words easy or without effort, etc.
You will also notice that no where does it say, "understand, makes sense, or clarity". It all begins with stepping out in faith.
As long as we are pursuing self and waiting on God to shine a light on a path and speak in a booming voice "go here and do this" we will continue to wallow in self which will ultimately lead to our own destruction.
When we choose to put our boots on the path of faith, which leads to obedience, which leads to our emotions coming in line, which leads to our actions coming into line, which leads to the greatest joy of all and that is a life lived in the presence of God. Then He can rain down blessings on us so that we might share those blessings with others.
You see, that is how all this works. I am blessed so that I can bless you. You are blessed so that you can bless another. They are blessed to bless yet another. It is living in community. Each caring for the other the same way the Father cares for us....
So if you find yourself straying from the path, stop! make the choice (for that is all it is), and put your boots on, and take that first step forward. You won't be alone. You will find me there and oh so many others.
Lastly, when we link arms and lift others, the journey is all the sweeter.
So come on folks..... put boots on that faith and let's get walking!
As I was studying through the book of Psalms, Proverbs, Daniel, and 1 John today, a great reminder was brought about.
All to often we get caught up in our actions and emotions. More often than not, emotions lead the way. Especially if we are in the midst of an especially hurtful situation. Our emotions scream out it's version of right, our actions react based on those emotions, and you can bet that it is rarely has anything to do with God.
The reality is that faith proceeds works and feelings. Every. Single. Time. When we step forward in faith, we are humbling ourselves in obedience to God. When we are obedient to God and we are humble, then we are able to accurately hear God. We become teachable.
Have you ever noticed when trying to teach a puppy, a horse, or even a child that first they must know your love? Then they begin to hear. Not only do they hear, they begin to understand. Once they understand, they can obey Once they obey their actions and emotions follow suit.
So it is with our faith. In all things, but never so evident as when we are hurting. So we must make a choice to lower the volume of our emotions and allow our faith to be loud. Remember, we have all the faith we need. Even if it is tiny as a mustard seed.
Once we tune in to our faith, God can speak because our ears are now unplugged from the turmoil and we can accurately hear His voice over the noise.
As we put that first boot forward (hence my blog called Faith with Boots On) we will find that our path becomes illuminated so that we can see His leading. Some times a few steps ahead, some times a day ahead, and some times we can see far ahead. No matter what we can see, we must determine to keep putting one foot in front of another.
As we travel the path you will find that your emotions and actions begin to fall into line. Now just to be perfectly clear, I want you to notice that no where in here do you see the words easy or without effort, etc.
You will also notice that no where does it say, "understand, makes sense, or clarity". It all begins with stepping out in faith.
As long as we are pursuing self and waiting on God to shine a light on a path and speak in a booming voice "go here and do this" we will continue to wallow in self which will ultimately lead to our own destruction.
When we choose to put our boots on the path of faith, which leads to obedience, which leads to our emotions coming in line, which leads to our actions coming into line, which leads to the greatest joy of all and that is a life lived in the presence of God. Then He can rain down blessings on us so that we might share those blessings with others.
You see, that is how all this works. I am blessed so that I can bless you. You are blessed so that you can bless another. They are blessed to bless yet another. It is living in community. Each caring for the other the same way the Father cares for us....
So if you find yourself straying from the path, stop! make the choice (for that is all it is), and put your boots on, and take that first step forward. You won't be alone. You will find me there and oh so many others.
Lastly, when we link arms and lift others, the journey is all the sweeter.
So come on folks..... put boots on that faith and let's get walking!
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