Hedge

Hedge

2/28/15

Many of us know what a hedge looks like and what kind of a barrier a hedge places around an area.  Hedges are a fascinating clump of bushes that provides a variety of resources, including protection.  A hedge continues to grow thicker until it is cut by some invading force in which its barrier becomes breached and the other side exposed.  Physical hedges are not the only barrier forces that are in existence spiritual ones are in place as well and serve in the same capacity as the physical ones.  If this is the case then we must also contend that a spiritual hedge can be forged as well if allowed.  So what happens when this spiritual hedge is breached?  The answer is quite simple, just refer to the physically breached hedge and one will get a pretty good clue.

This topic that God is sharing with us has grown tremendously and will have to be broken up into three parts.  Each part is just as important as the other and is totally relevant to our world and individual lives today.  Get your Bibles out and follow along and watch the news, both with unbiased physical whims and it will not take anyone long to realize what exactly is going on in our world and how fast we are rolling downhill.  Part one of this series will define a hedge and what it means for overall protection.  Part two will deal with God’s removal of this protective hedge and part three will address mankind’s removal of this hedge.

When I was a kid some of the places that I lived in had some hedges that surrounded the houses that I lived in.  At the time I had no inkling of an idea that hedges could prove to be a boundary and that one side represented the neighbor’s yard and the other side indicated our yard.  All I knew was that if you could find an opening big enough I could crawl inside that hedge and sit there and feel like no one on the earth could see me.  It did not take too long for me to find out that if I sat real quiet people that were looking for me could actually stand within a few feet from me and have no idea where I was at.  It was up to me to let them pass bye or for me to inform them of my whereabouts.  And yes, there were times that both cases were played out and I must admit it was kind of fun to sit there and watch people pass bye and not notice anything unusual.

After I believed that the coast was clear I would begin my venture out of the confines of the hedge.  I would crawl out and then stand up and dust myself off.  I would then notice that my clothes were dirty and that I would have small scratches on the parts of my skin that were not covered by my clothes.  I really did not pay too much attention to the scratches for they did not hurt much and were not bleeding, so being a kid I did not think about them again until my mother asked me where I had received them.  I had no clue that I was giving away my hiding place secrets to her and it really did not matter but she understood why I was in there in the first place, so all was okay.

At that time I had no concept of the how important of having a hedge around me was.  The only “protection” I knew about came from my house and my parents and it was through those two entities that I turned to for physical protection.  And until God decided to grab my heart and show me some things about humanity and the coming pains for humanity, I really did not understand the concept of a having a hedge about my life and the life of nations and what having a hedge means for our lives.  I also have to admit that even though Christians have a concept of having a hedge about them, some of their beliefs are actually misconceptions and have voluntarily placed themselves into harm’s way due to these living beliefs.  I must include myself in this particular category since my father preached on this subject for decades and I while I listened to his sermons, I flat missed the truth that he was sharing.

A while back there was a miniseries on television called “Band of Brothers”.  It was a fabulous series and explained a lot about some of the perils that military units endured while fighting for our freedoms and for the freedoms of other nations around the world.  Early in the series these brave men were fighting in Normandy, and one of the obstacles that they had to maneuver around and through were hedgerows, which dotted the landscape as natural barriers; they were so called hedgerows.    These barriers were thick bushes that outlined property and usually measured in squares or rectangles, however that was not always the case.  They defined personal fields or land types and could easily be outlined on a map.  After the occupation of Europe, the German army used these natural protective hedges as protective barriers for various Axis artillery units and instillations, housing complexes and many grouped military and command posts.  

Today we have modern satellite capabilities that can actually look into such hedgerows and identify packages of food that are hidden within these types of barriers. However, during that time the technology to see what was behind these barriers and what was hidden within these barriers was very limited and physically breaching them by military units proved to be even far more difficult.  The Army did come up with some pretty unique ideas of how to advance through these hedgerows but it took its heavy toll on the basic form of military might, the human being, in order to breech such barrier.  While we can see through some of these barriers and identify the hidden contents it is still necessary for some type of penetrating force to be used in order to try and secure the barrier; sometimes this force succeeds and sometimes it does not.

The hedgerows were thoroughly examined for openings and if one was noticed, machine guns and other defensive mechanisms were put in place in order to secure the perimeter.  This type of hiding was very effective and any invading force would find it very difficult to penetrate this natural barrier.  I remember in one of the “Band of Brothers” episodes that it was the job of one unit to advance and to seek out the enemy.  As these men were approaching a hedge row they began to receive incoming fire from the enemy.  As the scene unfolded it was evident that the firing was coming from the hedgerow and while the soldiers could see the fire flashes from the enemy guns coming from within the hedgerows across the fields, it was basically impossible to accurately see where the guns had been placed.  It was an effective tool in the German defensive positioning and with their guns trained on the openings in the hedgerow across the field it was like the Allied soldiers were sitting ducks.  Even though the Allied soldiers knew that behind the opposite hedgerow there was no way that they could determine just how many were waiting for them.

Hedgerows can appear in many different shapes and sizes they do not have to be a manufactured or natural row of bushes.  This country has enjoyed many such hedges in our defined nations, even when our nation was growing.  For a while the Mississippi River was a large natural boundary and served as our national boundary for decades.  It was not until President Thomas Jefferson acquired land through the Louisiana Purchase that our national boundary extended far beyond the Mississippi.  Lakes also define part of our northern border and other bodies of water define our western and southern borders with a land mass completing the southern and northern parts.  All of these natural boundaries form an invisible hedge around our country with a few checkpoints along the edges just for good measure.  But in all honesty how well are these boundaries going to protect us? And how will we be sure that in time that these unguarded boundaries will not be regularly penetrated by people and forces that wish to do us harm?  The answer is simple and clear, we do not.

Another example of a hedge would be something called a perimeter.  This type of example can be closely related to since many of us place one around our hearts for personal protection.  We tend to like to feel comfortable in our choices of who we allow into our personal lives, it also serves as a barrier to an organized living facility, one such as a military base.  With the exception of an isolated artillery shell the base cannot be attacked until the perimeter is breached unless of course an airborne air defense system is in place as well.  In any case the perimeter must be attacked and penetrated before any enemy can advance inside the base.  In many cases natural boundaries can serve as a hedge and in this country there are many who tend to rely upon our natural boundaries as such of a hedge.

It has been apparently clear that many people within this country do not believe that there is a security problem around our borders and that there are just as many people who stand in opposite opinion as well.  It is also clear that many people understand that there are people in other parts of the world that do not see eye-to-eye with our ideologies and their animosities have grown large enough that they wish us physical harm.  As I am writing this article it is during the daytime hours and as I look outside a window I notice that it is cloudy and that I cannot see the blue sky and the sun.  While I cannot see the blue sky and the sun I know they are there above the cloudy barrier which I can see.  The same concept holds true about the other natural barriers that we deem big enough to protect us from those who seek us harm.  It would be the utmost acclamation to believe that our natural boundaries enhanced by the trust of humanity would serve as an impenetrable protective device, but throughout history we have only proven wrong about our choices of protective perimeters. 

For most of my life there has been no question that America has been the formidable country in the world.  We have stood strong for many causes and have defended many countries and regions from invading forces.  No, we have not ascertained every circumstance correctly and we have made many mistakes along the way.  We have, however, had our problems in admitting to some of these mistakes and have even ignored some of them.  Our country has always came to the defense of those who are in trouble and seek to have a better life and it this principle that defines a part of our hedge around us for we have not only introduced those who are seeking physical refuge but we have also introduced these people to God as well.  Sadly, this tide has turned and while we are still allowing many to cross our borders for physical reasons we have voluntarily left out God in this process.

Yes our country has witnessed its share of attacks with a few of these attacks being grand in their execution.  Many of the people have cast doubt about why this occurred and to who were responsible for these acts.  Many arguments and debates have ensued and are continuing to occur each week concerning the matter but one foundational moment has been left out and that is to why the act occurred and why we have not corrected our behavior accordingly.  It is this hedge of protection, you know, the ones that we always believed were impenetrable that have been penetrated and has leveled our playing field to everyone else’s vulnerability.  But, isn’t that what our government wants anyway, equal playing fields on all levels?  Our defensive borders are proving more each day that they are not as reliable and secure that we make them out to be, which means that for some reason we have allowed holes to be cut into our hedge; and we have no idea as to why this has occurred, but it should be clearly evident as we watch them unfold before our eyes.

In the book of Job there is a setting that takes place that is very telling.  Most people know about the story of Job and some even use it against God in order to question His authority and judgment over humanity.  But if a person understands this setting and knows the exact meaning of this setting, then they will also know that God is in control of the situation and that we do have a real hedge around our lives, both a personal hedge and a national one.  Our enemy makes a huge statement here that should ring loud and clear to both our spiritual and physical lives and it deals with the protective hedge that God has around our lives.  Our enemy clearly states that he recognizes that there is a hedge around Job and that as long as this hedge is around him, he cannot do anything to challenge God and His statement about Job.

This is a huge admission from our enemy.  It says that once God places a hedge of protection around something, even Satan himself cannot touch what is being protected and hidden behind it.  It also states that no matter what trial or obstacle our enemy can throw at the hedge, nothing can get through its protective weavings.  To be honest I have no idea what kind of protective wrapping that God has around us and my mind can only configure some type of bush hedge around each of our lives as our protection.  It is also hard for me to imagine that the blood of Jesus can provide this same covering for my spiritual life as well, but whatever the method within the spirit realm God uses, it is effective enough to keep out His immortal arch enemy from damaging His own beloved.  This also begs the question as to why we would readily serve a defeated god or ruler.  When someone in authority admits that his methods, knowledge, and extent cannot penetrate his objective without some other type of intervention, he is a defeated being.  There really is no need in any further definition of our enemy, yet humans give him so much room to operate.

The next logical question that comes to mind would be: what are we in need of protection?  And the answer to that question can be easily given in two words, the world.  The separation from the world has been written in many ways throughout the Bible and in no uncertain language has this message been misleading.  The enemy of God rules the world and thus our enemy rules the world.  Our enemy does not care about you or any part of your family, for it is his utmost desire to separate you from our Creator through worldly practices.  It is this spiritual hedge about our lives that keeps this separation from the world in order and it eases God’s heart to know that His children are living within the confines of that hedge.  It does not matter how our enemy gets through the hedge in order to test us against God and His laws, the fact of the matter is that God is in control of that hedge yet at the same time does not hover over it and not allowing it to be voluntarily removed either.  All sides are in play here and both God and Satan are keenly aware of this; however, there are many humans walking on this rock who do not know this and are systematically bowing to the god of this world thus removing the hedge enough for a tactical attack then all out assault.

One must keep in mind that if our enemy knows that he cannot penetrate this spiritual and holy hedge around us then he must find away to get us to do it or to have God remove its protective branches.  As we will see in the next two parts of this topic there are some fascinating settings that are in play for our lives, and the questions of who has the authority to remove this spiritual hedge about our lives will be answered as well.  The answers may not suit some people but as we all have found out in our life, the truth is not always easy to swallow.  The answers will also provide a vivid picture of what our lives mean to God and how important it is to follow His words of wisdom and eternal life.  And it is always comforting to understand more of how God moves through His original plan or restoration and peace; talk about a placement for furious love.

DLB

Giving Up

Giving Up

2/18/15

The title of article is a bit touching but rest assured it comes strictly from God and no other source.  Yes it will step on some toes and yes it is meant to for there is something big approaching this society and while it is on a collision course it still can be stopped from occurring.  It is the direct subject of this article that can change this collision course and it needs to be spread as far and as fast as possible in order for things to be changed.  Never mind the religious contents in the article as examples for God is strictly interested in your heart instead of your religious practices.

Many of us have at one time or another made a New Year’s Resolution and immediately after making such change vowed and declared that this year will be different and that there would be no stopping us from upholding our promise.  We all start out with good intentions and for a while it seems like our will power will conquer this task without any problems.  I can guarantee that if you ask a person who has tried this method of quitting something that they will say that it was not too long until the desire to fulfill the stopped habit returned and that their mind was riddled with tortuous thoughts of the kicked habit.  I know that I have been in that category and to be fair there are some habits that I returned to without any hesitancy.  And, just as millions of others who have made these types of resolutions, we fell right back into what we had “given up” within a few weeks or months.

There is no question that our intentions are of a good nature, for at some point, whether it is jokingly or with a serious tone, and we decide that our will to keep this habit out of our lives is smaller than the habit itself.  The next logical question that one makes is sometimes addressed and most of the time is ignored and that is of what happens when we allow this habit to return? How important does the returned habit become in our life and do we increased the frequency of this habit and mutate it with our added desires?  Most would quickly admit that it is back in our lives but will not admit to its further deepening within our mindset and functionality.

I remember a few weeks after 9/11 occurred and how the people of the world seemed like they were going to return their hearts back to God.  Momentum was strong within the church communities and the attendance which had sloughed off prior to 9/11 was back to its earlier levels and from all indications deemed to surpass those levels.  Excitement was back in the church walls and the people were back out displaying their beliefs to others without any care in the world.  On the surface it looked like this event served its purpose and that we were once again back on tract as a godly nation and society.  The news even carried a weekly short clip of when the president entered into the church building every Sunday; things were changing, so it seemed.

A few days later I was watching the news and one of the news channels was giving an interview to a well known person who did not believe in God and represented an organization that clearly wanted God out of our national business and basically out of our personal lives as well.  One of the questions that the news anchor asked this person I found very bold and very upfront but it was the person’s answer that meant more to me and stuck with me up until this very day.  The question that was asked to the person went something like this: With all of the people in this country praising God and saying that we are turning to God for answers, how does that make you and your organization feel about the stance that you have? 

The answer that this person provided kind of took me off a bit and at the time I had no idea of exactly what he was saying about this country and society but his answer rings loud and clear today.  He answered the question in this manner: we understand that there will be a time of mourning in this country and throughout the world, we accept this.  But after a while and when the cries diminish, we will return to our course and continue our efforts to remove God from all governmental establishments from this country.  His candor and demeanor while he was answering spoke volumes to me as well, for both were very calm and collected with no animosity, hesitancy or anger presented, only a purposeful and directed statement that had been calculated out and accurately delivered.  And his answer serves as the basis of this article and just how important it is in our lives.

While many people would automatically become upset with this answer and wish to debate him on this setting but more importantly he understood the inner conditions of our lives more than we did and do today.  He had the decency to tell us the truth and instead of us realizing this truth we have physically began to argue our religious roots through our denominational stances and history.  It is one thing to know your history and stance but it is another to recognize this history and stance and what is being portrayed to others.  See, other people will notice our stances and history and will weigh our actions accordingly just to grasp an idea of how firm we are about the issues that “define” us.

The person answering this interview question knows Christians well enough to understand that in a short time our outward cries towards God for our wrong doings and for the attacks on our land will fade.  This person understands that our actions are strictly superficial in nature and has no meaning from the heart.  Most of the younger generations have never had this truth placed within their hearts and many of the older generations which fervently lived through their faith have gone to be with God or are deemed irrelevant by the world’s standards.  It is frightening to know that atheist groups and non religious people know more about the condition of our spiritual lives than we do.  Tell me if I am wrong but isn’t that scenario supposed to be reversed?

Want a biblical example?  How about the children of Israel that were wandering in the desert for forty years?  Look at all of the trials that they incurred while they made the trek in those conditions.  At first it seems like God was very cruel in His methods of freedom, and for the most part it becomes clear that the majority of the people did not understand exactly why they were being led around for so long.  It is also clear that the leaders of the people did not completely trust God enough to find ways of showing how God took them out of Egypt but still had to take Egypt out of them while they were approaching their promised destination.  A setting in which the Church leaders of today are following to a tee!  In order for those people to be totally free, they needed all of the Egypt out of them as well and there would be no way that God could totally set them free until Egypt was gone from their hearts.

It became abundantly clear that the children of Israel had plenty of Egypt remaining within their hearts due to the fact that God allowed them to have some time alone while He talked with Moses on the mountain.  We all know the story of how the people lost their focus on God and accepted their immediate surroundings and began to build their own temples according to their selfish and “Egyptian” desires.  A gold calf was soon erected and the party began and continued even as Moses was coming down from the mountain.  The people did not repent of their sins but they argued and made excuses for their actions.

As time continued, the children of Israel eventually became a gathered nation and had defined borders.  For a while they served God and obeyed all of His laws of protection without too many difficulties.  However, as time went along more and more people began to stray away from God and began to serve themselves instead.  The blatant falling away became a necessity and an unwritten law that the entire nation adopted as their own.  Idols popped up and ungodly sacrifices crept into their society until God was left out completely.  God allows this to occur because of His covenant of choice with mankind but their actions had reached its limit and God had to do something in order to preserve their own survival, both physically and spiritually.

In 722 BC, a basically unknown army came to power and with a few years time totally destroyed the Kingdom of Israel, enslaved its population and scattered them across the known globe.  The results of this movement began one of the largest and more ruthless empires that this world has ever known, the Assyrian Empire.  While its rule eventually faded away its lasting effects on Israel lasted up until the modern times when Israel was once again a formal nation.  One would have to question that it took that long to get Egypt out of Israel?  It does pose an intriguing thought.

A custom that many people around the world practices today is called Lent.  This custom of Lent beings at a certain time each year and lasts for a set period of time.  It is a wonderful concept and one that people should live out every day of the year and not for a short period of time.  I know that it is our goal as Christians to live this practice but do we really grasp the spiritual concepts of this custom and it should be applied to our lives each day and not for a short period of time.  It is this custom that God wants us to examine and He wants us to understand the full intent of this custom that goes back far beyond of the origins of the Church.  It is a custom that began with the first sin in the Garden of Eden and it shall be in place until the end of times simply because of the choices we made a very long time ago.

I totally agree with the concept of Lent, however, I have a problem with the length of this custom.  The idea of taking something from our lives that we recognize that is not good for us is a wonderful concept and one that we should examine daily from within our lives.  It is being a part of God’s Kingdom when we are completing this task because it removes us from the world and its deadly standards, the prime principle of Kingdom!  Keeping a bad habit or type of food, or other habit from our lives demonstrates this type of physical commitment.  But many of us fail to recognize this concept when we apply to our spiritual lives and it is this origin that the sky becomes cloudy and for a good reason.

Humans have a tendency to think only in the physical and leave out the spiritual.  This ideology is not hard to understand because we notice the physical every moment of our waking day and do not place the spiritual in like manner.  This is one explanation as to why it is easy for us to allow things back into our lives for we do not see the entire picture, being both the physical and the spiritual.  If we would comprehensively try and understand both sides to our lives we would be far more cautious in the things that we accept and deny but our enemy has done a fabulous job in jading our lives so that we voluntarily leave out both sides.

It is the “dumbing” down principle that our enemy uses in order to open doors to our lives and it is through these doors that he is able to manipulate our physical in order to dim our spiritual; since it takes a tuned heart to understand spirit.  If our physical is “dumbed” down far enough there is no way that we can ever understand past this part of our lives.  Yes we need to understand the physical but we cannot leave out the spiritual because the spiritual represents our eternity.  Would any parent tell a child “no” to something or take away something from that child that they know will harm them, just to give it back to them at a later time?  As a parent this action would be a horrible thing to do to a child especially if that parent knew that the item or situation would cause harm to their child.  And it is this part of Lent that I have problems with, if one is going to eradicate something bad from their lives, then leave out do not allow it to return.

It is compulsory that we understand that the spiritual side of our lives is eternal which means it cannot change.  We must also fully grasp that God is spirit and that He can never change.  However, the physical, and the most readily recognized, can change.  So if our enemy can manipulate our physical enough to completely override our spiritual aspect of our lives, he has effectively won us over.  Our physical lives are just that, physical and will come to an end at some point, but it is the spiritual that represents our creation in an eternal capacity.  God is spirit first and so is our spirit, both are eternal.  Hence how bad of an influence it would be for our parents to allow us to have something, take it away yet give it back to us as if nothing was wrong with it in the first place.  God cannot do this and He shall never do this for once His laws are established they must be followed by Him, no matter how hard humans try and skirt around them or try and change them.

It is the process of masking our spiritual that leads to God having to deal with the physical.  It is also why the physical has problems seeing and understanding as to why God operates in such a manner.  If our spiritual aspect is known it will allow us to know that God’s laws are in place for a reason but if we intentionally allow our physical, Satan, to blind us from our spiritual aspects, it is easy for him to steer us in the wrong direction yet at the same time allow us to believe that our physical portion is doing the correct thing.  This belief does not occur overnight, it takes time.  Yes, certain events, issues or circumstances might rapidly change our immediate thinking or be the straw that breaks the camel’s back, but it takes some time for our beliefs to change.  It is through this process that people, groups and nations move from point “A” in their beliefs to point “B” in their life, with point “B” being the place where God has to do something to preserve mankind.

It is this portion of Lent that I struggle with, the spiritual side of it.  I can only imagine if there are those who really take this time of the year and apply the concept all year around.  In all honesty I believe that this is what the “fathers” of Lent intended, but I could be wrong; I would hope that they would believe in this manner.  Are we that weak not to have the desire to leave what we take out on a permanent basis?  Or do we just do it because there is only a set time, as the religious laws have set into motion?  Taking something away and then allowing back into your life is like giving it a general or an army a victory parade upon their victorious return from battle.  Their return into our life serves as a mantle or trophy case in which we are physically and spiritually saying “your presence is welcomed in my house and you may have whatever room you desire” or something along those lines.  It is a dangerous game and if we allow it to continue the Church as we know it shall not be around much longer.

God challenges us to keep the concept of Lent within our hearts, not for a certain period of time but for all time.  It is through the separation of our physical and spiritual lives that represents the full completeness of Lent and the exact Kingdom principle that is first on God’s list for us to apply.  Allowing God to have certain portions of our lives for a certain amount of time only produces a Church that is weak and susceptible to deadly attacks simply because she is blind, and if you look at the Church today that is exactly what you shall see.  It also explains as to why the things of the world are occurring as they are, for the Kingdom that rules the land is in full control and the fruits of that Kingdom will be displayed.

It does not take too much study to find out that humans follow patterns and from the patterns that the world is setting before us are do so with unabated fervor.  This is because the Church has stopped praying, fasting, praying, witnessing, praying, standing up for God and praying that these worldly conquests are being allowed to develop and grow fortuitously.  The Church needs to take a stand for godly issues and to ensure that God’s choice is heard.  It is not an issue that the world does not care about God, this is a given!  It is our responsibility to tell the darkened world AND the darkened Church that God is just about to point “B”. We need the entire spiritual and physical meaning of Lent in our lives at all times and if we do not, study Israel in the year 722 BC and you will have a general idea of what our lands will be giving up.

God desires for us to keep Lent in our hearts but not for a short or an allotted amount of time, but on a continual basis.  We need to pray that we allow God enough access to our hearts that He shows us what we need to get rid of within our lives, permanently.  If we allow God to accomplish this within our hearts there will be no question about having the presence of idolatry or double standards ever.  God is a loving God and a Creator who wants nothing but the best for His children.

DLB

God's Jealousy

God’s Jealousy

2/15/15

Many people have been puzzled about this statement in the Bible and for good reason too.  Jealousy is one of the more dangerous feelings a person can have, yet it is promoted by Moses as a relative emotion from God.  There is a purpose behind God’s jealousy and it has nothing to do with the physical type that we display towards others, yet its Garden origins come from a holy plane which in turn, just like clockwork is corrupted by the god of this world and then presented to whomever will accept it.  God’s jealousy begins with a pure, perfect and holy relationship that is stripped of its roots and then pursued furiously by our Creator to restore it by the same means that it was taken.

It amazes me how God shows me things and how these things all originate in the book of Genesis.  The setting in the Garden of Eden grows more every day in my life and I have a feeling that this knowledge of our beginnings has many more added things to be shown to us.  I thank God that He has opened my eyes to this knowledge and since it has brought into my existence many answers about life and how God loves us, it too will provide many answers to those who read the words that God has given us. Yet, this truth is not directly spoken about in the Garden of Eden setting and is not physically mentioned until Exodus. However, if one grasps this principle the implications of this character of God become crystal clear and can be understood even in its complexity.

Before we can advance to the main focus of this article in Exodus I must set some background information in Genesis and more specifically the relationship that was present between God and man.  We all know that God created mankind in a perfect state, one that we cannot fathom or comprehend today.  It is hard for us to even imagine how our bodies functioned in this unique state and to be honest at times I am jealous myself of that state because I know that while I draw breath on this earth I shall never achieve the same state that Adam and Eve had the privilege of living in at one time.  But it is this state of perfect physical conditioning that begins this story and defines the origins of God’s jealousy.

See, when God created our lives we were perfect and holy just as God is.  We were made in His image and we knew no sin, destruction, calamity or any other type of death inducing condition.  We were in a complete and total perfect state.  We all know that God is perfect and has not changed from that state ever, nor shall He ever change from that state either.  Since God created us in this state He could have direct contact with us and this is specifically mentioned in Genesis and from the context of these verses, it was a daily routine between God and man.  Humans actually walked and talked with God, saw His presence and the opportunity to understand everything that our minds could handle, no impurities added, no corruption presented, just the truth about everything.

God reveled in this communication with mankind and one can only imagine the things that God shared with Adam and Eve during this timeframe.  It is also implied that God throughout these meetings with mankind did not hover over His creation but enjoyed having these conversations with His most prized creation.  So, what happened to change this course of this perfect relationship?  In no way did God ever want any division to set in between Him and humanity.  It was humans that changed this course and thus initiated God’s jealousy. 

I must admit that it is easy for us to throw stones at Adam and Eve for the choices that they made and to which we still are enduring today.  But we must also take into consideration about what occurred in God’s life at that moment as well.  In our thinking God should have ended humanity right there and started over, but it was not like that and to be honest, that line of reasoning represents death anyway and God despises death, so it was not an option.  God did not change that day, only mankind did.  It was the state of perfect life that was changed in our lives, not God’s life.  He remained perfect and holy in every way, which means that we chose to separate from Him and through these actions we were cast from the realm of the perfect state.  It also means that we had been around God long enough to know about choices and how they could affect our lives, for God could never allow something to occur in our lives without us being aware of its potential.

So from this evidence we must conclude that the relationship between God and man changed dramatically.  Enough to provoke an emotion from God that in human terms throws out all the stops and every response is fair in our eyes; this is the foundation for what humans call jealousy.  The Bible does not say that God became angry but it does say that God had to deal with the situation immediately and firmly, thus setting the stage for His divine jealousy to begin.  I can only imagine what was going through the minds of Adam and Eve while God was standing there listening to what God had to say about the entire situation. However, I do know that all parties involved in that “come to Jesus” meeting knew that the relationships between all parties had changed.

God can create only things that are of His state, which means that something has to happen in order for this state to change. God also represents everything that our lives can know about life, which means that He can only create life.  This is the type of relationship He had with mankind and the only one that He could have created and it is this type of relationship between God and mankind that was defined in Genesis.  Therefore, this type of perfect relationship was the standard upon which our lives are based and thus the separation that occurred in the Garden of Eden is the reason as to why God is jealous, it is because He desires His perfect, divine and holy relationship back with His prized creation.  This jealousy resonates through His love for us and the desire for Him to once again have direct and face to face contact with us again.  This also explains why God has provided the perfect restoration plan as well with the perfect sacrificial lamb in place to complete this process.

A quick side note here before I continue.  This relationship status between God and man also serves as a standard as to why God cannot change His ways, His laws, or His goals.  It was our choice to leave the Garden of Eden through our disobedience and it was our choice to allow our enemy to gain access into our lives.  If God did not love us in the manner in which He has stated, then it would be no big deal for Him to bend the rules and allow us to worship ourselves or other gods instead of Him.  It also sets the stage for the battle that our enemy wants over our lives and just how important and precious you are to God.  God wants to communicate with us on every level that we can imagine and it is through this restored state that God pants after.  Just as a parent longs to be with their child that has died or walked away from the relationship, it “kills” God to know that any of His children are not in direct relationship with Him too.

Through the choices that we made in the Garden we no longer have the direct access as Adam and Eve once shared with God. But that does not mean that the potential of having such a relationship with God was forever gone, for God is a loving God and generous Father who wants nothing more to forgive His children and to restore them back into relationship with Him.  In order for us to comprehend this act we must understand the basic principles of what is involved and to what extent we must go to in order for the perfect level of relationship to be restored.  God shall never force Himself on any one of our lives and since this is a fact He must find ways to show us what steps are involved in order for us to use our hearts and make a choice.

The proof of this process immediately began in the Garden while God was instructing Adam, Eve and Satan about the consequences of their actions.  While God was speaking He made it clear of the consequences of their actions but also at the same time pointed out that mankind would have another opportunity to be restored thus proving that the order in which we were created was divinely manifested and not by mere circumstance or chance.  God, Satan and humans knew that it was a choice to disobey in the Garden of Eden and to this day it is still our choice to obey or to disobey God and His laws.  There is a way to restoration and God has provided us with the steps for us to complete this process.  They are all located in God’s Word and they are for everyone who chooses to abide by them; all provided in the foundation of God’s jealousy for perfect and holy relationship with Him.

I cannot say that everyone has fallen into the category of being jealous, but most of us have at one point or another in our lives. I was not immune to such feelings and when I look back at those times in my life I now realize that I did some pretty stupid things in order to try and win back the things that I had lost or did not have.  I also have to admit that as time passed along my efforts through jealousy dwindled and at some point died off completely and I went along with my life.  Most humans will take this type of measure to prove their wants or love for something or someone, usually because our egos are hurt in some fashion. 

It is in this pursuit that we make fools of ourselves trying to force an issue that many times is long gone with no hope of returning.  How many relationships or material wants satisfy us if we get our wish?  I would venture to say that not many of them and even none of them if all sides had their say.  Our jealousy is flawed because all we can offer is flawed foundations and that is another reason why our enemy has used this platform in order to scourge us from the potential perfect relationship with God.

So why is God’s jealousy different?  It is well known that we inherit the features of our parents and it is also known that many traits that we have within our lives strictly comes from our family members; even the ones that have been long gone.  These traits are good to have but they are flawed and carry a weight that no one can rid themselves from.  God did not create us in this fashion we “created” it when we chose to do things our way.  Since God did not change He still offers us a complete restoration and perfect relationship with Him, which is what our lives overall crave and need to survive. 

God’s jealousy is providing us with a complete restoration without human selfish intentions attached, only pure and unadulterated love from the One who created our entire existence.  It is through this perfect relationship status that God’s has the authority to be jealous because He understands exactly what will happen to our eternal lives if we do not choose to return to this type of relationship.  We have no clue of what things will be like if we are eternally separated from God but they must be pretty bad if God allows humans to die in order to wake other people and nations up before the same consequences hit them.

If we look in the book of Exodus Chapter 34 we have the central “problem” verse where it states that God is a jealous God, even His name means jealous.  Moses is having a conversation with God and God is reminding him about how important it is for the people of Israel to obey the laws that God has set before them.  God gives details of why it is important that we have nothing in our lives that represents us other than God Himself.  He speaks clearly of what will occur if you do place God second or fiftieth in our lives and while it may bring physical and worldly pleasure to our bodies, it prepares us for the complete separation from God.  If a person reads the entire passage that I am referring to (Ex 34:10-16) it is not hard to realize that with our current way of living and the actions of the people in this passage one could not distinguish between the two if necessary.

It does not take too much understanding that if a person, group or nation decides to run things on their own, they will eventually fall.  God does not wish to see this occur, but He cannot do one thing about it if we continually snub Him from our lives.  The Israelites had no excuses for their activities and choices that they made and neither do we.  In both settings the people knew what God had done for them and had chosen to leave Him for their own ways and ideas, literally enslaving humanity into the world.  It is this lie that our enemy revels in and laughs at us each time we allow the world to grab and to hold to our lives tighter.  For he knows that at some point God will have to act and correct His children and while it is occurring many will not even get as to the reason why.  They will blame, but never truly understand why it is occurring.

 It is sad that even the children of Israel did not really understand the full scope of God’s jealousy.  I have to admit that today’s Christian does not either and I cannot exclude myself from that category.  Yes, God has shared with me a portion of this topic but my finite mind cannot fully comprehend what eternity is yet and I dare not wish to spend it separated from my Creator.  I do know that it is easy to ignore or not try and recognize this concept because of the magnitude for which it stands, but if one grasps this concept it is easier to accept the entire setting of Jesus’ beatings and the reasons why His blood had to be shed for our sins.  Yes, our lives are that important and yes, there is a war going on for your life and it is imperative that we keep this principle in the forefronts of our hearts and minds.

Now, is the jealousy that we project like God’s?  In no way can we honestly answer “yes” to that question for we do not understand eternal separation.  It is known that when something goes wrong in our lives we will find another or something new.  We can start over and try our best to do things better the next time around.  God does not have that option.  We have one life only and if we leave God out of our life the world shall replace Him.  Our physical lives as of this moment have choices and it is through these choices that our eternal sanctuary is dependent.  God understands that if He loses you after you draw your last breath, then you are lost for eternity, He cannot build another you or start over again.  This defines God’s jealousy for us and when one conceives this fact in our hearts it becomes crystal clear as to why God openly admits that He is jealous.

God’s jealousy is based purely upon the “loss potential”.  Once a person leaves this earthly planet and does not know God, there is nothing left to be done.  God understands that even though it hurts Him to no end He cannot make one exception from His laws.  It does not matter how many good deeds a person, group or nation has done it all stems from that person’s heart and how they have accepted God or rejected Him.  Our lives as we know it function in a separated state from God and we cannot change this for any reason.  Only the blood of Christ can place us into a restored, holy and perfect relationship with God the Father. Our lives are separated from God but we have a chance to change this status by accepting Him as our Savior.  The only difference from the condition that we live in now and after our lives are over as we know it is that God’s jealousy will no longer be in place and our choice will have already been made.

DLB

Eating Brussels Sprouts

Eating Brussels Sprouts

2/14/15

We know that many of us do not like these glorious vegetables and we also know to what extent some of us will go to in order to avoid eating them.  For those of us who like these little wonders we sometimes feel isolated and separate from the majority of others.  But in either case we need to recognize that it takes all kinds of people to make things go around and it is just as important to realize that no matter what a person likes to eat they are a part of the human race and part of the overall plan of God.  This concept also applies to a special group of people that are not normally spoken about yet they have reputations that precede them and who struggle over the decades while they live with this stigma.  So, eat up and enjoy!

I had a conversation the other day with one of my friends about brussels sprouts and how wonderful they were.  When I mentioned this fact to her she immediately turned and looked at me and plainly asked “how can you eat those nasty things?”  I said easy and that I put them on a fork move them up to my mouth open my mouth, and that is when the conversation ended because she hit me.  She went on about a five minute explanation of why she did not like them that included every detail from their color, smell and texture.  I can understand this about Brussels sprouts because they have a unique flavor and tastes and for a long time I had to use vinegar with them in order for me not to rethink my choice in vegetable.  However, my love for these wonders continues to grow today, so much so that I am seriously considering raising them in my garden soon.

While many of us know that vegetables are good for us, most of us, including myself, could not tell which vitamins and minerals each vegetable has within their structures.  Some may know that carrots are good for our eyes but why is that?  Others may know that corn and potatoes have certain starches that our body needs for every day function, but do we know which starches are in these foods?  It would be safe to say that the majority of us do not know the exact names and specifics of each vitamin and mineral in vegetables, but we do know that they are good for us.  They serve a specific purpose and God knew that we would need their services at some point in our lives, so He provided a great resource for these vitamins and minerals, another fantastic opportunity or option to ensure a healthy life.

It is well known that many kids have trouble eating their vegetables and some of the methods that parents have installed to make our children eat them can be quite creative and hilarious as well.  I know that my girls do not eat every vegetable that I do and it is kind of frustrating sometimes when they turn their noses up at food that is good for them.  But all of us have to endure this task and it is important that we understand that not everyone is going to accept the same foods that we like.  We have a tendency to joke about this concept but for many people in this society the game has not been easy to deal with and for others it has even driven a wedge in between families.  It does seem kind of silly but in reality it is the truth.

My parents did not have too much trouble with me in this area.  Being born and raised in the south, we had fresh vegetables almost every day and for the most part loved every variety that was placed in front of me.  My parents had a motto that they would say every once-in-a-while and it still rings true in my head today.  They were never mean or ugly about this saying but they wanted to make sure that I understood that many people in the world went hungry and that I should appreciate the food that we had because there could be a day that I had none and would fall into the same category as millions of other people.  This concept hit home to me and even until this day I say this short phrase to my girls, hoping that they too will understand the importance of God’s gift of food and how important good food is to our lives.

What about the kids whose parents forced them to eat their vegetables and would not let them leave the table until they did?  I have heard many stories of this nature along my life’s journey and each one of these stories has one of two endings.  Either these kids ended up liking the vegetables or they still cannot stand them today.  This is a common result of what occurs when people are forced into doing something that they do not approve of at first.  The degree of “force” that is used in this method also plays a factor in how kids respond to vegetables, along with other conditions and situations, down the road.  I know that at the time of incident, the parents probably are not thinking about how their children will act when they are adults concerning this issue or how they will approach this issue with their children along the way.  But in every case, some type of procedural catch will arise in the future whether in the mind or in the heart.

What about our Christian lives do they or can they fall into this same category?  More specifically what about the lives of preacher’s kids?  Ever thought about comparing a preacher’s kid to brussels sprouts?  If one stops and thinks about the comparison or to any other food, clothing or any other item that humans could despise it is very possible to see the likeness.  I could use the Church in this setting but I am going keep on track with the preacher’s kid concept because we are a special group of individuals that are rarely talked about, notice quite often and misunderstood most of the time.  We are a small group that has similar feelings and worries but in the end we have one or two final decisions that we make in order to live out our lives.

Being a preacher’s kid is a unique experience and one that has a life-long memory lane that if completely told would never end.  It is a category in which certain requirements are expected, both in the do and don’t categories and it is these categories that many of us struggle with for decades.  As with vegetables preacher’s kids have the knowledge of some of the intricate details of the Church and about God but it is ultimately the way that these subjects are presented to us that make or break us with God and the Church.  This view is a unique one and will have very different takes upon it which means that the shape, texture and content will be different from all of the other common vegetables – people.

I cannot control what other preacher’s families do or how they conduct their everyday household, but I do understand that this setting is very important to us and it directs us in many aspects and decisions along our paths.  I know that some preacher’s kids were forced to go to church every time the doors were opened and scolded when they missed a service for whatever reason.  I also recognize that some of my fellow PK’s were not allowed to participate in any or most extra-curricular activities at school because of this rigid structure that they were required to adhere to.  I know from a personal level that not all preacher’s kids lives fall into this category and that some were taught a little differently when it came to these conditions.

First of all people must recognize that PK’s did not choose to have this status plunged upon them, it was inherited to us by the calling of God on our parents.  It is through this calling that places us into a special and unique category because the positions that our fathers and mothers hold.  It is this calling against the world that represents why PKs are vulnerable to added temptations to rebel from God and His ways.  It is this status that brings the description of a brussels sprout into light, and to be fair, I question sometimes, through the stories that my fellow PKs tell, if the parents of PKs actually realize this inherited status on our lives.  I do not mean to sound harsh or provide animosity within the hearts of anyone involved in this process, but this subject is one that is separating PKs from God and, in turn, personally live tortured lives because of the pressures surrounding them.  It is not easy being placed into this category and for many the lives that they live, both at home and church, can vary greatly but when it is all said and done everyone knows the real life of the brussels sprout in question.

I had a conversation with my mother the other day concerning this subject.  I have always been proud of the fact that I was a preacher’s kid and that I really had no ill feelings towards God or them for the calling that God has on my family.  I was one of those kids that was expected to be in church each week but I was allowed to have a life when it came to being around friends, after school activities and other engagements that took me away from church services on occasion.  My mother disagreed with me on this portion and was under the belief that they forced me to go to church but I quickly responded that they did not.  Yes, they expected me to be in church but they never forced me to be there and I explained to her that this condition was a huge difference and that not every PKs household was the same as ours.  Ministers have to make some hard stands when it comes to their families and it is through these stances that make or break their effectiveness within their communities.  The same goes for PKs as well and the same discretion should be applied on this level as well.

Secondly, I understand why people do not like certain vegetables, for one of the major factors in their decision not to like them is because they were forced to eat them when they were younger.  The same principle applies to PKs and it is because of these measures that many leave God and never return to Him.  Some of my fellow PKs turn before they leave home but others wait until they are no longer under the guardianship of their parents.  Yet others stay focused upon God and the plan for their lives with some becoming ministers themselves.  I wish I could say that this pattern fit for every PK out there, but it does not and so does the manipulative games that our enemy plays with PKs as well.  This phenomenon does not occur within one denomination, all are represented in this category. 

An area in which many PKs do not understand lies in living within the confines of a holy minister and the added blessings upon their lives, this calling also brings extra unwanted attacks as well.  I must admit that PKs serve the church in many ways and for most of us we do not comprehend this status until we are older, if even at all.  Parishioners, congregations and the actual community can pretty much gather the necessary information about the minister and their churches just by the way that their families conduct themselves; an example of a blessing or a curse.  Is this always a 100% evaluation? No, but it does provide a great deal of value to those trying to make decisions upon the Church.  This is why it is very important that people understand the added pressures on PKs, for we are a prime target of our enemy.

On a third level, we PKs also need to understand that we should not deliberately cause trouble for our parents.  Ministers have a hard enough position within the world and they too face many worldly pressures in which they have decisions to make.  Yes, sometimes ministers can be harsh and even present ugly family situations for they are humans as well, but our position is one that we need to keep in order and do not further damage our reputation by creating extra havoc on our family.  I have known many PKs and other “high ranking” church official’s kids with attitudes of anger and hate towards their parents and vow to do what they wish and thumb their noses at the way they were raised.  Kind of sounds like the Church and how she is acting today.

It is easy for us to make things a little more difficult on our parents if we are forced to go to church and to attend each and every function that is held at the church.  For the most part we comply with this effort out of respect for our parents and their positions, but not all adhere to these activities.  It is at this point where many PKs make the decision to rebel and allow dissention into our hearts and once this has begun, it is very easy to go out of our way to ensure we do what we want instead of what we should be doing.  For the most part this setting would apply to every kid, teenager or adult but with our added status it places us in a higher category.  It always amazes me how the words preacher’s kid or son or daughter of a minister accompanies the person when trouble finds them; it is not always true when others become involved on the wrong side of the law.

I wish I could say that every PK understood that they are not required to join the ministry, but in many circumstances this is just not the case.  It has been known that many PKs were forced to go into the ministry and be just like their parents, but what good does that origin of ministry create?  The calling of God is a special one and should be taken very seriously.  I love to listen to my dad talk about his experience with God when he was called into the ministry, but as I sit and absorb that information into my life, I am serving God in a total different capacity than what my father is; and that is perfect with God.  I recognize that I am a brussels sprout and not a carrot.  I know that my personality is unique and will hit home for some but maybe not for many.  I may grow within the same vegetable garden as the peas, onions, garlic and tomatoes, but my presence and growth patterns are surely different than them common vegetables.  Be kind to us brussels sprouts, for we serve a special purpose in someone’s life.  Ministers be good to your vegetables for they represent you and your legacy within God’ Kingdom.  Yeah, we are going to stand out and be different, carry a certain stigma about us and attract some really goofy characters, but that is why God made us to ensure that all types of people are reached for the goodness that God has for our lives. 

For those brussels sprouts that have gone sour, I pray for you and I hope that one day you allow God to restore your viability once again.  God loves you and He understands all of the pains and hurts that you encountered while growing up.  You have a divine purpose in life and it has nothing to do with what the world has to offer.  I cannot change your surroundings but I can once again offer you the one gift that can miraculously change your life and it is the one that you have been running from, God.  For those brussels sprouts that remained in God I salute you!!  Stand firm and hold your heads up proudly, for we are a small yet chosen group of knit wits that are special to God’s heart.  We had a tough job growing up but we came through with flying colors.  All of us should be proud of our heritage and it should embolden us to be a beacon of energy for God’s Kingdom.  God loves you and it is a love that as long as we stay within His laws, will shine to a dark and dying world and will minister to those that are lost.

DLB

Teresa of Avila

Teresa of Avila

2/10/15

Who would God use to send his message to a dying world?  Humans would place a great star to attend to this matter or someone that would draw crowds, because we like to have the spotlight upon ourselves instead of God.  Moses, David, Joshua, and all of the prophets were basic simple men and women who were considered no bodies yet God chose them to live their lives for Him out in front for a dying world to see.  Many of my readers may not have ever heard of Teresa of Avila, I had not until the other day, but God has allowed her to write a beautiful passage that spoke to anyone who wanted to listen during her lifetime and this passage still rings loud and true today for the same dying world.

As stated above, up until a few days ago I had never heard about this short poem that she wrote many years ago but when my eyes laid on it, the passage spoke volumes to me and immediately God showed me some things that He wants to share to us through this poem.  I want to be clear up front and inform my readers that in no way am I advocating this person or raising her up in any way, for this is God’s time and His alone.  Many of you know that I do not take saints seriously, I understand the concepts of their existence and remembrance but that is about it on my level.  Were they important people?  Very much so, but I just do not follow their lives as some denominations do; I guess if God continues to use these people for His messages to us, I will find out more about them.

The saint that I am referring to in this article is Teresa of Avila.  I learned about her from one of my friend’s social media pages and at first I was skeptical about even reading her post, but I am so glad I did because I would have missed the message that God meant for His people back in the 1500s and today.  I guess that is being a “good” Protestant in placing my focus on other things instead of some of the finer details of the Church’s history.  There are many things that we must learn about the Church before we can properly state that we know what is going on within the Church herself; this knowledge must also include the things that we may not like to read about along with those things we easily accept.

The short work that I am referring to I will write in two forms, one is the way that I read it on my friend’s social media page and the other is from another source that I found while reading about who this lady was.  You will see that the words are slightly different but the meaning and content are exactly the same.  I am not changing the words or their form in any way.  The first is how I read this passage on my friend’s page and is as follows:

                        “Let nothing upset you,

                          Let nothing startle you,

                          All things pass,

                          God does not change.

                          Patience wins all it seeks,

                          Whoever has God lacks nothing:

                          God alone is enough”

                                                                        Teresa of Avila

The second example of this passage was presented as follows:

                        “Let nothing disturb you.

                          Let nothing make you afraid.

                          All things are passing.

                          God alone never changes.

                          Patience gains all things.

                          If you have God you will want for nothing.

                          God alone suffices.”

                                                                        St Teresa, The Bookmark of Teresa of Avila

What a beautiful testament and creed for anyone who believes in God to follow and to live by because every word that this person wrote is the exact truth from God.  While I admit I do not know and understand many things about the sainthood and those that were chosen for this title I do recognize why they were deemed as such.  If each “saint” wrote truthful words as this passage it should be thoroughly recognized on every denominational level and referred to on a daily basis.  This short passage is one of passion, faith, hope and love from God and it establishes the ground work for hoe Christians should recognize Kingdom what exactly is at stake as well.

I am going to breakdown this passage line by line to demonstrate what God is saying to us here, for it will sum up some of the things that He has addressed to us for a short while now.  Plus this passage is a very comforting one and should enable the power of peace within our hearts knowing that God is ultimately in control and wins in the end.  The passage also allows us to think about how our society accepts God and how we look at His Word as guidance which I must admit is not in good standing right at the moment.  If one is honest it will grab out the questions that we need to ask ourselves about our relationship with God and then require us to make a choice about our lives.

I will be using the “version” that was on my friends page in reference to this passage as I write for the context is in a modern tongue.  The first line of the passage is “Let nothing upset you”.   Many times throughout the Bible this phrase or some type of close variant is used.  It is a comforting phrase and it should be one that we place within our forebrains because all of us know that we are constantly subjected to adverse life conditions that upset our normal lives.  The interesting word used here is “nothing” which mean that everything has a purpose whether it be for a good purpose or not and it is our responsibility to recognize these instances as such.  The beauty about this line is that the author directs us in such a way that if she understands this process, so should we placing us on an equal plane with our fellow believers.

At some point in our lives we all have been upset with someone or something.  Personal issues always seen greater than others’ problems and for the most part we treat these items accordingly.  This line puts forth the message in Ephesians 4:26 where it guides us that if we are upset do not sin in any fashion and keep true to our example towards the world.  It is very difficult for me to keep my temper sometimes and I must fight back the urge to allow it to present itself. 

Most people who know me have never witnessed me being upset and for the most part I do not become angry much, for it takes a lot to anger me.  But when I do I will always reflect back to the incident and try to see what transpired and how I presented my actions towards that person or the people involved.  Most of the time I realize that I have handled things incorrectly and most of the time go back and apologize for how I acted and learn from that incident and hopefully, not repeat it again.  It is evident that this lady understood what being upset meant and why Scriptures say to control it and do not push the enemy’s kingdom forward by our actions.

The second line of this passage states “Let nothing startle you”.  I remember the first 3D movie that I went to it was when I was very young and the movie was Jaws 3D.  I really did not even have a clue about what was about to happen but I thought those glasses were very cool so I quickly put them on and did not take them off until I was out of the theatre.  The scene I remember the most was when one of the main actors fired a harpoon at the shark and the harpoon came right at those who were in the audience, or at least it seemed this way.  The effects at which the speed of the harpoon was coming at us along with the added colors of the 3D glasses became a scene of hilarity in the audience.  Heads flew back and popcorn and drinks went all over the people around the auditorium, all due to the simple design of the scene that had just been played out.

I know that the setting above is a comical one but it demonstrates how we forget about our surroundings enough to forget how things operate within the world.  People will always do things that will shock you and some of the events that occur around the world can actually make us wonder of how we can continue to exist as a race.  It is not difficult for us to understand that humans can do some pretty ridiculous things in order to get their point or ideas across to others, but we need to remember that this is all part of our enemy’s plan to shake our faith and trust in God and to destroy the one special item that God loves so much.

If we understand Kingdom principles we will realize that all of these “shock” statements and actions are all part of a greater plan to destroy our lives.  It is not God’s will that we be subject to the horrors of the world but He does allow them to occur because of the choices that humans make.  Many who are involved in these types of actions do not understand what exactly takes place within the spiritual realm when they act upon these events and for those of us who witness these events their effects do have a lasting consequence.

Saint Teresa undoubtedly witnessed horrors during her life or at least read or heard about them while she walked this earth. Many of the history lessons that we deem boring today she either lived through or were around when the stories were real and fresh to the people.  I have often wondered how the people of the early 1500s looked upon Pope Alexander VI and what their opinions were about his antics while being pontiff.  What was it like to ride in a horse drawn wagon across the high mountainous regions of Europe just to be turned down for a meeting with another regent?  What about early modern warfare and all of its brutality; talk about post traumatic stress those guys and gals had it.

The author through this writing admits many of these things but because of her knowledge of Kingdom and who controls the earth she tells us that we do not need to be frightened when things of this type arise within our lives or surroundings.  It is imperative that we understand what power our enemy has over the earth and how many people fall into his trap by following in the confines of his hostilities and anger towards life.  She also demonstrates that if we understand this force against us we should expect it to present itself and at the same time know enough about our enemy’s forces as to not fear when turmoil comes into our lives.  It is for this reason that it is a necessity that we be prepared at all times and to recognize what is coming.  All of these things have been addressed within the Bible and it is our responsibility to live by these words of wisdom and not to blatantly ignore their content.

The next line states “All things pass” and how true this statement is displayed.  Items and events pass rapidly into and out of our lives, they leave their marks and then they are gone forever.  Many times we do not fully understand what exactly transpires when these unsettled times appear, but we can always locate their results at some point down the road.  One can look through history and tell when certain times are good and others are devastating and in these times it reinforces the verses in the bible that say God takes and gives away.

It is easy to hold onto these rough situations that affect our lives and it is far more difficult to let them go as well.  One of the human factors that all of us have built inside is a defensive mechanism that many put into play first instead of last.  It is ok for us to remember the things that have occurred in our lives but if we continue to hold tight to those memories we will soon form and shape our future measured upon those holdings.  Ask yourself this question:  what good comes out of you holding on to a memory that occurred years or decades ago that it affects your attitude towards others?  Is that a healthy gesture on your part?  I know that there are some events that have happened in my life that I still hold on to and it is tough to let them go, but God continues to tug at my heart to trust Him with these things and trusting Him to give me the strength to let them go as well; this is a tough assignment for any human.  I have also learned that as long as a person holds onto the storm results we cannot be totally free through God and in Christ.

What if Jesus had held onto those people who did not listen to His message or if He posed any animosity towards the High Priests or Roman soldiers who imprisoned Him and tortured Him?  What kind of hindrance would that action have incurred upon our futures?  Tough times are never easy and sometimes it seems like they can last forever, or that we cannot catch a break.  These storms in our life are forever lasting because God has given us the capability to move away from those storms if we choose to understand them.  As the song goes sometimes God calms the storm and in other times He calms His child.  What a beautiful concept this is and if we follow it’s meaning then no matter what the situation might be we can walk through that storm with God and know that He is right there with us.

My favorite line in this passage and the one that brings me the most comfort and peace is “God does not change”.  This is a truth that many of us seem to have forgotten and have interwoven our changing ideas with God, and this is just not possible.  On every level God cannot change for if He could then He would not be God and would prove Himself to be no better than us dirty, rotten humans.  I am so thankful that when all of the above circumstances crash upon my life I can rest assured that this line is the same no matter what my life presents.  I also find that this line is right in the center of her short passage and that it serves as the centerpiece of the other lines above it and below it.

It is not hard for me to understand that people forget this fact about God, and since people come to accept this forgetfulness it will not be too difficult for us to understand that when people forget this concept their ideas can become jaded.  All of us have reasoned with our parents when we have done bad things.  We have tried to hide things from them and when caught did our best to bargain our way out of the corresponding punishment.  God’s parenting skills are a blessing in that He gives us nudges and warnings long before He has to provide us with a harsher push.  I know that not all people had that opportunity when they were young; I thank God for my parents and the way that they raised me. 

It pains me to watch our society push God out of our lives.  With all of the historical examples that mankind has given us to learn from we are once again clogging our way up life’s journey all by ourselves.  Time and time again history has proven that mankind without God is doomed.  Up until this very moment we have the chance to make god the center of our lives and many of us still choose to ignore this calling.  Given history and what occurs to groups, states, and nations without God we have no one to blame but ourselves.  If God cannot change then we should stop trying to change Him and His laws, life would be so much simpler and easier if we just accept this fact.

The fifth line states “Patience wins all it seeks”.  Patience seeks things?  Kind of an odd statement at first but it makes perfect sense when you stop, be patient and listen to what the words say.  I have no patience.  This is a fact in my life and when I asked God to grant me patience His sense of humor kicked in and He allowed me to have four beautiful daughters.  Patience occurs over time and waiting on something to present itself can break a person’s spirit sometimes, or it would seem to.  Yet waiting for something to occur teaches us a valuable lesson and that is to listen and to watch for the sign that is promised.  This process focuses our lives onto God and His plan for our lives.  Then when we add the above lines together with this line it becomes clear as to how we are supposed to go about our everyday journeys, not relying upon our blind human senses but through the light that God provides for us.

Living in patience also teaches us to wait on God and for His timing in our lives.  If we truly believe that God is in control of our lives then this process should not be hard to accept and follow.  However, being human usually takes over our existence and causes our minds and our ambitions to take the reins and thus direct our every movement.  I fall into this category and then “patiently” wait for God to show me what He wants me to do, to say, or where to go.  If we only would understand that if we do things ourselves it is a guarantee that things will get messed up.  Only God has perfect timing and it is imperative that we understand that it is through His perfect timing and our patience that will accomplish the pushing back of the darkness.

The sixth line of the short passage says “whoever has God lacks nothing”.  This is another phrase that rips my heart into pieces because I have so violated its meaning.  The Bible refers to God providing for a bird so why would He not provide for His beloved children?  One problem however, we have a tendency to forget about what our needs are and push our wants instead.

It is a fact that everything that we have in life comes from God.  It is also a fact that humans like to compete with each other to prove to their compatriots that they can keep up with the “Jones’” in this realm.  When we see others having items or conveniences that we do not it is common for our minds to want one just like it or something else even better, stronger, or prettier; our society loves this type of competition and for the past two to four decades or so has thrived upon these issues. When this type of attitude becomes belief it is easy for us to lose focus on who actually allowed us to have the ability to acquire these toys and gadgets and when this state of mind occurs it is another step away from the One who provides us life.  God does not wish that His children are poor and suffer daily for the necessities of life, but in order for us to understand this true meaning of desires, our focus must remain on God’s gifts and not man’s.

If one takes an objective look at the “popular” people of this society they will soon find out that they are very miserable in life. They must compete with each other in order to keep themselves relevant in their worlds, which is a downgrade in overall life and if continued will produce nothing but pain and suffering when they realize that they are no longer important within their own harems.  This sad state of affairs many times brings tragedy to their lives in which it spills over into the fan base with mourning and grief, all for a seemingly dazzling and glittering end to a redundant life. 

When I was growing up and as I look to the kids of today, I see them patterning themselves after these types of people, which only delves them into a rutted world lifestyle.  They follow in these people’s footsteps, or try to at least, and totally miss what God has in store for their lives.  God’s gifts are not just physical but spiritual as well.  We all know that the physical will pass away but the spiritual is eternal and what happens in our lives if our spiritual gifts are dead and thus we cannot give to others the same gifts as God gave us?  This is something that we need to keep close in our hearts and give freely when at all possible.

The last line in the short passage presents us with a wonderful truth and something that sums up the entire passage and it is “God alone is enough”.  If we keep this statement first in our lives, then all of the previous lines in this passage will fall into place.  It is a guarantee that this will occur because when we allow this statement to be #1 in our lives, we can do nothing else but rely on God to provide every necessity of our existence.  Everything in the world becomes non important and takes its rightful place behind God.  I struggle greatly with the millions of Christians that do not live in this manner and still try and weave themselves into the world.  It is common for people with plenty to believe in this manner and we are the epitome of this mode of thinking.

We have torn God away from our lives and have replaced Him with the ways of the world.  We have ignored the truth about separating ourselves from the world as the Bible has stated over and over.  We have chosen to walk in our own ways and laws instead of examining the truth about why God placed His laws into our lives.  We have gained the gifts of God within our lives and then have bestowed nothing but arrogance and selfishness towards others.  We have incorporated our own idols and gods into our daily lives and began worshiping the one true “self” as god of our world.  We have verbally and legislatively proclaimed that humans are enough and God is no longer needed.  We have replaced God’s love with a humanistic love that accepts all lifestyles instead of understanding that God’s love is specific according to His laws, not His emotions.

When we put God first and live our lives accordingly, God blesses His children, just as we have witnessed for centuries now. God does not mean for us to gain the whole world and lose our selves in return, yet we revel in this gain and lifestyle.  God did not put into place the motions of Old Testament sacrifice just to gain a ritualistic, loveless, and religious concept of redemption and salvation but He meant for it to be a token of our acknowledgment of our sins and as a way of repentance and restoration through Him.  However, we have integrated all of these practices and implanted them into our control instead of God’s, and He shall not forget our choices.

This passage is a beautiful one and it is one that all of us need to place into our daily lives.  No, I am not saying that anyone should become Catholic or change denominations at all; however, we do need to cut out the denominational lines and become one in Christ.  When I was very young, too young to even remember, a story is told about my mother and how physically bad she was at that time.  She was facing many health problems and many of the doctors did not know if she was going to make it or not.  My parents had many “big” people within our denomination come in an pray with her, saying all of the “powerful” words of healing but it was not until a Nazarene woman came into her room and said a simple and short prayer that my mother felt the healing hand of God within her body.  I am not saying that the other people did not have faith but I can say that the little Nazarene woman believed in the healing hand of God and it became evident that day.

We no longer hear about these types of healings and miracles in this society.  It is because we have lost our faith and belief of these words that Teresa of Avila understood the truth about life and how god needs to be the center of our lives and not on the outskirts or fringes.  God loves His children so much and He wants to bless our lives in every way possible.  Not just for this society but for all societies that exist within the world but in order for this to be accomplished we must turn back to Him and obey His laws once again.  It is a nation’s heart that God gathers His resources from because if a nation turns away from Him that means that the majority of the individual hearts have done the same.  God is a just and fair God and will act accordingly to the choices of His people.

Everything in this short passage is true and this little lady has hit it on the head and I am thankful that God allowed me to run across it.  It is important that we as individuals and as a nation turn our physical and spiritual eyes back to God for if we do not our lives and our nation shall never be healed.  The Church is not exempt from this pattern either and we are witnessing a great turn away from God in this setting.  She has chosen to ignore God’s laws and then instead of mourning Her Groom has begun a love affair with the world. This is her choice for her life, not God’s.  But there is a way to restore her life back to a thriving and abundant existence again and it only can come from God which means that she must turn from the world.  God loves His children and wishes to provide every need for each person, but He shall not be able to do this until we turn back to Him.  It is time for us to repent, turn and allow restoration to come into our lives before we find out why God has placed His laws into place.

DLB