It’s been awhile since I’ve updated.
I promise to do a life update soon. Today, I just want to talk about
something on my heart.
Lately, I am more and more aware of the world around
me. I believe as you grow in Christ,
He fills you with wisdom and knowledge you have never had before to have the mind of Christ. You begin to see people and things
differently. I remember I would
journal in my early years of being a Christian and would write and ask God not
to show me these things (that were totally unseen before and now uncovered).
My heart just breaks for Christians. There is a huge missing
link and today it hit me: where is the Holy Spirit? It is as if I am part of a religion where the MAJORITY gives
no credit to anything the Spirit does.
We all got God and we credit Jesus for Salvation, but the Holy Spirit?
DO NOT MENTION that He does anything!
You literally will freak a Christian out by talking about Him. Once at the school I worked at
here, a girl said, “What is YOUR
God going to do now?” As if we
weren’t in a room filled with Christians (whom no one said anything about this
girls’ nastiness to me and her irreverence to God). Her God was different than what MY God was capable
of… Really? Her God appeared dead, unable to do anything these days and in these times. The same group that was so disgusted
that I would start a Bible study when they already had one. Christians. Mad. Mad that I
started a Bible study? No one
seemed to care that this was going on.
Ignore it. My first taste
at being a Christian and living in close community with “believers.”
One “believer” here last year wouldn’t accept I moved here because God
sent me…”OTTHERRRR than God. Why
did you come here?” No, really,
why the heck would I move from a place I love!??? Because God said GO!
Instead, I smiled and gave her a response she wanted that did not
involve the Holy Spirit.
Another wanted me to stop using my “God cards.” Surely, I was out of those, she
said. Yikes. The Holy Spirit seems to be very
offensive. (Or it might be
accepted jealousy in the church?)
So, not only do we neglect a part of the Trinity, but we
like to ignore a lot of things. We
ignore most of the Bible. By the way, does anyone really read the Bible? Or do we just say we do? I have
had to quit every Bible study I have been a part of in this country outside of
the ones I started or Luke started.
We do not talk about sin.
At all. No
accountability. Boldness for Christ
is not accepted. Unforgiveness,
jealousy, rage, bitterness, quarreling, disunity…so normal and accepted? Instead of helping a person have
victory in their sin, we just let them vent, AND HELP THEM believe that it is
NOT SIN. Anxiety? Not a sin. Worry, we all do it.
Anger outside of righteous anger…not a sin. Frustration, we all do that, too. Bible study seems to be a hang out place. Asking people to come weekly and read
what you are supposed to, is offensive.
Very offensive, I have noticed.
Come if you want, read if you want, and don’t have the courtesy to let
anyone know. Does this really seem
godly?
While I am on to lies of this world... this one is
huge. Don’t talk about end times
or the Devil! It doesn’t seem to
exist in our world. The
devil loves that we refuse to believe these things. I bet it sits right next to the lie that we all go to
heaven. I’m talking about
Christians here. Non-Christians,
you can have a seat here and just read about what you already see in the
church, sadly. Somehow it seems
that the Devil is not responsible for all the lies that people believe daily
and no demon possession is going on at all around the globe to
non-believers. No way that could
be happening. And the world? I am pretty sure no one believes it is
ever going to end… “ever.” And if
you do believe it, you are slap crazy.
But, please do not talk about it.
Pick something a bit lighter, more pleasing to people. (I find this idea so odd. When I came to Christ, I wanted all the knowledge I could soak up. What is the Truth, tell me?! I would sit through 3 sermons serving on the host team and never got sick of it! God spoke through all three services and it was the same message!
Where do these things come from? Who started, just live your life and stay out of everyone else’s? And who started you need to have a close relationship first with someone to talk to them about sin? Straight PRIDE in that sentence, yet it is a common belief. Some would say it is in the Bible! How can that be Spirit led? Holy Spirit is telling you to not accept anything from someone that sees something in you that is not of Christ? No way. Pride tells you that. Selfishness tells you that. Do not try to help others with
strongholds on their life…if you do, you are arrogant. NO WAY you could be loving in
that. Most Christians think it is
perfectly normal to go an entire day without thinking anything about
Christ. Nothing. Some in my Bible study were shocked
that that is ungodliness. I sat in
my chair in absolute disbelief that the DEVIL is this much rooted in our lives. Christians are shocked that it is NOT
okay to not think about Christ at all, ALL DAY? How do you live in the Spirit if you give no thought to Christ? A Christian doesn't even understand Spirit-ledness. WHAT! I could cry! How did the devil do this??? Lastly, do not ask places your kids attend if they will be
teaching “losing salvation.” NO
ONE WANTS to discuss that lie of the devil. Somehow the majority has decided that the foundation of what
Christ did, is not important enough to be discussed. It is offensive.
Let me tell you something: You are being deceived.
The devil is lurking in your house, around your kids and
maybe IN your kid, on every show you are watching on TV, consuming your
Facebook page, in your job, on your vacation, in your drink, in your town, in
your state, in your government, in your food choices, in your Bible studies, and in your churches. And please stop saying “We ain’t
perfect and never will be,” as an excuse for your hardened heart on the issue
you refuse to surrender to God. That sentence is straight from the Devil.
Jesus is enough.
We don’t have to change anything.
We don’t have to make it cooler or better or less “intense.” We don’t have to leave out parts of the
Bible and pick and choose what we want to talk about that is socially
acceptable…it’s all acceptable to OUR TIMES.
He is enough.
Last Sunday I was led by the Holy Spirit to stand up at the
end of the sermon to speak. As the
speaker neared the end, my body began to shake in the Spirit’s prompting. I knew the feeling allllll too often. I
HATE when God asks me to do something I do NOT WANT to do. I wrestled with Him, pleading. “Please
don’t ask me to do this. Stand
up?? No one stands up at the end
of a sermon and asks to speak to the congregation. I mean that is absolutely stupid! Change your mind, God.
Please, no.” Right before I finally got up, I heard
God ask me, “Are you going to walk out of here and be disobedient to what I am
telling you to do? Are you going
to be okay with that?”
::Zoooooom::
I was taken back to a time years ago when I was in flight
back home from a trip. I felt
prompted to talk to the man next to me about Jesus. I did not want to do it. I felt the prompt in my soul to “tell Him about Me.” I knew it was God, but had no idea what
was going on. I decided to not
talk to him… having no idea what that meant. As soon as the moment passed and it was all over, I was so
convicted. I broke out into
hysterics to what I just did. The
Spirit prompted me to do something and I flat out said no. I cried…and I cried. I was so sorry that I did not listen.
I was not going to experience that again. And, sooo I STOOD for Christ. It was to say, “Don’t close your
ears/eyes to what is going on.”
Sadly, most will think what I did was to affirm the speaker or to make
myself look like some great Christian, but what I did was speak when the Holy
Spirit demanded that I stand up in His name. I call myself a follower of Jesus, then I am to do as He
prompts me. I go where He tells
me. I do what He says. My career is what He wants. Phyllis is dead, Jesus is alive in
me. Phyllis’ desires dead. God’s
desires alive in me. I do not get
it right every time and I screw it up, but I will always strive for obedience
for the one that died for Me. A
Man that loved me long before I figured it out.
We watched Passion of Christ for Easter. Some may say that that is a bit much
for kids, but I let Jess watch.
She told me the other day, “Mom, I have these bad thoughts. (Pause) Bad, bad thoughts of Jesus all bloody and hurt on the
cross. I can’t sleep.” (I did not feel bad for her or regret letting her watch
the gruesome movie. The first time
I saw that movie, I sat alone in my living room on the floor by the couch, butt
on floor, knees up to my chest, and I cried uncontrollably at what Jesus did
for us. “We didn’t just watch some
movie, Jess, or you wouldn’t have been able to watch it. That was real. That happened. That is what Christ did FOR YOU. It totally was horrible, painful, and
so bloody.”
Tonight she said, “Mama, I’ll be sad if you die, but I know
you will be with Jesus and that is so much better than here.”
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