The Holy Spirit Loves Me

The Holy Spirit really loves me.  Of course, you say.  But I mean it.  He REALLY loves me!

This afternoon, I was putting together our new weed whacker.  I was trying to be careful and follow the assembly instructions but I managed to push the main handle sections together backward.  Ugh.  So I tried to pull it apart.  It wouldn’t budge.  I sat down and pulled the handle with my feet.  Nothing.  I called my son to come out and play tug-of-war.  No go.  I tried to wedge a flat-head screwdriver between the sections.  Nope.
I evaluated the situation and realized that it was unusable.  Weed whackers do not work upside-down.  It’s not just unsafe, it doesn’t work.  I couldn’t take it back to Walmart for an exchange without telling a lie. So I started my favorite prayer:

“Holy Spirit, please help me.  I can’t do this without you.  Please help me get this thing apart.”

And I continued wedging and pulling and praying.  Ugh.  Still no success… or so I thought!
I swallowed my pride and decided to show Brian.  I picked up the weed whacker and to my surprise, it was straight!  What?  I checked again.  And again.  Perhaps once again.  Hmm… I know that it was backward and that it didn’t twist or change in my hands.  There was only one explanation.  The Holy Spirit fixed it for me.
Yup, that’s right.  He fixed it for me.  The first thought in my mind was, “the Holy Spirit really loves me!”  It wasn’t a scream or shout or burst of praise.  Just the simple thought that has been a reality in SO many times of my life.  Everything from finding lost items to figuring out tricky computer programs to giving my family a free van.  He really loves me and cares about what concerns me (1 Peter 5:7).
Thank You, Holy Spirit.  I love you, too.
-Betsy

Intro the Spection

After all the deep introspection, yeah, I see my scars. I know enough to say, “Don’t follow me”, but not enough to say, “Go this way”. Just know who you’re following.

Keep Jesus as your compass and you will be surprised at the stormy seas you will walk upon. The ‘fiery furnace’ may not be who you’d expect, nor the ‘lions’ den’.

Jesus will see you through.

Morning Prayer Time

“Dear Heavenly Father,

We receive from You (Hands are cupped together and are pulled up to our hearts to represent receiving from God,)
all that You have to bless us with.”  My daughter then adds: “And in store for us.”
I repeat her: “And in store for us.”
“We need more!  (I reach my hand up to Heaven every time I say ‘more’,)  We need more!
We need more more more more more more more more (Arms go crazy raising and falling,)
MORE of You!
Fill us all the way up (We wiggle our fingers from our feet to up to our heads,)
to OVERFLOW! (We wave our arms out like the ocean.)
You are the only One
who knows the end (We point to our left,)
before the beginning! (We point to our right,)
And we know that You are… (My kids fill in the blank with up to 10 things matching my fingers.  Some examples include:  Good, Loving, Kind, Amazing, Patient, Perfect, Generous, Awesome, Gracious, Faithful.  One hand represents for my daughter and the other is for my sons and they race to fill their quota.  Racing is fun,).
We know these things about You, so we trust in You.”
(Then I challenge my kids to pray “HUGE!!” and I give them a chance to pray their own individual prayers.)
Then I close us out in prayer.
May this help give you ideas of how to have fun while praying with your family.
God has no limits, so why should our prayers?

Isn’t Today Beautiful?

Why don’t I write about what “they” want me to write?

“In your writings, there is pain and abandonment,” yes, there is.  I get such accusations like- “he’s not writing from His relationship with the Spirit”, but I am.  It becomes the same as Peter when he sinks.  Why does he sink?  Why did Adam and Eve eat the fruit?  Why did Jesus sweat tears in the garden?  “But you talk about things ‘they’ don’t, like ‘unanswered prayer’.  The ‘faithful’ say it doesn’t exist, but you say it does.”  Either I am not ‘faithful’ and you have made another ‘pile of sticks’ you need to jump to remain so, or there is more to this than either of us know.  It would be easy to say faith = answered prayer, one proves the other.  It verifies the Truth that we can’t see and becomes little more than ammunition for Job’s friends.
 
I say Jesus shows us another form of prayer, for the ‘faithful’- Luke 11:1-12, and for the rest of us- Luke 22:39-46.  Yes, there is answered prayer.  Hallelujah!  People get healed, are resurrected.  Yes, there is unanswered prayer.  Babies die, people live in anguish and pain.  Is ‘faith’ to still say “Hallelujah!”?  Does ‘faith’ become- how much can you take and still praise Him?
 
I say: Don’t make ‘faith’ a pile of sticks that needs to be jumped.  Resist such temptation that makes it ‘us’ who made it, and ‘them’ who didn’t.  The ‘made it’ become the ones who prayed for their sick child who is healed, and the parents get to raise him/her and see the blessings of generations, while the ‘didn’t make it’ become the parents who hold their dead baby and mourn everyday carrying sorrow in their heart.  Many shake their head at such a dichotomy and abandon the ‘faith’ because of its impotence in the face of an unjust life.
 
Where is worship?  Shouldn’t it be for the victorious, the ‘us’ who made it?  No, worship was never about ‘us’, whoever we are.  It is always about Him.
 
I have witnessed the joy of leading thousands in worship, and the pain of disease that took it all away.  “In truth, I never cared for it,” is what people say to avoid the pain of devastating loss.  I want to point people to Jesus during joy and sorrow.  He is the breeze, the shade that blocks the unbearable heat of our life-giving sun.  Why must there be both?  I don’t know, but isn’t today beautiful?

A Farmer’s Field

There is an ‘Empty’ place.

A place that seems void of Life, yet that is the place most ripe for growth.

We sense it in the wind, in the sunrise, and in the rain.

We were meant to grow, not where we are, but where God sends us.

Now is the Time, Now is the place.

We move according to His direction.

We shine wherever we go, it’s what we do.

He is the Light and we are His children.

Spiritfire; Proverbs 20:20, Light Of The World

“If someone curses their father or mother,
their lamp will be snuffed out in pitch darkness.”

There are all kinds of parents in this world. Some care too much for their children, some care too little, and still, others are variations of the two. For the ‘too much’, this Proverb stands and condemns the ungrateful. For the ’too little’, it warns the unwary. For the vain, this proverb is the ‘get away free’ card. For the abusive, it is a gateway of doom. If this is what awaits the victim before a righteous God, then what is in store for the abuser?

Ephesians 6:4 helps us to gain a fuller view of the parent/child picture:

“Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”

When we looked at Jesus, we saw Him in the garden praying a prayer that wasn’t going to get answered. His reply, as told in Luke 22:42, was not to curse God, but was in submission to Him:

“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

We kept our eyes on Jesus and saw Him on the cross. Again, He didn’t curse God. He didn’t follow the advice from Job’s wife in Job 2:9, to “curse God and die.” He didn’t sing “Good Good Father”, by Chris Tomlin, either. He said, in Matthew 27:46,

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Whatever peace filled David when he wrote Psalm 27:10,

“Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord will hold me close,”

was turned on its head as in Psalm 22. Even so, Jesus did not curse His heavenly Father. Because of that, not only did Jesus not get snuffed out, He is the Light of the world, John 8:12.

More than the coming New Year, and clearer than your glasses, Jesus fulfilled Proverbs 20:20 for the salvation of us all.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 20:19, Avoidance or Invasion

“A gossip betrays a confidence;
so avoid anyone who talks too much.”

Avoidance, the way of wisdom. It is written to protect the traveler, to bring one through their journey to Wisdom’s house unscathed. We will meet many kinds of people during our days, and trust is a valuable commodity that leads straight to our treasure rooms. The gossip, one of the 5 members of Folly’s house, will betray those who seek passage through the lands of this life. They will betray that trust, your confidence, and leave your treasures to the birds who will rob you blind. This proverb stands as another warning sign to passersby, much like a deer crossing sign, or a falling rocks sign on the road, but with a bit more prejudice. Watch out! Don’t trust them! Protect yourself!

This way of wisdom explains so much of our philosophy of success. It is much like a protective father to his daughter who is of marrying age. He wants her to find a man who will love, cherish, and protect her all the days of her life. Or like advice from a leadership manual which teaches people who to allow on your team and who to not. Or even a health coach on which foods to eat and which to avoid. A business owner/entrepreneur on what is a good or poor investment. The road to Wisdom’s house is the road to success emotionally, physically, financially, and spiritually. And its fulfillment reveals the power of the Gospel.

When we thought of how Jesus fulfilled this proverb, our philosophy of success, we saw how Jesus invaded Folly’s house. We looked at who He ministered to and those He allowed on His team. Peter fit the bill of the gossip/talebearer, one who talked too much and betrayed Jesus. He could also be seen as the violent man, but I think that role belonged to Barabbas.  Judas Iscariot, the perverse man, who let his greed guide his actions and betrayed Jesus. Nathanael, the sluggard, who was found lying beneath a fig tree but not found later beneath the cross. Levi and other tax collectors, the scoundrel.  Prostitutes, lepers, and the demon-possessed finish out the inhabitants of Folly’s house and others of whom it was taught to avoid.

Jesus’ life consequentially doesn’t fit our understanding of success, but He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, John 14:6. When we read of what happened to those He discipled and how they suffered after Jesus’ resurrection we witness the power of His redemption, His Kingdom, Hebrews 11:35-38. 1 & 2 Peter tell us of the impact Jesus had on a gossip, even a violent man. The path to Wisdom’s House that Jesus fulfilled opened the way for those at Folly’s House to be redeemed, healed, and made into new creations, 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for invading Folly’s house and setting the captives free! Thank You for Your death and resurrection which gives us new life free from the wages of sin and death! Thank You for coming again to bring us to the Father! Come, Lord Jesus, come! Revelation 22:20.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 20:17, Gravel or Eternal Life

“Food gained by fraud tastes sweet,
but one ends up with a mouth full of gravel.”

This was a proverb that again opened the door to the suffering of the world. Like with 20:1, we get a window view into the lives of those who live at Folly’s house. It’s meal time, and they’ve gathered around the table to eat bread gained from fraud. Every bite is a reminder. The very source to sustain life has been gained by illegitimate means. The short victory of gaining food in this way rots the insides of those who consume it. They know it may extend their days here, but at what cost? In this proverb, the food turns to gravel, but Proverbs 9:17-18 reveals who it is who are at the table, the dead.

World hunger is a problem that continues after every mouthful. There are many who fight against the tide but it is like fighting the waves of the ocean. Its constant unending reminder of wave after wave reveals the depth of the suffering experienced by many of the world’s poorest. If an extension of life is gained what does it matter how food is obtained? This proverb points at the problem but reveals no answer but judgment.

Jesus came as the Bread of Life, John 6:25-59. He came as the new bread from heaven, the manna the Israelites ate in the book of Exodus chapter 16. The Gospel of John reveals the problem and the answer in 6:58, “This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”

Jesus is the Bread of Life this world needs. He is the only bread that gives eternal life to those who consume Him. Come gather at His table and eat.  For while food gained by fraud becomes gravel, food gained by faith grants eternal life.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 20:16, Footsteps

“Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger;
hold it in pledge if it is done for an outsider.”

As we happened upon this signpost on the road to Wisdom’s house, I read a brief description of the Proverb and it confirmed my suspicions. This was a, “Don’t do this!” proverb; a stop sign, if you will. It was basically saying to not trust someone that puts their trust in a stranger. Be ready to be disappointed. Then hold them in even stricter distrust if they put theirs in a foreigner. This spoke to me of a common logic: If you don’t know them, don’t trust them, or people who do. A saying I grew up hearing that sounds similar is, “Don’t talk to strangers,” even though most abuses I’ve heard about don’t come from strangers but family members.

When we began to unpack this proverb in light of Jesus, I was left in wonder. First, my older translation read: “a wayward woman,” instead of the more updated, “an outsider”. We looked at Jesus and found again, like in 19:26, that He had fulfilled it in a most peculiar way. The Gospel of John displays a great retracing of this, beginning with John 8:1-11. Jesus clearly interceded for a wayward woman. His clothes, like in the proverb, were taken as it is written in John 19:22-23 as a fulfillment of Psalm 22:18.

Only Jesus could walk this path. Only He could accomplish and fulfill the road to Wisdom’s house. He paid the price for the wayward. He paid it for me and for you. Again, like in 19:26, this proverb exposed the building blocks of the Kingdom of God. May we follow in His footsteps.