Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Sin is . . .


(background info. My Daughter Carissa is 5 years old, and has wisdom beyond her years. When I was pregnant with Carissa, and my family was honoring me with a baby shower, My Auntie told me, "it is not what we teach our children, but what our children teach us." It is true. Carissa has taught me like no other teacher ever has. Today's topic was sin, and this is what I learned from my favorite teacher.


Sin is . . . .


How would you complete the above statement?


Go ahead and take a moment to actually write it out on a piece of paper. Go ahead. I'll wait for ya!


What is the very first thing that comes to your mind?


Sin is . . . .


What is sin?


How would you define sin?


How would you describe sin?


Sin that is actually intangible, until it is manifested in some way.


What is a good tangible analogy to describe sin, and it's toxic harmful effect?


Modern day society, including far too many in Church World, have become desensitized to sin. Many Christians would describe sin as "natural and normal". A human characteristic, thus to one degree or another acceptable, or at least tolerable, and tolerated. Thus if it is natural and normal, and we all do it, then the natural conclusion is that "it isn't that bad". And if it isn't "that bad" then there is no motivation to stop. There is no desire to truly repentant, and there will always remain a temptation to return to a certain sin that we have deemed "not that bad, normal, and natural".


What if sin had a disgusting repulsive smell to it?


This morning our dog, Lady, pooped in our daughter's play room. Our Daughter Carissa had no idea it was there, so she went into her playroom. I don't know how she missed stepping in it, because there was three different sizes & areas of dog poop. Surrounded by dog poop Carissa cries out for help, "Momma I need you!" Lady pooped in the playroom." I come to her rescue, grab her hand, guide her away, make sure that she can avoid steeping in all the mess, and not track it back with her.


Carissa is disgusted, repulsed, hurt, and angry at our dog Lady, and says, "Momma, Lady did a terrible sin in my playroom. 


Now my initial response would be to correct my daughter by making an excuse for our dog, informing Carissa that what the dog did was "a natural mistake" and not a sin. But something inside me said, "stop, wait, and listen". I know from past experience that this is the Holy Spirit giving me Blessed Guidance, and I am about to get "schooled" by my daughter, the little teacher, and learn something wonderful. So instead of correcting her, I confirmed her accurate assessment. 


You're right sweetie, Lady did sin in the playroom (after all our dog is trained to go to the bathroom outside in the back yard, and has done so for years without "sinning" on the carpet).


Carissa very upset, and out of anger says, "She can't stay in our home. We have to get rid of her."


I questioned my beautiful daughter, So because lady sinned in our home we should get rid of her? Carissa thought about it for a second and said, "Well, we should keep her outside, or in the garage, and never, never, and I mean not EVERRR let her back in our home!"


Now I must say that I was very disappointed, and upset at our dog Lady too, and that thought may have crossed my mind for a second, or a minute or two, and when I later called my husband Christopher at work, and informed him about what the dog had done, it more than crossed his mind, it came out his mouth out of anger. We are currently teaching Carissa, or perhaps she is the one who is teaching us to hold every thought captive. We all have the choice to choose what we will allow to remain in our minds, what comes out of our mouth, and what behavior choices we will make based on the thoughts in our mind, and the emotions & feelings in our hearts.


Talk about a great opportunity to talk about sin, repentance, trust, mercy, grace, and forgiveness! Sin, Repentance, Trust, Mercy, Grace, and Forgiveness are all interconnected. You can't really talk about one without talking about the others too.


With a bit of contemplating I concluded, Carissa is right. Her assessment that Lady did a terrible sin is accurate, and on the mark.


Carissa is right. Sin is like a dog pooping in your home. It is disgusting and repulsive, and it reeks and defiles the place so bad that you are immediately compelled to leave without any hesitation, or temptation to stick around.


It is so very easy for us to see how disgusting another's sin is, but not so easy to see just how gross our own sin is to others, especially GOD.


I could feel something building up, and rising up inside of me, and knew from past experience something fantastic is about to happen, and the Holy Spirit is about to school us, and teach us something wonderful. At this time I had no idea what has about to unfold, and was just being obedient to ask the questions the Holy Spirt told me to ask my daughter.


I asked my Beloved Daughter, How did you become a Christian? She said, "when  I knowed that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, and I asked Him into my heart".


So our heart becomes Jesus's home, and when we sin that means that we have sin in our heart.


Carissa said, just like when Lady sinned, and put poop in our home, our sin is like putting yucky dog poop in our heart which is Jesus's home. 


We both said in unison, OOOOH Gross!


I asked her, Do you see how disgusting our sin is to GOD, and how He can not stay in our heart when we sin?  Would you want to live with dog poop in your home?


That is why repentance is sooo very important. We not only have to turn away from sin, we have to ask The Holy Spirit to help us clean up the sin, so Christ can come back, and live in our heart. The Holy Spirit is our Helper that Jesus gave to us to clean up all the mess sin makes in our heart, and in our life. Just as we clean up our home every day, we have to make sure our heart stays clean every day.


Carissa said, you mean cleaning our heart is like cleaning our home, like doing our chores, like cleaning our messy table?


Yes! Do you remember how proud Mommy and Daddy are of you when you help out and do chores? Remember how I told you that it gives GOD Joy to see you help keep things clean? Do you remember why it gives GOD Joy?


Carissa enthusiastically said, Yes! When we help one another it shows that we love one another, and we appreciate and respect the things GOD has given us, because we have a thankful heart with love and kindness inside of it.


What if we didn't do our chores, and didn't take care of our things, and left them all messy and dirty? What if we didn't clean our dishes, or our clothes? What if we never threw our trash away, and it piled up and up and up all the way to the ceiling.


Carissa said, Then we wouldn't have a very nice clean place to live anymore. We wouldn't have clean dishes, or a clean table, or a clean room to play, or a clean bed to sleep in, and that would be just Horrible!


Would you want to live in a home like that?


Carissa said, No Way!


So do you think it is important to make sure our home stays clean, and when it gets messy that we clean it up as soon as we can?


Carissa said, Momma sometimes we get so busy, and run out of time, and leave things all messy.


You're right sweetheart. That is why we need to budget our time, and make sure we have enough time to clean up. And those times when we make a mistake, and run out of time to clean up our messes we have to do it as soon as we can, which means we don't do anything else until our mess is cleaned up. That means we have to say no to other things, like going to a friend's house to play, when we have a mess to clean up.


Carissa said, But Momma I want to tell you the truth, I don't really like cleaning up messes. And I would much better like to go, and play with my friends.


I know Sweetheart, cleaning up messes is not always fun. It is not always what we want to do, but it is always what we need to do, or our home would keep getting messy, and it would not be fun to live there anymore. 


Carissa do you remember what sin is like to GOD?


Carissa replied with excitement and a giggle; Yes sin is like dog poop!


Carissa asked, How about if we just do a little sin? Is a little sin okay?


Well, is a little bit of dog poop okay to have in your home?


When we confess our sins to GOD, and ask Him to Forgive us, Jesus Christ takes our sin away. Jesus removes every bit of the filthy disgusting stinky gross stain, and stench of the sin. If we do not confess our sin, then Christ can not clean our heart, and if our heart is not clean the Holy Spirit can not live there.


When we do not confess our sin, and we hide it, it is like hiding, and covering up dog poop. The sin is still there even if we lie, argue, and deny it is there, the sin is still there getting stinker and stinker, until it stinks up everything in our home, and ruins EVERYTHING.


All we have to do is confess to get clean, and repent by remembering just how disgusting & repulsive sin is.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Sacred Time


"For many of us, we're online in the evenings with our family sitting right there, and we're communicating with people we have never met face-to-face while our real life is happening next to us and we're completely disjointed from it." - Beth Moore

I don't know if you struggle like I do with having enough time for everyone, and everything I want to do. We can easily become rushed, and then not be fully present for the ones we love. We can physically show up, yet mentally be miles away, which creates an emotional & spiritual disconnect. Our loved ones deserve our undivided attention, which means it is just impossible to give everyone our unlimited attention and time. Setting Boundaries & Priorities, Budgeting & being Good Stewards of our Time is essential, so that we do not run out of time for the ones we love.

My hubby Christopher, and I have really been convicted on having Sanctified Time for our Family. The movie, Courageous, has made a wonderful impact on our life, and we resolved to dedicate our lives to do better which meant we had to have an honest, and humbling evaluation of what we have been doing, and how we can do improve, and do better. To paraphrase the main character in Courageous, I don't want to settle for being just a good enough parent, or a good enough spouse according to the word's standards. We want to welcome the Holy Spirit's Compassionate Conviction, and value it as a Blessing not a burden. When the Holy Spirit points out things to change it is to help us not hurt us.

One area of improvement is Dinner Time. We have allowed the world to invade our Sanctified Time together as a Family.  It begins with distractions, and small compromises that have worldly justifications which leads to the destruction of what is Sacred. Here is how the enemy covertly attacks to erode the Family Bond. Christopher works at his office from 8am to 6pm. He also freelances in advertising & marketing, so he works from home as well as at the office. In the past it was very common for him to spend the entire day working on projects, stoping to join us for a meal, yet rushing to finish to get back to work. It left us wondering, Who is his priority? Parents work very hard to provide, but at the end of the day we must evaluate what exactly are we providing our family? 

The memorable scene in the movie Courageous where the daughter asks her daddy to dance really convicted us to have Sanctified Time with our Family, to be fully present & participate, and block out the rest of the world from invading upon our time together. 

Christopher gets home at 6:30pm, and by 8:00pm, 8:30pm at the latest, Carissa is in bed sleeping, so this give us a very limited time to spend together as a Family. How do we keep these 1 1/2 to 2 hours Sacred, so that we can get the most out of this very limited & very available time together? It takes two courageous, and committed parents, as well as a wise child to insure our time together will be blessed. Each one of us must be dedicated to demonstrate how our family is Priority, only second to GOD, and each person willing to be strong to make necessary sacrifices to help create, maintain, and safeguard a Sacred Family Time.

How can a husband be resolved to be Courageous to protect the Sacred Family Time?

For Christopher it means that he does not bring any work with him home. That he is fully dedicated at the office, uses his time wisely, and finishes what he needs to for the day. He must have strong boundaries, so that the demands of his work world, although it often tries, can not invade our Sacred Family Time. People will call Christopher while he is on his way home from work. He has been convicted not to answer, and keep his full attention to the traffic on the road, so that he can make it home safe to the ones he loves. Once he gets home, while parked in the drive way he must make the decision if he is going to return the calls, or wait until later that night to return the call after our child has been tucked into bed, and while I am finishing up some work, as to not take away precious time from the ones he loves. It is also important that Christopher and I have Sacred Couple Time. 

Christopher struggles with being able to resist calling someone back in fear that something crucial has happened that someone needs his help to handle. Everyone knows him as "The Go To Man", so he is the first person many go to for help. He is also a great listener, so he struggles with making conversations short, and to the point. He boasted one time, "Hey I got my phone conversation down to 10 minutes!" Then I had to point out that is 10 minutes per person, so after talking to 6 different people that is 60 minutes, one hour of Family Time, you have given to others that you can not get back. One way to make sure that the demands of work doesn't invade upon Family Time is to make an objective assessment of the situation, Will the world come to and end if you don't complete that task tonight? Most things can wait till tomorrow, when we are back at the office. 

Last night, as Carissa was grading the cheese, Christopher was cutting the tomatoes, and I was finishing up heating up the tortillas we were all discussing how we enjoy doing things as a family, like preparing dinner together. Christopher and I just finished saying that Family Time is Sacred Time, and we both vowed that we would not let others invade it. That very second the house phone rang two separate times, one after the other, and the world was trying to invade. Our resolve was instantaneously being tested. I can laugh at it now, but at the time I was upset at those who were trying to invade.

Just hearing others leave messages distracts, deters, and ruins the special moments we were having as a family. The outside world was competing for our attention, focus, and committment.

Note to self: During Sacred Family Time, turn the ringer, and volume on the message machine off. These are the measures one must take in order to protect our Sacred Family Time from others who would interrupt, invade, and erode the time that is just for family. We must safeguard what we value, which means to eliminate unnecessary distractions & disruptions. After the house phone rings twice, then Christopher's cell phone rings twice, and then two texts on his cell phone come in. Now I could easily get angry at the invaders, and what they are trying to do, but it is not about them invading, it is about Christopher & I being Courageous to protect our Sacred Family Time.

There is a purpose to opposition, because it strengthens our spiritual muscle and resolve. Without a test, there can be no Testimony. If we are to achieve something sacred there must be a sacrifice, something we are willing to give up. So what are the things we had to give up? What was GOD trying to teach us in this moment of choice?

What we must learn to accept and apply to our life is that not everyone values what we value, nor do they value it at the same level we value it. Family Time is Sacred Time for our Family, but others don't see it that way, because they are not a member of our core family, so they don't have a problem interrupting our time. What is important to us is not important, or as important to them. Another reason that others will invade upon the Sacred Family Time is that they are apart of our extended family. Christ has taught us that Family is defined by Love, not biology, so as a result we have an extensive ever growing extended family. This fact alone is the reason it is so very important to keep our core family unit time Sacred. I assure you that we have not perfected this, but we are making progress. At times we stumble and fumble, but GOD's Amazing Grace & Divine Directive gets us back on track.

Where Christopher and I often error is that we think others think like us, meaning that no one would repeatedly call, and text during dinner time unless it was an absolute emergency of some kind, either personal or work related. Therefore out of great concern, and fear that some kind of emergency is happening Christopher returns the call just to find out that it was not an emergency at all. Today Christopher is explaining to his friends & colleagues that when he gets home it is Family Time. Work time is for work, and Family Time is for Family. Just like it is important to use his time wisely at work, he must use his time wisely at home. Christopher had to explain that you only leave multiple messages if it is a true emergency. While his friend's call & question was important & urgent because he had to make a decision right away, it was not an emergency. The friend could have made the decision on his own without calling Christopher, while he wanted Christopher's feedback he didn't need Christopher's feedback. While this friend wanted Christopher to help him to safe time, he was not concerned, or did not realize that he was taking Christopher away from enjoying his family time.

What our experience taught us last night was that we can not depend on others to see things the way we do, to value things the way we do, so we must be Dedicated & Determined to do whatever it takes to protect what we hold sacred, and have confidence that GOD's Approval is the only one that we desire to have, and that it is okay that others do not understand, comprehend or agree. It is also okay if others get upset, and think less of us.

Another thing is to know that GOD is taking care of the needs, and or concerns of others, and we do not have to make ourselves available 24/7 to everyone, because that is in GOD's job description, not ours.

Tonight is Friday night, and this Friday we are having Family Movie Night. We watch one movie with Carissa, then she gets tucked into bed, after prayers are said, and Mommy and Daddy watch our movie. Carissa's movie is, Horton Hears a Who? and we are going to set all cell phones, house phones, and message machines on silent, so we don't hear a peep or beep, and we can enjoy being with one another without any unnecessary interruptions & distractions.

Next week we will discus what a Wife & Mom can do in order to ensure that Family Time remains a Sacred Time.

Thank You Lord Jesus that You have shown us that we can not only say we want a Sacred Time, but that we must do what is necessary to protect our Sacred Time. That we can rest assured that with every sacrifice to protect what is Righteous and Sacred comes a Greater Blessing.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Secular Fast -- 3 Key Questions to Ask



During the Secular Fast I asked myself 3 very important questions in regards to the things I would consume for my mind, soul, and spirit, which also pertained to how I was going to invest my time. How we invest our time goes hand-in-hand with what we consume for our entire being. Recall the picture on the 40 Day Secular Fast Post with the clock made out of spoons and forks. 

I must tell ya that when the Lord gave me the idea of The Secular Fast, I was filled with Passion & Purpose, but I was so not Prepared. I have never done anything like this before. Nothing even close to this. Just like when the Lord gave me the vision for Women of Worth on March 16th of last year, I was so very honored, but felt so very unqualified. Surely there is someone more qualified than I. The Lord continues to bring wonderful men & women in my life that inspire, encourage, and empower me to move forward in my calling, and not to put the Holy Spirit on hold. I walk forward in this journey filled with New Adventures not in confidence, but in obedience, and assurance that the Lord will provide.

I started this New Adventure of the 40 Day Secular Fast totally unprepared, and that is exactly where the Lord wants us to be, so that we have no doubt whatsoever that the blessings we receive along the way come from Him. The Lord provided me with 3 key questions, that equipped me with what I needed to make progress along my journey. It was the road map, that unlocked the hidden treasures that I found in this one adventure. This was so rewarding in countless ways that I am looking forward to the next New Adventure, and what new fascinating gems that will be discovered when traveling with Christ.


There is nothing like taking a Supernatural Journey with Jesus! Only with Christ can we explore uncharted territory, and reach new heights without even leaving our home.

The first discerning question I asked before I invested my time & consumed a certain thing for my mind, soul, and spirit, Does this go against GOD in any way? If yes, it was rejected, and I would not consume it. There was once a time in my life where I would tolerate people, and things that went against GOD, due to other's freedom of expression, no matter how much I disagreed with their feelings, thoughts, beliefs, etc. What I have come to realize is that while they have the freedom to express themselves, I have the freedom to not have to hear it, or be around it.

Things that go directly against GOD, cause us to compromise what the Lord has taught us, and one compromise leads to another, and we wonder how did things go so wrong? Things that glorify the enemy are things that disgust & repulse me, so it is not hard to reject & refuse to be apart of such things anymore. I know that things of the enemy are toxic, and are meant to destroy, so they are not tempting when I can identify their source.

If there was any doubt, I asked myself what if the Lord was here with me would I watch this, listen to this, read this, or participate in this? Some things are very deceptive, they appear to be harmless, they start off okay, then it quickly, or gradually turns into something terrible, and it is eventually revealed that it is not what it once appeared to be. In the past, I would tell myself to wait it out. I am already invested this far, so let's just see how it all turns out. Maybe there will be some redeeming quality to this. The thing is, I always regretted that I kept with it when I should have walked away the minute it went wrong. The enemy deceives, and sets traps, but we must realize that we have The Power to Walk Away. The Power of the Walk Away is Wonderful. As soon as something is not right, simply leave, walk away, stop watching, stop listening, stop reading, stop participating, shut down the enemy's power to contaminate, and waste your time.  

The second question was, Does this benefit my life? If something is not a benefit, an additional support, or change my life in a positive direction, than it is a waste of time. We could rephrase this by asking, Is this Spiritually Profitable? Our time is very precious, and we should invest it wisely. We could also ask ourselves, What kind of return will I get if I invest my time in this? 

This brings me to the third question, and pertains to planning out where, when, and how we are to invest our time with purpose. Just as a Business Person plans where, how much, and how long s/he will invest his/her money, or a farmer plans out what s/he will plant this season, so should we have a purposeful plan on exactly where to invest our time. What are the things we should focus our attention on during a given season of our life? There are so many great choices to select from, How do we know which is right for us? All the choices might be Righteous, but they are not right for us right now. For example, when I was a Baby Christian, my first visit to a Christian Store was very memorable. So many great choices to choose from with a variety of different topics, and different authors. The Christian Store was like a Spiritual Grocery Store where I went around filling up my basket, with all sorts of goodies. I went home and discovered I had so many fantastic books, and I began to read them all. Now you might think this was a good thing, but it was not. 

There was so much wonderful information that it became overwhelming. I imagine this must be what it is like for the college freshmen that is undeclared. Before starting college I knew I wanted to major in psychology. Before I moved into the dorms, I knew what General Education classes I had to take, and the Psychology Classes that I was going to take based on my concentration in a specific area of psychology. There is a reason that colleges encourage students to limit themselves to a certain amount of classes during a certain duration of time, and that is so they can concentrate on learning the new information, not just obtaining it, but more importantly maintaining it, and have the benefit of applied knowledge later on in life. Students who take more than the recommended full-time amount of classes don't really enjoy the process, they are just getting through to reach a certain goal, graduation. But have they truly obtained what they need, or are they lacking, ill equipped, because they rushed it? Quickly In, Quickly Out.

Colleges provide their students with Counselors and Mentors to help direct each student based on their talents, interests, needs, and long-term goals. Isn't Awesome that the Holy Spirit is a Wonderful Counselor that knows exactly what we need when we need it? It is not possible to have it all, all at once. Sure we can try, and in the process of trying to do it all, we could lose it all. Life is a Journey, a Process, a Progression. All In Due Season.

Praise Jesus Christ that in His Holy Spirit's Job Description includes Investment Expert & Time Manager. We are to first seek the Lord in where, and how, and for how long we are to invest our time for each given season. We are to balance our time wisely through diverse disbursements. Time just with GOD, time for family, friends, fellowship, discipleship, and outreach across town and/or across the world. We have to safeguard our priorities, and sanctify our time with our love ones.

Before the next Quarter, Semester, or Season of Life begins seek the Lord's Counsel, and Divine Direction, for His foresight reaches far beyond our own. GOD knows what is coming up next, so He is the One we should look to for preparing us for what we will need in the next season. 

Therefore, the third question we can ask ourselves when investing our time would be, Does this line up with the course work GOD has for me for this season of life? Does this support my area of concentration?  For example, let's say that the Lord has said to invest more time in your marriage, and a woman's retreat is coming up. Sounds like a great opportunity to spend some time with the Sisters, there is going to be a fantastic speaker with an interesting topic, the location sounds wonderful, and you really feel like getting away for the weekend. Thing is the Lord has said to focus on the marriage. Of course our natural response is, can't I do both? My marriage is doing okay, in fact it is pretty good. What did the Lord say to focus on? This is the season that the Lord wants to grow your marriage from good to great. 

You know what I have discovered is that everything in life comes back to two things, Trust & Obeying the Lord. That it is okay to not understand what the Lord has planned, but to know that it all works out for our good. The Greatest Lesson we can learn is from Christ's example when He spoke to His Holy Parent and said, "Not My Will, But Your Will Be Done."

Our Greatest Blessings in life are a result from obeying the Lord, and our worst mistakes come from disobeying the Lord. 

I praise You Lord that You are the Greatest Guidance Counselor whose office hours are open 24/7 just in case we get confused, disoriented, and lost, You are always there to help us find the way. I love You Lord.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

The 40 Day Secular Fast


Just as important as the food we choose to nourish our bodies, are the choices we select to feed our Mind, Soul, and Spirit. As Christians we are to have discernment, and make healthy choices for what we consume for our Mind, Soul, and Spirit.

Before I began The 40 Day Secular Fast, I wonder what if we used, "The Light System" to identify and discern whether or not something is spiritually healthy for us? Inspired by 
"The Light System" used to determine and discern healthy food choices, I used the same type of system to help select Healthy Choices for a "Healthy Mind, Soul, and Spirit"

Day 40 is here! The 40 Day Secular Fast was a lot harder than I thought it would be, but so VERY worth it! It caused me to get out of my comfort zone, and to stretch and grow in Christ. I assure you I was not totally perfect in my journey. I stumbled and fumbled a couple of times, and the enemy attacked me when I was down condemning me with lies, about how I am not "Good Enough, and how I let down & failed others, especially GOD", but I focused on GOD's Word about Redemption, and His Amazing Holy Love full of Mercy & Grace. I focused on the Lord's Voice full of Love, Compassion, Inspiration, Encouragement, and Empowerment which restored my determination, and I got back on track, and continued with my journey. If the enemy gets ya down, grab hold of Christ, and He'll get ya back up. His Holy Spirit is our back up, get up, and go forward. Amen!

During my 40 Day Secular Fast I did not consume anything for my mind, soul, and spirit that went against GOD, or mocked Him, His Word, or His Followers, my Brothers & Sisters in Christ. It is important that we acknowledge our achievements, and not allow the enemy to beat us up over our shortcomings, slip ups or mistakes. It is about creating a healthy balance between the things we did well, and the things we can do better next time. Instead of looking at our fumbles as failures, we can look at them as something to work on, and turn them into a new goal. 

Today is a day of celebration. Reflect upon your journey thus far. What did you do well? What did you accomplish? What did you learn? What is the blessing that came out of this adventure & journey? Rejoice, and again I say Rejoice. You challenged yourself, you did something you have not done before. Your reward is that you are growing closer to Christ, and in doing so your very being is transformed. Whether, or not others notice the change, GOD sees it, and that is all that matters. Amen!

Here is a little bit about my Secular Fast Journey that I would like to share with you. There is so much more to this adventure, that I could fill a book, or at least a little booklet, but for now I will just journal my journey on this blog.


During the Secular Fast I asked myself 3 very important questions in regards to the things I would consume for my mind, soul, and spirit, which also pertained to how I was going to invest my time. How we invest our time goes hand-in-hand with what we consume for our entire being. Hence the picture above with the clock made out of spoons and forks.


When making healthy choices for our total well being, I discovered 3 discerning questions that greatly benefited me during my Secular Fast. In the next post, Secular Fast -- 3 Key Questions to Ask, I talk about them, and how they blessed my decision making, and my life. Wonder what these 3 Questions could be, click here to find out!

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Sealed in Love


Today marks the 32nd day of our Secular Fast. From what I have learned, the Biblical Numerology Meanings of 32 is in association with having a covenant or agreement with a certain person or group. What first comes to mind when you think of a covenant relationship or agreement?

When I think of a covenant relationship, the first thing that comes to mind is the one we have with Christ as Christians, and the bearers of His Name. Then there is the covenant relationship between a husband and wife, and mother and child. 

Do you know why these are called Covenant Relationships? Because it took the shedding of blood to bring about the relationship which is sacred, and sanctified, set apart from others. As much as we love other children, we love our own even more, same is true with GOD. GOD loves all people, but those who are truly Christ Followers, and not just Christians in name only, He has a sacred & sanctified relationship with which is manifested in their lives in marvelous, and countless ways. 

I have noticed a remarkable difference between the life of a Believer, and a loyal, dedicated, faithful Christ Follower. Although both consider themselves Christians, the Christ Followers have this peace that flows throughout their lives, even through the harshest of storms there is still this stability, peace and even joy as the storm rages on -- how is that even possible? 

There is a noticeable difference in the house of the Christ Follower. For years I would ponder over why the lives of two Christians would be so very different. Why is the Presence of the Lord so strong in one life, and lacking in the other? Was it that one had a better church attendance? Memorized & could quote more Sacred Scriptures? Had a pure-bred Christian pedigree? No, none of this was the key.
Why would one Christian seem to have favor over another?

It is not favoritism, it is a Supernatural Consequence of being Closer to Christ. Okay, so then, How do we become closer to Christ? By obeying the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the key to creating & maintaining a dedicated & committed covenant relationship with GOD. It is our partnership, or union with the Holy Spirit that makes the covenant relationship possible. It is our union with Chirst's Holy Spirit that makes the communion with GOD possible. Without the Holy Spirit's Presence in our daily life, there is lack of Righteous & Holy Commitment & Dedication. Without a Righteous & Holy Commitment, there is no Covenant. 


Without the Presence of the Holy Spirit we become tempted to sin, because the enemy is poised, and ready to pounce to take us down the second the Holy Spirit is not with us, like a lion that stocks a baby dear, and waits for it to be just far enough away that it becomes defenseless, and doomed. It is our choice to sin that separates us from GOD, and leaves us wide open for the enemy to destroy us. When we sin we betray GOD, ungrateful for GOD's Gift of the Holy Spirit, like an ungrateful and spoiled child, our sinful pride & ego deceives us to think we can do just fine on our own without the Holy Spirit's blessings of discernment, and protection. It is the unrepentant heart, mind, and spirit of the sinner that betrays & breaks the seal, and destroys the covenant.


Betrayal breaks the covenant seal. Can anything restore a broken seal? Not in this world, not of this world. It takes a Supernatural Love to provide a way, and we must accept GOD's Way. Not just receiving, but more importantly accepting, and highly valuing the Holy Spirit's Conviction, that leads to Repentance, Restoration, and Redemption, and all the countless blessings that come with having Reconciliation with our Holy Parent.