Avoid The Fanny Bite by Daphne Delay

AVOID THE FANNY-BITE!   

Focus can make or break a person.  I have a plaque in my house that reads: Be careful what you focus on: your thoughts become your words, your words become your actions, your actions become your habits, your habits become your witness, your witness is everything!  What a person is focused on will either be to their success, or it will be to their downfall.  This truth must be part of the reasoning behind God's instruction in Proverbs: "Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint.  But happy is he who keeps the law" (Proverbs 29:18 NKJV).

Most people are familiar with the King James Version: "Where there is no vision, the people perish..." Yet both words, revelation and vision, deal with focus.  In other words, where there is no sight, people are lost.  But in context of right or wrong focus, it's not so much about not seeing as it is about seeing correctly.  God does not desire for His people to perish or be lost.  Therefore, He has given His Word as a map.  This is why He said, "But happy is he who keeps the law {following God's teaching}."  We could say, "Happy is the one who follows the map {is not lost}."

Another word that explains the revelation or vision God desires for us to have is the word boundary.  For example, if I needed to travel from Dallas to Tampa, the highway would be my boundary to follow.  Without the boundary of the road, with its markings and signs, I might end up in Canada -- completely off-track and lost!  "Where there is no revelation {no boundary}, the people cast off restraint {perish, get lost, run wild}."  This is not the will of God for man.  When there are no boundaries, everyone is in danger.  

Think about a fence.  What is it useful for?  It either keeps things in or keeps things out.  At a wildlife park, there are boundaries for the lions and boundaries for the people.  Where there is no boundary, people are open for attack.  Therefore, the boundaries are there for the protection of the people and the wildlife.  In the same manner, God has set up boundaries for His children to keep them protected from their enemy, the devil. Someone once said, "The devil can't schedule your destruction, but he tries real hard to schedule your distraction."

When a person is distracted by wrong focus, the devil is waiting and watching for the right moment to POUNCE!  "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8).  Other translations say, "Keep a cool head {keep your mind clear}. Stay alert. The Devil {your opponent} is {prowling around} poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping {and devour you}" (Message and God's Word Translations).  This is not a secret to most Believers.  We are well aware that the devil is out to get us!  But what is a secret is his method of distracting us.

"Lest Satan should take advantage of us, we are not ignorant of his devices" (2 Corinthians 2:11).  Paul said this to the church in Corinth, but unfortunately it is not true of all Believers; many are ignorant of Satan's devices.  God said, "My people perish for a lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6).  Ignorance is nothing more than a lack of knowledge.  This would explain why God said His people perish.  When they are ignorant, or have a lack of knowledge (or we could say no revelation or vision), they perish under Satan's attacks.

Ignorance can also mean to ignore.  

I am amazed at the Christians who live their lives like an ostrich with his head in the sand, not realizing that his plump, fat fanny is sticking up in the air with a sign that says, "Yum! Yum! Come and get me devil!"  Yet they act so surprised when the devil comes like the roaring lion and takes a big bite out of them!  

Or what about God's Word being likened to a map?  I have a hard time sympathizing with those who choose to ignore the written directions.  It is a waste of time and energy to keep the map folded in our lap.  God didn't say, "Where there is no MAP, the people perish."  He said, "Where there is no revelation {concerning the map}, the people {get lost, open themselves up for attack, and} perish."  God has given us a map!  It is His Word.

We could also use children as a good example.  The New Living Translation of Proverbs 29:18 says, "When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild."  Have you ever seen children without boundaries?  They run wild!  The sad truth is that children running wild are crying out for boundaries.  In the natural, it appears they are rebellious and defiant.  Yet looking at it spiritually, these same children (created in the image of God) are looking for the safety of boundaries.  What looks like defiance may be nothing more than a child pushing against everything trying to find the safety of his or her boundary.  Once the boundary is revealed, the child feels safe and settles down in the security of thier borders.

Don't forget that you and I are children of God.  

We need boundaries to keep us guarded against the attacks of the enemy and to give us the security our soul longs for.  True revelation, vision, and focus are the boundaries that make us feel safe.  False revelation gives us false security.  It seems to meet the need until the SURPRISE bite in the fanny by the lion!  However, correct focus will protect us from such a fate.  We can approach life with an understanding of revelation and truth.  "Your righteousness is eternally right, and Your revelation is the only truth" (Psalm 119:142, Message).  

My prayer is for God's Word, His map, to be the center of our attention and the reason for our success.

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A Goal To Carry On by Daphne Delay

A Goal To Carry On      

Where are you going? An old proverb says, "If you don't change your direction, you will likely end up where you are headed." So, I'll ask again: where are you headed? Regardless of your age or past accomplishments, do you have a clear direction for your future?

I have a senior in high school, so this is the current topic of discussion in our house right now. Thankfully, he does know what he wants to do. Through prayer and research we are beginning to see the path he needs to take to fulfill his dreams. On the other hand, one of his close friends is clueless (as probably are a lot of seniors)! But in talking to my son's friend, my heart is compassionate towards his lack of direction. It is a lot of pressure to have to decide right now what you want to do for the rest of your life.

From experience, I have discovered that reaching your goals is not always a straight shot. I am living out my dreams now, but the path that got me here had many turns along the way. And with each turn, I learned something valuable which aided in reaching my goal. The problem for most people however, is that along the way discouragement set in. Job said, "What strength do I have, that I should hope? And what is my end, that I should prolong my life" (Job 6:11)? I think the New Living Translation better describes Job's feelings. It says, "I do not have a goal that encourages me to carry on." Unfortunately, this attitude depicts the weariness many people experience when their future is unclear.

When I first asked my son what he thought he wanted to do after graduation, he answered "I don't know." (Typical teenager.) So I re-worded the question and asked, "If you had no obstacles, what would your dream job be?" He had an answer to this question. You see, sometimes we need to re-evaluate how we're looking at something in order to see it clearly. God did this in the Gospel of Jesus Christ when He gave us Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The accounts are similar because it portrays one man's life and ministry. Yet, the accounts are different because they are written from four different perspectives. Whereas John recounted an event one way, Luke, standing on the other side of it, saw it slightly different. Was it different? No. The angle at which it was portrayed gave it a difference. Understanding this helps us in life decisions. If we are uncertain about where we are headed or what we want to do, then maybe we need to look at it from a different perspective.

Dr. Mike Murdock has a series of books on the topic of Assignment. In them, he asks questions like, "What makes you mad?" or "What makes you cry?" He states that the answer to questions like these are indicators of your assignment. For example, pretend two people are watching televison together and a commercial comes on asking for help to feed the hungry in Ethiopia. Suppose both of them agree there's a need, yet one of them is almost brought to tears at the pictures on the TV of malnourished children. This mark of compassion is an indicator of that person's assignment. A lack of tears by the other person doesn't mean they are heartless, it just means that their assignment is different. 

In another example, suppose an area of town is going to be re-zoned so alcohol sales can be made available in providing establishments. One person may think little of it because it's available everywhere else, while another person becomes angry at this proposition because of the long-term effects it will have on their quiet neighborhood. Guess who has an assignment? 

God told Habakkuk, "Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry" (Habakkuk 2:2-3). When God asked Habakkuk to write the vision, He wasn't asking for a long story, just a clear, concise statement of the goal. Often, the goals people set out to accomplish are lost along the way because they didn't write it down when the dream was fresh and exciting. So later, somewhere after a few turns, the dream is abandoned and all they can say is, "I do not have a goal that encourages me to carry on." This is not the will of God. He has a plan and purpose for every person, and with eagerness He desires for us to not only discover His plans but also fulfill them.

One of my favorite scriptures is found in 2 Timothy 1:9, which says, "God has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began." This encourages me because it takes the pressure off of me to be successful in this life. I only have to discover what it is God designed for me to do, and then do it. Paul said God's will is no secret for He has "...made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself" (Ephesians 1:9).

However, God's instruction to Habakkuk (and us) requires faith. Basically we are instructed to discover the mysteries of His will. This takes faith in prayer. Then as direction begins to unfold, faith is required in order to see the dream fulfilled. "For the vision is yet for an appointed time and it hastens to [fulfillment]; it will not deceive or disappoint. Though it {lingers or is delayed}, wait [earnestly] for it, because it will surely come; it will not be behind on its appointed day" (Amplified). The waiting required of us is expectation, not disappointment. In other words, lift your head, keep an eye on the horizon as you expectantly wait for your desired outcome. 

But know this: success is not found in the destination, but in the journey. And for this reason, as one journey seems to end, God has already prepared another journey for you. This new journey is connected to another dream, and the finish line you just crossed now becomes a new starting line! God said His righteousness (His way of doing things) is "...revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith'" (Romans 1:17). Life is a journey, and for Christians, life requires faith.

Find it. Write it down. Expect it. Live it. - Then repeat.

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He's Pushing My Buttons by Dawn White

He’s Pushing My Buttons

Scripture:  James 4:7

7Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Perhaps you’ve observed the scenario I’m about to describe. If you’re a parent, you may have seen it in your own children.  The scenario is where one individual is the irritator and the other is the irritatee, or the one being irritated.  I’ve told my own girls countless number of times, ‘Just ignore her and she’ll stop.  She’s only continuing because she knows it’s getting to you.’  Again, these are words that I have spoken more times than I can count.  

But, just recently, I got a new perspective on these words.  I have an accountability partner, who is a tremendous blessing to me.  She is so gifted in holding me accountable in love, which is the whole purpose of an accountability partner.  In one of our recent meetings, I was sharing with her a frustration of mine.  She told me that satan knew what buttons to push to cause me to ‘come undone’.  She suggested that I change my response and thus satan would quit pushing the buttons.

This is so simple, and yet was so profound to me.  So now my quest is to disable the buttons that have been hotwired for satan.  Why is it important that I disable the buttons?  

When I get frustrated, I have a strong tendency to start complaining about the situation/circumstance.  The Bible says in Philippians 2:14, ‘Do everything without complaining or arguing.’  Thus, when I complain, I am disobeying the directive from God.  And, there is a reason He gave us this directive.  When we start to complain, the devil takes that opportunity to make the issue bigger than life.  The more we meditate on it, the bigger it becomes.  In Psalm 77:13b it says – I complained and my spirit was overwhelmed.  Eventually, as stated in this scripture, our heart becomes overwhelmed by the situation.  

After I have complained and the issue has grown 100-fold in magnitude, at least in my mind, the next thing that follows is my attitude.  I then become irritable because of something that has mushroomed in my mind to be way more than it really is.  And then I began to speak words that I don’t like to speak, definitely not words of life.  

At this point I have become frustrated, irritated, and I’m saying things I don’t like to say.  This is just where the devil wants me.  I’ve disobeyed God and am no longer in right standing with Him.  And the devil has chalked up another victory.

Believe it or not, these situations are also what God uses to discipline us.  If we continue to give in to the temptations of the enemy and the desires of the flesh, we are not fully surrendered to our Lord Jesus.  God uses these to teach us to fully submit to Him.  The scripture above says, ‘Submit yourselves to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you.’  We have a choice to make in these circumstances.  Will we submit to God and resist the devil or will we give in to the devil’s temptations?  If we give in to the temptations, we have more training ahead of us.  

God desires in us a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51:17).  He wants us fully dependent on Him, and He wants to help you.  When the enemy pushes your buttons, and the buttons are different for everyone, cry out to God for His help in fighting the good fight of faith.  He will help you to stand firm to do what is the perfect and pleasing will of God.  Joyce Meyer says she will lock herself in a room reading her Bible and praying until God changes her heart, and she can come out not being moved by the situation.

If we cry out to God, the enemy definitely doesn’t like that.  But, if we are persistent in not succumbing to his temptations, eventually he will give up.  It is a continual process of submitting to God and resisting the devil.  And, it is a process we cannot do in our own strength.  We need the strength of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  And, He is more than willing to give it to us; all we have to do is ask.

Until next time – I’m submitting and resisting!

Blessings!

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I Thought You Were Going To Help Me by Dawn White

 I Thought You Were Going to Help Me

Scripture:  Is. 41:13

For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.

This is an exciting time academically for my 6 year old.  Reading concepts are starting to gel and the sounding out of words is getting easier and easier.  However, as is our human nature, she really prefers for me to read for her.  We were working on a reading exercise just this week.  She quickly assessed the paper and determined that it was too hard for her and that she’d need help.  I assured her that I would help her.  She began reading the sentence and came to a word she didn’t know.  She looked at me for me to tell her the word.  I responded with, ‘Sound it out.’  And she replied, ‘I thought you were going to help me.’  

The instant she uttered those words, the Lord spoke to me and said, “And, that’s how it is with you also.”  You see, I had full intentions of helping her, after she did her part of trying to sound out the word.  Her expectation was that I was going to deliver her from that exercise.  And so it is with me and God.  I rely on His promises day in and day out.  But, along with those promises, I have my own ideas of how He is going to fulfill those promises. 

The scripture above promises His help, it doesn’t promise to take away the struggle, the trial, the burden, or any other situation that will build your character and grow you spiritually.  It simply promises help.  Numerous times I have missed the help because it didn’t come in the way I was expecting it to.

With my 6 year old, if I continue to read for her, I rob her of the opportunity to develop her own reading skills.  She has to do that work to develop those skills.  And so must we; we must do the work that God has placed before us, understanding that He is truly helping us.  He knows what lies ahead and what we need to do to prepare for that.

One of my daughters has a cleaning job for an elderly lady.  I was recently doing that job for her while she was out of town.  The morning before I was going to clean, I asked the Lord how I could serve Him that day.  He told me to clean the house for free.  That was not what I was expecting to hear and I have to admit that I cringed when He told me, as I had plans for that money.  But the Lord was looking at a bigger picture than just that cleaning job.  I was also believing for Him to provide me with the funds to purchase our school curriculum.  Within a week after cleaning the house at no charge, I had 10 times what I would have received from the cleaning job.  I needed to sow that money in order to reap the harvest that I needed for curriculum.  Praise God I was obedient or we might still be on summer break!!!

God will help you, He’s there and willing, if we just ask.  But be prepared, the assistance that you receive may be different than your expectations.  You may have heard the saying, ‘You can give a man a fish, or you can teach him how to fish.’  The essence of this statement is that it’s better to teach the man, than let him stay where he’s at, depending on others to provide him with fish.  God will teach you how to fish, I can guarantee you!  And we are better for it!  Let Him help you His way, you’ll look back someday and be thankful He did.

Be Blessed!

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God's Goals by Dawn White

God’s Goals

Scripture:  Proverbs 19:21

Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.

The above scripture tell us that we have many plans in our hearts, but the Lord accomplishes His purposes.  Have you ever been in the position where your plans and the Lord’s purposes were not in sync?  I have, and it is no fun.  There is much frustration in this place.  

Freedom in Christ Ministries defines two terms that help me to keep my perspective on my plans and the Lord’s purposes.  They are:

Godly Desire – is any specific result that depends on the cooperation of other people or on the success of events or favorable circumstances, which we have no right or ability to control.  

Godly Goal – is any specific orientation that reflects God’s purpose for our life and does not depend on people or circumstances beyond our ability or right to control. 

From these definitions, it is clear that a Godly Goal involves those things I can control and a Godly Desire involves those things that I can’t control.

These definitions have been very freeing for me.  When I start to become frustrated or irritated in a situation, I can step and consider these definitions and determine my role. 

For example, my husband was recently offered the supervisory position with his employer.  On the surface, this seems like a positive move.  However, the bottom line is that it’s more hours, more responsibility and slightly less money.  Who would take it is the question in my mind.  But, he wants to take it, simply because it’s doing a job that he loves to do.  When I saw him leaning this way, I was becoming irritated and frustrated by his decision.  

Well, you know how God is….He doesn’t let us stay off track too long.  He let me go for a while and then got me back on track by pointing out that my role was not to try to control his decision, but rather it was to pray for wisdom and direction for him in the decision-making and support whatever decision he arrives at.  And, you know, that brought me a lot of peace.  This has been going on now for a month or so.  He called me from work just today and asked what I thought he should do if they offered it to him.  I told him to follow his heart and the amazing thing is I could say that with honesty and peace in my heart.

You see, sometimes we can elevate a Godly Desire to a Godly Goal.  My Godly Desire in this case was that my husband be available to spend time with our daughters and to have time to build the insurance business that he’s working on the side.  These are not bad in and of themselves; in fact they are good.  But when I elevate that desire to a goal and try to control it, then it becomes a mistake.  Elevating desires to goals leads to torment and unrest.

As we move into 2010, I challenge you to seek God in prayer about the Godly Goals He has for you in 2010.  If you begin to experience frustration, perhaps you’ve take a Godly Desire and made it a Godly Goal.  Check back in at the Throne, you may be off course a bit.  Remember – many are the plans (Godly Desires) of a man’s heart, but the Lord’s purposes (Godly Goals) prevail.  Let God’s purposes prevail through you by seeking Him in prayer regularly.

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Are We There Yet? by Dawn White

Title:  Are We There Yet?

Scripture:  2 Cor. 12:9a – “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’”

Each year, my husband and I try to plan for a family vacation.  We have 3 daughters, so many times our excursions require us to drive to our destination.  We all love the oceans and beaches, and living in Central Illinois requires us to drive quite a distance to get to any ocean.  Therefore we spend a significant amount of time in the car.  And, if you have children, you’ve undoubtedly heard the famous question – ‘Are we there yet?’

As I’ve prayed and sought God through the Christmas season and beginning this new year, he has showed me that this has been the theme of my attitude the past 3 ½ years – Are we there yet?  You see, I graduated from college as a computer science major.  I landed the job that I dreamt of having with a large corporation.  I spent over 18 years in that job.   They weren’t always easy, but God opened many doors for me and I did well in my career.  Then God called me out of that job to stay at home with our daughters.  I was thrilled; I had longed to be a stay-at-home mom for many years. Finally, that door was opening.

Fast forward now to 3 ½ years later, the journey has been good, but not without challenge.  I find myself wondering, are we there yet?  When I left that job, I also left behind a very nice salary.  We were used to buying, within reason of course, extras, and pretty much doing what we wanted when we wanted.  We had limits of course, but we had money to spend much more freely.  

It is not like that now.  Every penny counts now.  Sometimes I don’t know how it will work.  But here’s the incredible blessing…in the scripture above, God promises that His grace is sufficient.  I remember one specific time when I didn’t know how we were going to buy groceries one week.  A friend (not knowing our situation) came by one day and brought us a freezer full of stuff.  One item was a garbage bag, not a grocery bag, a garbage bag half full of boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  Grace brought our groceries that week.  His grace is sufficient.

On another occasion, my husband had been working for a company where they provided uniforms for them to wear to work.  The pants were nothing more than jeans.  He loved them and said they fit him better than any he’d ever had.  However, he resigned from that job and moved to another.  When he resigned, of course he had to turn in all the jeans.  We had searched online looking for somewhere to buy that brand of jeans.  A few weeks later, we came home one day to find a stack of those very jeans lying on the door stoop.  Another friend had a connection to a uniform company.  These were irregulars that they were going to throw away.  There were about 12-15 pair of jeans, that looked like brand new.  Grace met our needs; it is always sufficient.

As I stepped into 2010, the Lord has reminded that he promises that his plans are good for us.  Jeremiah 29:11 says that his plans are to prosper us, not to harm us.  However, good and easy are not synonyms.  His plans are good, but not always easy.  Mary had the honor of delivering the Christ child, but she was also his mama that watched him be tortured and beaten, and hung on a cross to die.  As mamas, we cannot imagine the pain and heartbreak of such an event.  The plan was good – Jesus ascended and is now seated at the right hand of the Father.  But, the plan was not easy.

My journey has also been good.  Our daughters have grown and blossomed spiritually to amazing levels.  We are so blessed by that.  We cannot begin to put a price tag on that.  The journey has not always been easy.  We don’t have the latest and greatest vehicles or technology.  But our needs are met, because His grace is sufficient.

As 2010 has kicked off, I have determined to quit asking – are we there yet, but rather to appreciate the journey, confident that His grace is sufficient.  We all have a journey, yours is likely different than mine.  But whatever it is, I challenge you to join me in resting in the assurance that His grace is sufficient.  Just like a family vacation, when you reach the destination – it will be good.  

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