What If?

My Beautiful Daughter Ethecie - 12 years old

The beautiful girl in the picture hiding behind the yellow balloon is my oldest daughter, Ethecie. (She would want you to know it is pronounced Etessee, without the "h.") She is 12 years old and joined our family from her home country of Haiti when she was 9. A conversation with her recently made me think of how the disciples must have felt during this time we celebrate as Easter weekend.

She heard my husband and I discussing a person who had passed away due to cancer. A few minutes later she came to me and said, "Mommy, what if you got cancer? What would you do?" Sometimes Ethecie surprises me with "What If" questions. Although she is living a wonderful life here with us now, she has already known a great deal of heartache and sorrow in her young life. I think her life now is still somewhat surreal to her, and so as she is learning to walk by faith these questions will come to her. What if mom and dad don't stay together - what if they get a divorce? What if I don't know what God wants me to do with my life? What if I marry the wrong person? And as each question comes up, we talk about what the Bible says and learn a little more about having faith in God's Word. When she asked me this question, it was not a difficult thing to answer. I was incredibly blessed to grow up in a culture of faith and healing that planted the healing Word deep into my heart. So immediately up out of my heart came faith - "I'd pray and stop it. I would use the Word to make it leave my body and I would be healed!" A glance at the smile on her face told me that was all she needed to hear. She said, "Okay" and went about her day in peace.

I can imagine the disciples on Saturday, fighting What If? thoughts and emotions. What if He doesn't rise again? What if the soldiers come for us next? What if these last 3 years were just a supernatural season that's over now? What if we never see Jesus again - what will we do?

It would be easy to read the Bible and feel tempted to almost look down on the disciples for their lack of faith at times, but if we are honest, we have all had those What If moments. The key is in realizing that it's not the question that determines the outcome - but rather how you answer it! Ethecie was willing to take my answer of faith in the Word and believe it. In Matthew 10 and Luke 18 there are accounts when Jesus told the disciples that the only way to enter the Kingdom of God is to receive it as a child would.

My girls take my word for things. They know that mommy is very careful not to make promises she can't keep, and because of that they trust my word. Even though I'm not perfect at it and there are sometimes changes in plans, my track record of keeping my word to them assures them that when I tell them something, they can count on it. That's why Ethecie walked away without care or concern after our conversation. She knows my heart and my faith in the Word of God, so she trusted my words to her.

If we can learn to trust the word of someone here on earth, how much more can and should we trust the infallible Word of our Father God! 2 Corinthians 1:20 tells us that all of the promises of God are Yes and Amen! When a What If question comes to your mind, that is the moment you need to lean and rest fully on the promises of God. Even if it is just a thought in your mind, never let a question that raises doubt go unanswered! Use the powerful, two-edged sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, to cut doubt and unbelief into pieces and win every time.

I am so thankful that just as Jesus promised, on that third day He rose again! The promise He made to the disciples to rise again was fulfilled and eternal life was won for everyone who would receive it. What a glorious and most precious time this weekend is to celebrate the resurrection of Christ that took away every What If question and launched the Body of Christ into the taking of the Gospel around the world. Happy Easter everyone - Jesus is alive! 

Debbie Beck

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Not Hard - Just Different

Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power

and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee. Jeremiah 32:17

Have you ever heard a song that brought back a memory to you? Maybe a love song that reminds you of your parents, or a crazy song that reminds you of your teenage years, or better yet a worship song that takes you back to wonderful experiences you've had in God.

I recently heard a song that took my mind back to a lesson I was taught years ago that is one of the best lessons I've ever learned in regards to faith. I was privileged to take voice lessons with a master vocalist for a time. She was fun and a little eccentric - everything a voice teacher should be. She took me through crazy exercises to strengthen my voice and help me achieve some goals I had in singing. One goal (that I believe she actually decided) was that I was going to learn to sing an octave higher than I had been singing. I had sung since high school and knew I had a very low voice and normally sung in the alto 2 section, which was the lowest female voices. I could with a little stretching reach up and help the alto 1 section now and then, but that was my limit.

So, our goal was for me to have the ability to sing as a second soprano - only one step down from the highest female voices. When she announced this goal I have to admit I thinking - "I can't do that!" She must have read my mind because she said something that has stuck with me for almost 20 years now. "Debbie, don't think about singing higher as hard. The higher notes are not hard, they're just different." Wow - that was a revelation. I had always seen higher notes as too hard to reach, something that was simply beyond my ability. Yet someone was telling me that it wasn't hard and I could do it if I changed my way of thinking. She knew how to do it, and she was going to help me get there. She had the ability I needed and as a team we were going to accomplish our goal.

Did you get that... pretty sure I just saw a few lights go on and the word "Bingo!" pop into someone's head. So often we look at life through the eyes of what we think we can do. We may have never even tried something, but because of past experiences or the opinions of others about who we are and what our abilities are, we simply step back and say, "That's too hard. I can't do that." Why? Because thats what we think and believe in our hearts. The unfortunate fact is that if we believe we can't, we are right, we won't be able to do it. If I believe I will never lose those extra pounds, then I won't. If I believe I'll never find the right mate who will love me the way Christ does (especially if I had a bad marriage before) then I won't. If I believe that my income will never increase because I don't have the "right skill set", then it won't. Wow - Deb - that's not good news! No, it's not, but it's the truth! We will never go further than the point to which we have developed our faith.

The Bible clearly teaches us that we accomplish the will of God in our lives by and through faith. Hebrews 11 is filled with folks who did great things for God, and they all did it the same way - by and through faith. That's the good news! If we begin to deal with the heart of the matter, study and meditate on what God has said we can do and begin to act on it, then we will begin to accomplish more in life than we ever imagine. It's true - we really can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens us! We can lose those pounds. We can find (or ladies, be found) by the right mate - even if it's the second time around. We can believe and experience a fresh love and passion in our marriage. We can have financial increase no matter what our skill set or education is.

How? By faith! You may not even realize it, but you've already worked the faith process. When you got born again, you did it by faith. Romans 10 tells us that in order to be saved, we had to believe in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead, and confess with our mouths that Jesus was the Lord of our lives. That was it...that's faith in a nutshell! I must believe the Word of God no matter what, and I must be willing to act on what I believe. If we did that to receive salvation, then we can keep working the same process to receive ANY promise if God. All of the promises of God are received this way - believing what the Word says and then acting on it.

Often the greatest act of faith is simply saying what the Word of God says is true. If we really spend enough time getting the Word in our hearts, so that it becomes natural for the Word to come out of our mouths - even in private moments of frustration and pain - then we will be able to change our circumstances with the Word. If I feel sick or the doctor has given me a bad report about my health, what do I do? I must believe what the Bible says; I must believe that I am healed by the stripes of Jesus. I must search out the scriptures and find the ones that show me that through what Jesus has already done for me I am already healed - right now. I must listen to people anointed to teach and preach about healing. Then I must intentionally believe that and say only that - no matter what.

What if it looks like it's getting worse? Believe and speak healing anyway. What if my doctor says I'm going to die? Believe and speak healing anyway. What if I'm scared? Believe and speak healing anyway. What if I knew someone else who didn't get healed. Believe and speak healing anyway. Never live on the way you feel, the reports you are receiving, or the experience of others, but rather choose to only live by the Word of God.  I must keep myself surrounded with the Word of God and not let anyone or anything talk me out of it. This is called the faith process - intentionally believing and acting on what the Bible says is true in any area of life. When we understand how to work with  the Word - the Word will work for us - and it will work for us every single time.

Was it easy to get saved? Yes! God made it easy for us to receive salvation. There may have been challenges along the way, but we knew it belonged to us. Is it easy to receive healing? Yes! We receive it the same way. There may be challenges along the way, but if we continue in faith, we will win! I am not saying you're not in a fight - but if you want to prevail you must know and believe it is a fight you are going to win!! If God can rescue you out of the kingdom of darkness and change your heart for eternity - there is nothing He can't do for you! It doesn't matter what promise of God you need to receive right now - stop looking at it as hard. Nothing is too hard for God. This fight isnt too hard for you and God together. Remember, it's not hard - it's just different.

And yes, to this day, I can sing the part of a second sorprano. How about that! :)

Remember you're a winner!!

Debbie Beck 

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Scars by Daphne Delay

Scars     

"Lord, thank you for saving me from the grasp of hell... 

and from the scars of hell."

This is what recently came out of my heart as I prayed and thanked God for His love and mercy. Even as I spoke it, I was startled by my own words. But it was so true ... not only have we been saved from the very grasp of hell, but if we'll allow God to fully transform us, the scars of "hell on earth" fade from view, and except for a faint memory, become almost non-existent.

I was once a people-pleaser, so before Christ I had insecurity issues. Any morals or parental guidance that I had was always over-ridden by peer pressure and a desire to be liked and accepted. Little did I know this was a snare of the enemy for greater torment because whatever sin I committed in my moment of weakness was then a perpetual source of agony as the enemy used it against me as a mental stronghold of shame.

When I met Jesus face to face at the age of 21, and gave my heart to Him, He forgave my sins and offered me eternal life. My heart became His home - But what a home it was! Full of guilt, condemnation, and self-doubt, my heart was a messy place. In one confession of faith, Jesus made a clean sweep of my heart, but my mind kept filling it back up with the torturous memories of my past mistakes (not counting the ones I continued to make as a babe in Christ).

But Jesus never gave up on me. The Bible says He loved me and gave Himself for me "...that He might make [me] holy, cleansing [me] by the washing with water through the Word" (Ephesians 5:25-26). His presence filled my heart and gave me a permanent residence in heaven, but it was His Word that cleansed me, washing and scrubbing on the interior of my mind until all memory of my previous ties to hell were erased - except for the necessary faint memory by which I could always recall His grace and mercy towards me.

When I meditate on God's goodness, I can't help but think of the ten lepers who were healed by Jesus. They cried out in anguish begging for deliverance from their "hell on earth." With great compassion, Jesus acknowledged them and said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed (Luke 17:11-14). The leper's oozing and painful sores dried up at His Word as they obeyed His instruction. They must have felt it instantaneously as I did when I gave my heart to Jesus. And without question the priests would be able to see they were healed - no longer the same, something had happened from the inside-out. But the scars of their former condition would remain on their riddled bodies. In many ways, they would be able to use their scars as a testimony of God's love and mercy. 

But one leper separated himself from the others when he saw that he was healed. "He turned and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks" (Luke 17:15-16). It's one thing to have pain on the outside, but it's often the pain on the inside that causes the most misery. I can't say for sure, but it seems to me this man turned to thank Jesus for reasons greater than outer scars. And in another amazing act of mercy, Jesus said to him, "Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you whole" (Luke 1;7:19). This man's scars were erased.

With each revelation of Jesus, my scars were removed too. If I tried to tell stories of my former existence, people who know me now would have a hard time believing that's who I once was. When Jesus changes a person, He makes them "a new creation, old things having passed away, all things having become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

I still wrestle with the my flesh sometimes and it's disappointing, but God's Word provides guidance for our moments of weakness; and more than that, His faithfulness remains, even when we are found faithless (2 Timothy 2: 13). "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and CLEANSE us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). The scars of sin can be erased by Jesus when we humble ourselves, admit our mistakes, and trust in Him for forgiveness. And if that's not amazing enough, when we yield completely to Him and learn His ways, He says, "Arise and go show yourself..." Jesus won't let us stay under a cloak of sackcloth and ashes (guilt and condemnation). "Whom the Son sets free, is free indeed" (John 8:36). 

Scars can be used as a testimony, but it's the testimony of no visible scars (inside or out) that brings God the greatest glory.  May He be glorified in us.

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