"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests." Luke 2:14
“Glory to you oh, God, for through you I have hope and peace! The world cannot give me peace but only unfulfilled desires and longings. The world relies on the seen and external for their hope but faith is through the unseen and eternal! Today as the world spins out of control I place my peace and hope in you, God. Amen”
I promise myself each day that I won’t check in with the chaos of the world and yet time and again I find my fingers creeping over my keyboard to read the latest news. As a Christian and a citizen of this world it’s been difficult to find the balance of my responsibility as a “not yet.” By that I mean I’ve been saved but not yet home with God. I long for the day to see Jesus’ face and be free of this chaos. But Jesus clearly wants us doing God’s good works while here on earth.
"Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father." John 14:12
So that means we have a responsibility to be good citizens of our communities. Spreading God’s Word through deeds and words. It means we need to know what stresses and pains our world is experiencing so we can be God’s message of hope and therefore glorify Him.
In the book of Jude he admonishes to take steps to help those who are new believers and not yet believers. It’s important to note the danger he warns of by getting too close to the fiery chaos of the world.
“…save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.”Jude 23
Mixed with fear. I think sometimes we Christians like to dabble in the world of chaos thinking a little bit is ok. But each time we turn on the news or start discussing politics we should first give thanks to God for where our eternal hope lies and then proceed with a bit of Jesus’ Teflon surrounding us. He let the Pharisees ignorance and at times evil ways bounce off Him. Because He knew who He belonged to. And He consistently gave glory to God when speaking back into the chaos.
Friends, it’s not wrong to be actively informed or involved with the goings-on of the world. Jesus and the apostles jumped in with both feet to tell the world about the Father. They didn’t turn away from the troubles of the world, they came to spread hope and glorify God. But we must always remember the Kingdom awaiting us.
There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens. A time to be born and a time to die.Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
As a kid living in southern California, I had the opportunity to go to Disneyland a number of times. Before each visit my brother and I would plan out how to strategically use our tickets – yes, back then we had ticket books for rides. That’s where the saying, “It’s an E ticket ride” comes from, meaning the best ones. In the ticket book there’d be loads of A tickets for the kiddie rides and shows. But only a few, valuable E tickets. I imagined how much fun I was going to have spinning around the tea cups and travelling through the Haunted Mansion. But when I got to Disneyland all I could think of was the next ride. And the next. When we would leave, I felt a sense of disappointment. Like I hadn’t really been there at all. So, I looked forward to the day we could go back and begin the process of yearning for something better around the next bend all over again.
Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.Proverb 27:1
That has been a lifelong problem for me – always looking for tomorrow to bring me joy and peace. It’s also brought me a lot of worry. And although God wants us to be good stewards of our life, planning and preparing, He doesn’t want our hearts and minds to be absent from today. Or worse, trapped in the past. During difficult seasons we can so easily project our life to what we hope it to be or catastrophize our life to what we are worried it will be. We often also wish we could just go back to the way things were. Back home, back to a perceived better or safer time.
On my rides home from the Magic Kingdom, I would wish I could go back. Go back and relish each ride, each experience to its fullest. And while I was doing that, I was probably missing out again on what was happening right then and there. I can only imagine Elijah, a quiet, rugged mountain shepherd on day 50 or 100 or even 200 in Cherith Ravine letting his mind wander back home to Gilead. Being just a man, he probably once or twice longed for his old way of life where kings and queens weren’t threatening his life. Where he could pick berries and drink fresh goat milk each day instead of relying on ravens for food. But God needed him right there, right at that time paying attention.
Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.15 Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”James 4:13-15
It’s a hard lesson when we are in pain, suffering through bad news, or being persecuted. We are admonished to trust in God for tomorrow and not yearn to go backwards to home. And yet, in the midst of my Cherith I found myself doing just that.
Both my children had returned to their own homes after saying their final goodbyes to their beloved grandmother. My husband too had returned back to a job that needed his presence. That next day, after a particularly hard few moments and, to be honest, watching my brother-in-law’s little family gather closely together, I needed to escape. I felt so alone and incapable of the task of helping shepherd my mother-in-law through her final days. I took my eyes off the Lord and placed them back on myself. A phone call home had me crying out to my husband, “I can’t do this. I’m not strong enough. I want to come home right now.”
I wanted to go back to before the cancer. I wanted to envelope myself in my comfortable routine back home. Fear and loneliness wrapped around me like a heavy blanket. And then I remembered Elijah. I looked toward the majesty of the Colorado Rockies and remembered God can do all things. And He needed me right there, right now. Not longing for home or better times. Not worrying about the future. Instead, paying attention to the beautiful moments and lessons He had placed before me for today.
22 So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.John 16:22
I still will battle looking for the next “better thing” around the corner. But the time between that search and remembering to enjoy this day has reduced to mere moments as I pull my thoughts back to looking for Jesus right now. There is a time for everything. To prepare and to sow, to cry and to laugh. To keep and throw away. To mourn and to dance. When we step outside God’s timing we find ourselves at odds with His plan. But when we live in His moments, His seasons, we find ourselves in harmony. That is God’s promised peace. And that my friends, is exactly where the joy is.
Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you. 2 Thessalonians 3:16
For many years I was in search mode with my faith. I kept searching for something that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. At first, I thought it was to be accepted. Then I turned to searching for joy. I finally landed on the underlying need for all my searching – peace. I realized what I wanted each and every day was to wake up with sense of peace, go through my day with peace and lay down my head at night peace-filled.
In a recent Bible study I did by Christian teacher Jackie Hill Perry on the book of Jude, she explained the two different types of Christian peace. 1) Peace with God and 2) Peace from God.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27
During the Christmas holidays one of the great misunderstandings or misuses of Bible words are “peace on Earth.” So many non-Christians (and probably many self-identified Christians) think this means no war, no strife. But the “peace” we can be so thankful for is the peace we now have WITH God after we repented and entered into a life of submission to Him. In effect, our relationship, which was fractured, is now repaired. Secondly, the peace with get FROM God is the knowledge that He is in ultimate control of this world and we know our final place will rest with Him in eternity.
Although it’d certainly be awesome if this world were to stop being at war with each other, if violence wasn’t an everyday occurrence, I know that the unrepentant man will always act for the passions of the flesh.
Now that my search is complete, I am working every day to live in God’s gift of peace. I can easily fall into the well-worn paths of the world that I created but I’m forging a new road with His help.
And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25 Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.2 Timothy 2:24-26
There’s certainly been a lot of “quarreling” the last 20 years in the United States and the world in general. These last few years have seen a steady rise in conflicts. Conflicts used to be among countries. The most troublesome trend seems to be that now more than ever they are among neighbors.
We live in a world where all bets are off when it comes to social niceties. One article I read reminds us of some of the following “old fashioned etiquette rules”:
Don’t point
Don’t curse
Dress to impress
Stick to tasteful topics
Cover your mouth when you cough
Avoid private conversations in public
All of those, plus the others I haven’t listed, are to allow for a calm and peaceful and respectful social environment. But a cell phone video I saw the other day is just one example of how we’ve thrown so many of these out the window.
The video, taken by a woman shopping at Target, shows an older man following her and pointing at her. He has a mask on and a sticker stating, “I’m vaccinated.” His issue with her? She isn’t wearing a mask. Now, this post is not about the pros and cons of mask wearing. And in this instance wearing a mask was not mandated in that store. It’s about his approach and her response. This man had many choices prior to harassing this woman. If he was really worried about getting sick he could 1) stay home and order on line or 2) avoided being near the woman. Interestingly enough he didn’t seem to be doing any of his own shopping. It appeared he was there to “catch” people without a mask.
What does this have to do with being a Christian? What does it have to do with being resolute in Christ? Our choices each and every minute of the day define what type of Christian we have chosen to be.
In our verse today we are reminded to be kind to everyone. To teach gently without resentment. We are all most likely familiar with the term being a “Karen.” That’s someone who is a tattle tell, a modern day Pharisee. This man was being a Karen. And he certainly wasn’t succeeding in teaching anyone anything positive. Yet the new social norms say this is ok. We are to vilify those with whom we disagree. We may not all be Westboro Baptist Church members standing outside the funerals of homosexuals with messages of hatred but how many of us in the last year have made disparaging remarks about people who 1) don’t wear a mask or do wear a mask, 2) aren’t vaccinated, 3) voted for a different candidate, 4) don’t like shutdowns or do like shutdowns, and on and on. I’m not talking about private conversations with friends or family members. I’m talking about in public and social media. I’ve clicked on people’s profiles who have written horrible things and they proudly state they are Christians.
And the woman? She wasn’t successful either. She just kept arguing with the man. She could’ve 1) smiled and moved on since he wasn’t physically threatening her 2) put a mask on to make him feel better 3) left the store and come back later 4) called security 5) invited him over to talk. So many choices for both. But they chose the least peaceful route.
I, myself, have gotten wrapped up in issues and have deleted comments I realized were not in keeping with my desire to walk well in my faith. And so, I reflect back on that cell phone video taken in Target. I ask myself which person in that video am I? The Harasser? The Victim? The Bystander? In fact, I’ve been all three. But as a follower of Christ, I’m learning He wants something completely different of us. He wants us to be the peacemaker. He wants us to do things so different that it shocks people. Our Jesus–directed actions in this quarrelsome world need to be set apart.
When we get annoyed, outraged, hurt, abused, Jesus tells us to respond differently. He first wants us to be responsible for our own words and actions (James 3:6). He then wants us to be gentle, not angry and resentful. Truth doled out without love will never be received how we intended.
I picture myself the subtle Karen, rolling my eyes at people wearing two masks as they walk outside at a park and I need to stop and have compassion for their fears. I imagine myself in a store being spoken to harshly by a customer for not wearing a mask and instead of responding in kind, draw on the Holy Spirit asking for peace. This isn’t just about these current large issues. It’s how we respond in all life’s situations. Do we lash out, with uncontrolled emotions, seeking to justify how we feel? Or do we use wisdom and compassion to guide us?
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.James 1:19-20
The temptation is so great to join this new quarrelsome social environment. It’s easy to blast a comment at someone. The devil loves an angry Believer. But if we remember that Jesus stands by our side, we can be resolute in living the Christian life He expects of us.
You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
Isaiah 55:12
The other morning my husband and I were out for an early morning walk. The clouds were building to the east and I commented that I hoped it would rain. You see, living in Southern California we don’t see a lot of rain. And I love the rain. I love the sound of it hitting the pavement, especially when it wakes me in the middle of the night. We get up just to watch it rain. I even love the sound of the water hitting under my car as I drive down the road. There are so few times when the rain becomes a long, monotonous affair where I live that I never get tired of it. At my daughter’s house in Missouri, I could sit for hours watching and listening to the thunderous rain come down!
The sound of rain is just one instrument in God’s beautiful orchestra. The music of His creation is so glorious! And that’s what I praise today.
I’ve been praying the last few days for God’s direction for these last few days of praise. And on my way to have lunch with my parents – which typically is a difficult visit – my playlist of Christian music came on. A fun and almost silly song began playing which put me in just the right frame of mind for my impending encounter with my parents. And I praised God for His music. And then I praised God for putting this entire line of thought in my head!
When I think of all the beautiful instruments in God’s orchestra what also comes to mind are the voices of some of my closest friends. Their laughter and warmth. Their sarcasm and wit. I told one of them, in preparation for her day at a school office, that no matter what is thrown her way I know the office will be blessed with hearing her joyous giggle.
During the stresses of the last year and a half I started doing a sort of mediation technique to help me rest in God’s peace. When I’m at our local park with my dog I sit down on the grass and do a centering countdown. It goes like this:
What 10 different things do I see?
What 9 different things do I hear?
What 8 different trees can I find?
What 7 different smells can I smell?
And so on..
It’s amazing just sitting and listening to the music of God’s creation. The breeze rustling in the trees. Birds chirping. Children laughing. Moms talking on their phones. Cars driving by. Airplanes overhead. Bees buzzing. My dog panting. So many sounds, some of which are exactly the same as at the time of creation others unique to this very time and place.
And of course, there’s what we traditionally call “music.” I marvel that since the beginning of time we humans have been creating new types of music and songs. When you look at a music book there seems to be a limit to what can be created. There’s only a certain number of notes to use, right? And yet day after day, year after year someone creates a new song or even a new sound! How else can this happen than by some glorious design by a being who loves music and who loves the sounds of the earth?
Praise God for music that speaks to us when we need it most. Praise God for the sound of crashing waves. Praise God for thunder and chickens squawking and the crunching of gravel under my feet. Praise God for his magnificent orchestra of life!
Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.Matthew 7:20
For much of my life I sought busyness. If I wasn’t “doing” then I was not worthy. It didn’t matter what that doing was, I just needed to do something. When I quit working to be a stay at home mom my greatest fear was to be seen as worthless. A non-contributor. And yes, I know I was doing the important work of raising a child. But having grown up through the 70s and 80s, being a homemaker was not a goal any of my friends wished to attain.
When my husband would come home from work and ask me, “What did you do today?” I took that as a judgment of my worth. I felt the need to provide an hour by hour list of all the important things I had accomplished.
Fast forward to 2020 – yes, the Great Lockdown. I see that time as a sifting of sorts. If you weren’t tied to a Zoom-based job you either embraced staying at home working on little projects around the house, completing endless puzzles, catching up on all those books you’d ignored, jumping in to Bible studies or you were going mad with boredom and itching to “do something important.”
What does this all have to do with praising God? I realized the other day that I need to be thankful to Him that He never asks us to live a life of “busyness.” I praise Him for instead expecting us to live a life that bears good fruit. Quality over quantity. He is not a task master. He doesn’t have verses in the Bible about accounting for every hour of our day. Yes, He doesn’t want us to be idle. But that means not wasting our precious time doing things that don’t produce good fruits.
Time spent in mediation is not idle. It helps me commune with Him. Time spent in study brings me closer in line with what He wants of me. Time spent in nature helps me appreciate and praise Him. Time spent with my husband during a round of golf brings us closer together and strengthens our marriage.
But busyness distracts me. It physically causes my heart to race thinking I need to accomplish something – anything. It darkens my heart when I equate my doing with my worth.
Jesus came to change our hearts. To remind us that our wrong intent is just as bad as our wrong doing. And knowing that releases my heart and mind to live in a peaceful state.
You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound.Psalm 4:7
Have you ever ridden on a carousel where the operator, at some point, drops down a metal arm toward the riders and a brass ring drops toward its end? The riders on the outside stretch and strive to grasp that brass ring. The prize? A free ride to the one person who can attain that ring. I think that’s how I was looking at joy for many years. Not only from a grasping and striving point of view but from a scarcity mindset. There’s only one ring and lots of riders. You have to be on one of the outside animals to even have a chance. And once the ring is taken by a rider, your chance is gone. I searched in earnest many years for joy. How to attain it and how to hold on to it. And what I discovered is that joy, freely given in abundance by God, is right in front of me for the taking.
Praise God that His joy, unlike the joy the world offers, comes freely and is never ending. It is available to all. In the carousel world, as we spin around and around, we can choose the outer seat or even one of the animals constantly moving up and down, never finding rest. But how about instead we pick one of the colorful, stable sleds? And sitting there on the bench as we take our seat is a replenishing bucket full of shiny joy rings. Not just one free ride but endless opportunities for laughter and cooling breezes hitting our face as we go round and round.
God’s joy is available to everyone, not just the chosen few. It’s there for the taking when we sit nestled in the promises and gifts of His Holy Word. We pick up a ring from the bucket each time and hand it to the operator saying, “let’s ride!” All the while we watch the outer edge riders stretching for the measly gifts of the world.
The thing about riding a carousel is we carefully pick which animal or sleigh to ride when we jump up to the main stage. We are drawn to the exciting and the colorful, to the chance to grasp the ring. Isn’t that like the world? The bells and whistles of the flesh pull us to stretch for even more? To search for a bigger and better brass ring? But God says, “Come and rest and I will fill your bucket overflowing with joy.” All we need to do is choose Him.
I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;Isaiah 49:15-16
The other day my Bible study girls (or BSGs as I like to call them) were once again talking about praise versus thanksgiving. I had already been pondering over my praise life when we started talking about how we so often thank God in our prayers for things He has fixed or doors He has opened in our lives. But how often do we simply herald the Creator for being well, the Creator? For being the Holy King of our lives?
As I’ve prayed these last few weeks for direction after completing the Jesus Mindset series, I kept being drawn to this topic of praise. God speaks to us when we ask Him for direction. And throughout the last few weeks He has placed numerous psalms and Bible verses in front of me related to praise. So, it didn’t come as a surprise yesterday when our church’s guest pastor highlighted the following verses in the book of Luke:
"However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”Luke 10:20
And so today I praise God for remembering my name. I praise Jesus that if you look closely at His battered hands, you can see my name tattooed there. And if you have confessed that Christ is your Lord and Savior, that God is our Great Creator, you’ll find your name there too. It cannot be erased.
When we remember someone’s name it also brings to mind the details about their life.
Pastor Joel Fitzpatrick
God knows exactly who we are. What we have done. What we will do. And He still won’t erase our name from His hands. There’s no other relationship we could ever turn to which offers us so much love and forgiveness.
Knowing our name doesn’t take away trials and tribulations. Knowing our name doesn’t make our outer life easy street. Knowing our name brings us inner “settledness.” The knowledge that when the Book of Life is opened our names are carved there for all eternity. When this short life is done, we will rejoice in the heavens with the angels. And that, my friends is something worthy of praise.
"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7
“I believe Jesus died to deliver ourselves from ourselves. How many of us are just fed up being ourselves all the time?”
Joyce Meyer
The darkness, fury and despair of the young woman sitting next to me grew with each passing minute. We were so close I could feel her shoulder touching mine. Sitting on the airplane we found ourselves in that strange world of invading each other’s personal space while pretending neither existed. Her billowing cloud seem to want to seep over the dividing line of the armrest to pull me in.
This seemingly quiet, unassuming young woman opened her computer and began pounding on her keyboard like the devil itself was trying to escape her fingertips. My eyes drifted to her brightly lit screen. I couldn’t help but notice the many words in all caps. And I was drawn to know what was causing her so much angst. It appeared she was writing a complaint letter about a work environment. As her fingers marched like Roman soldiers across the keyboard, pounding and erasing and pounding some more I couldn’t seem to tear my eyes away from the battle. She was hurt and outraged. She felt betrayed and abused. Her past hurts served as the basis of why her employer should’ve known better. And then those pounding fingers suddenly slammed the lid of the smoking computer closed. Her fury still burned. You could almost see the sparks coming from her.
Over the course of three and half hours I watched this woman join the battle numerous times, editing, adding and pounding. And then she started in on an email to her family. I kept praying that she, once there was internet service, would have a change of heart and not send off the bombs she composed. But alas, before deplaning, she picked up her phone and started, with the same fervor, sending off salvos via text messages. I have never seen a person’s finger move with such speed and aggressiveness. Like driving pass a car accident I couldn’t seem to look away.
I’ve come to realize that God puts me in all types of situations to test and teach me. I was learning a valuable lesson. You see, my tendency to get outrage over “unfair” situations is something I’ve battled with forever. As I watched this young woman blow up at probably everyone in her life, I realized how much I need God to lead me out of my sin. How much I need God to provide me with a different perspective. How much I need to rely on God for peace. What I wanted to do was turn to her and ask if she knew about Jesus. I wanted to wrap Jesus’ love around her. To somehow snap her mind off her problems and look up to God. I could turn and look at this woman and see my own face looking back at me. And I didn’t want to be “that girl.”
In 2019 there were more than 18 million self-help type books sold in the United States. The number of unique titles rose nearly three-fold from 30,897 in 2013 to 85,253 in 2019. That’s a lot of people trying to fix themselves! Isn’t that, so often, what we turn to our friends, co-workers and professionals for – advice on fixing our problems?
Aren’t we exhausted yet trying to fix ourselves? As the world drifts farther from God it shouldn’t be surprising that so many people are working so hard to fix their own problems. Jesus came to save our souls but I believe He also came to save us from ourselves.
“The only way we are ever ready for a change in our life is when we are tired of “me.” When we say we cannot continue to do the work of trying to make ourself happy. We are fed up.”
Joyce Meyer
When we stop striving, stop trying to control what other people think of us, stop trying to please everyone, stop shaming ourselves for our past, stop playing victim, and start putting God as our King, our Creator, our Lord we can release the yoke of our fleshly life.
"Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." John 6:35
And follow Him. Retire from our self-care routines. Self-care as in trying to fix ourselves. Certainly we take care of ourselves, our minds and bodies. But God always calls us to take a new perspective in every aspect of our lives. When we take time to mediate, what do we mediate on? When we decide what best to eat or how to stay in shape, who do we do it for? Why do we word vomit all over our family or friends trying to get them to see “our side?” For ourselves? Or for our Heavenly Father?
I’ve heard the evangelist teacher Joyce Meyer make this statement many times: “I was always on my mind. I was so selfish.” To change that she created these three steps:
Live to please God, not yourself. You are making a Kingdom investment. And you will always get a great return on your investment.
Refuse to have “me” on my mind all the time. I’m not thinking about what’s wrong with me all the time or how I can get people to do things for me.
Always use money and things to bless people. Don’t use people to get money and things.
Jesus frequently took the focus off Himself and placed it on God. He prayed for help in times of pain and trouble. He told the disciples to look to the Father. He guided new believers to putting away their shame and accepting forgiveness from God. The times He had to solidify His place as the Savior He seemed almost reluctant. The focus for Jesus the man was always God and how to best please Him.
In my study on Revelation, I was asked the question, “How does the fact that Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords affect our everyday choices and decisions?” In other words, getting ourselves, off our own minds and onto the Creator. I’m finally leaning more on Him as my wise counselor. He is my exercise coach, my nutritional advisor, my mental wellness guru. When I see my mind and body as belonging to Him, I realize the responsibility I have to keeping myself focused on what He wants for me. I fail frequently. And when I do I come to Him seeking and receiving forgiveness.
I encountered the young, angry, hurt woman at the end of my trip. Before it had even started however, I failed to grab on to God’s promised peace by my favorite method of failure –outrage. The TSA officer and I had a bit of a confrontation. I blustered and was rude. As I walked away, I realized I was wearing my silver cross around my neck. I may have flushed in embarrassment. I failed to show grace and patience and forgiveness. I took the situation personally. It was all about “me.”
The difference for me at that moment was instead of adding it to my Vault of Shame I lifted it up to God. I had a counseling moment with Him. I felt His disappointment and His love. It set me on course to be more aware of my behavior choices while in the crowded airport.
“We are in the middle between hating sin and sinning. When we aren’t accustomed to making good choices it’s hard. The devil is working against us. The more often we make those good choices it becomes easier.”
Joyce Meyer
And so, on my return flight, as I sat next to the woman with fire bursting from her fingertips, and like lava flowing out on her family, friends, co-workers burning bridges left and right I wanted to be like Jesus. To be able to look her in the eye and know her hurts, her overwhelming pain and say, “follow me.”
And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 2 Cor 5:15
It wasn’t a counseling moment for her. Although I prayed for her. It was a reminder message to me. To live for Jesus. To place my thoughts on Jesus. To release my pain and hurts to Him. To stop trying to defend and take care of myself. To trust that He wants the best for me and will guide me to whatever that looks like. To take my mind off me and have the mind of Christ.
Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14
The day I sat on the edge of my bed whining to God about my miserable life – the lack of peace and joy – He spoke quite clearly to me. “What have you really done (to be close to me?),” He said. I got down on my knees and wept. I prayed for Him to show me the steps to take to draw nearer to Him. The next day He tasked me to go to the bookstore and get a devotional. So, I stood in front of the hundreds of books and prayed, “Show me.”
The book the Holy Spirit placed in my hands that day was called, “Power Thoughts” by Joyce Meyer. I try my best not to question God. He knew exactly where my problem lay – my mind.
“I am content and emotionally stable.”
“I purse peace with God, myself and others.”
“I live in the present and enjoy each moment.”
“I am disciplined and self-controlled.”
“I put God first in my life.”
These are just a few of the “power thoughts” I read over the course of the devotional that year. My God-centered counseling session began each morning to help me battle the overwhelmingly negative thoughts I had so solidly built. My stronghold was not fear of man, in fact my propensity was to be ready to fight each day I left my house. My stronghold was not fear of serving in His name. I did that willingly and often. My stronghold, my addiction you might say, was self-hatred and self-doubt. My husband once called me the “Queen of the Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda.”
I’ve frequently been told I don’t come off that way. But I’ve come to realize there’s a difference between what a truly confident woman in Christ looks like and one that blusters her way through life.
Allowing Jesus and the Holy Word to become my wise counselor isn’t easy. It’s painful sitting in “the chair” having someone show you your weaknesses. And I have many. But the beauty of our Lord’s Word contains something that no one else can provide – a deep and lasting love behind every nudge, every reveal, every chastisement.
That’s not to say human counselors don’t have a place in our lives. God uses many ways and messengers to guide us toward righteousness. A poll released in May 2004 found that an estimated 59 million people had received mental health treatment in the two years prior, and that 80 percent of them found it effective. But for the Christian we should seek guidance that has our faith in mind. What is the point of a, say, marriage counselor who does not view or support marriage from God’s point of view? When we seek out counseling for our weaknesses, past hurts, we should be reminded of God’s overwhelming love and forgiveness.
This is why I love the counseling session at the well.
15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”
16 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”
17 “I have no husband,” she replied.
Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.” John 4:15-18
Jesus speaks to the woman about truth. Truth without condemnation. Just the naked truth. He goes on to share with her the truth about forgiveness of sins and salvation. She had lived her life in sin and shame. And kept doing the same thing over and over. That’s what shame does. It envelopes us to twist our minds into feelings of worthlessness, self-doubt, self-destruction.
Throughout Jesus’ three-year walk we see Him love and heal the sick, bring people into God’s service, comfort those in fear, teach so many about the ways of God. And woven amongst the stories of His life are the counseling moments like the one at the well. Moments where He uses all His God-given knowledge and skills to bring someone to a “truth” reveal.
Isn’t that what we seek when we ask a friend for advice about a problem? Or go to a professional counselor concerning a life issue? How can I fix this? How can I fix me? Unlike a teaching situation, where a topic outside ourselves is learned, seeking a wise counselor aims to reach into ourselves to find the “why?”
So often when our own friends or family express concerns about their life we know the “why” but are afraid of the damage the truth might do to our relationship so we stay silent. That’s the challenge of being a wise counselor. The culmination of all the Jesus traits.
I believe the stories of Jesus’ counseling moments are included in the Bible not just for us to see ourselves being counseled like the woman at the well. They are included so we can also learn to help others. Others who are hurting. Others who are living in sin. Others who don’t know about the gift of forgiveness of self.
We need to take an inventory of how our individual lives, our fruit, our behavior are affecting the people we come in contact with. The world is in such a desperate situation. Get yourself off your mind and see how you can bless someone else today.
Joyce Meyer
Join me this week, as we complete our series on The Jesus Mindset, in a deep dive into the methods of a wise counselor and how we might touch those around us, helping them to take a few bricks down from their strongholds.
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