Combat boot or flip flop Christian??......

Been thinking, reading, studying, talking to God about the "shoes"...haven't gotten it all together, but I did come to the realization that we too often wear our flip flops to combat; when what we should have done was taken the time to strap our boots on so we would be ready for whatever comes at us. I love me some flip flops, but let's get real...flip flops are for the lazy! There's no prep...you just slip 'em on and go. Kind of like lazy Christians...no prep, no studying the Word, no prayer, no witnessing, no worship; just one quick "swoop" for an hour on Sunday morning and we're ready to face a week full of fiery darts and satan's minions. They're often the most "comfortable" and we are the most "content" with the flip flop, but does it serve it's purpose?  The shoe was made to protect the foot, so which protects it most: a flip flop that exposes everything or a combat boot that covers everything (kind of like the armor of God for the foot...lol). I feel more comfortable in my flip flops, but I sure wouldn't want to fight a battle in them! So is that the kind of Christian I want to be: a flip flop Christian- One who is lazy and flip flops back and forth on who I am as a child of God because I don't know enough about the Word, don't spend as much time talking to God, and telling others about Jesus, or a combat boot Christian- one who is laced up, strapped down, covered with the Word, and sitting on GO on the front lines of battle ready for whatever is waiting on my path to eternity. So, what shoe do you wear? Just a thought.....

Proclaiming "I know my Redeemer lives"...

Just as with Job, in the depths of my agony, I KNOW MY REDEEMER LIVES! We’ve spoken about the many similarities of our family and Job’s. People approach my husband and me quite often and ask, “Do you feel as though Satan has approached God and asked to sift you as wheat?” In no way to we feel that we are righteous enough to be compared to Job…that’s a long shot. But sometimes, Yes…I do feel that way. Even if he has…and we are…there’s still a huge difference in Job and my family. You see, Job didn’t know there was a conversation that was taking place between his Creator and the fallen one, yet after all he had faced he still proclaimed “I know my Redeemer lives!” And so, here I sit, hindsight 20:20…having read Job and knowing the story twofold…can I, will I, stand chest to chest with the world and declare “I know my Redeemer lives” even after my circumstances? Because no matter how difficult this life becomes for us…all the cuts, scrapes, snags, briars, and bruises…God is still God…in all His splendor, Almighty and Glorious! And if we hold on to the One who is PROVING to the antagonist once again that WE ARE WHO HE SAYS WE ARE, we will find ourselves not only singing “I know my Redeemer lives” to the world, but we will be able to stand face to face with the adversary and say with a confident smirk “watch this…when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold!”

Waiting on God Until....

I've been studying on "waiting on God"...which is horribly hard for me! When we don't have immediate possession of something (or someone) that is of great importance to us, we have days where we almost feel a panic, a sense of urgency to possess or grab hold of it (or them) just so we know that it's (or they are) there. You know, that comfort in knowing the "ahhh, there it is" feeling. But, why are you making me wait God? Why is it so important for me to continue to wait for this job, assignment, task, person? Can't You see how hard this is for me? Of course He does! Just like Joseph...who waited in a prison...not for days, or weeks, but YEARS! Waiting on God to answer him! Waiting for a rescue! And me??? I'm not in a prison! You aren’t in prison, but we may be infertile or inactive or in between jobs or in search of health, looking for that "task" or ministry that you know God has called you to. Wondering how long must I suffer? At some point, we've all known what it's like to be so sick but dread going to the doctor because we know the waiting room and wait time will be excruciating!!!!!! But we drag ourselves there, sign in, and begin "THE LONG DREADED WAIT!" The aggravation of hearing other people's names called before our own! Don't these nurses and doctor know how bad I feel? Can they not see the bags under my eyes from the lack of sleepless nights I've toiled with this? Are you in God’s waiting room? If so, there’s something you need to know: While you wait, God works! Jesus said "My Father is still working..." In John 5:17. GOD NEVER STOPS! He takes no vacations. He rested on the seventh day of creation but got back to work on the eighth and hasn’t stopped since. Just because we're idle, don’t assume God is! So we wait....we pray....we fast...we wait...we worship...we praise...we pray...we wait...UNTIL it's our time...God calls and it's now our turn! Joseph wasn't left in prison to be punished. We aren't left without an answer for punishment...sometimes we are there to grow, to become more prepared for whatever we've waited on, or maybe to just simply STAND STILL AND KNOW THAT HE IS GOD!!!! I don't know what you may be waiting on or what you've entered the throne room and asked from God, but I do know that His answer will be worth the wait! So I continue to my wait....I pray....I fast...I wait...I worship...I praise...I sing...and I wait.........until. And I pray you will, too! ~Many blessings and Much Love ~