Does it ever happen to you that you think you are on a road to get somewhere, and suddenly you realize you are not where you thought you would be? And you are not sure where you are at all? I mean, I know there's GPS and all now, but even Lola makes mistakes, right? (Yeah, I named my GPS Lola...)
At any rate, maybe it is because I'm totally directionally challenged, and you are not, so you have no clue what I'm talking about, but the last time I took the kids to Kennywood, for instance, I ended up in an area of Pittsburgh I did not recognize AT ALL.!!! I thought that by now, after driving there every year, I had a good picture in my mind as to what the different sites along the way looked like. It was not the case this year. I kept asking Grant if he recognized anything and he said he did, because apparently the bus driver that took them to Kennywood on their annual Band Trip took them that way. But to me, it was entirely new and I had a hard time believing that we were going to end up at our intended destination.
I believe the same thing happens to us in our spiritual lives as well. We design a plan, a course of action with some outcomes as our goals, get Lola on board, and off we go...we depart on our adventure thinking we know what we are doing...when...suddenly...we are not sure we know where we are anymore.
Sigh...
We sort of either get lost on the way...or realize the way is not what we thought it would be...or perhaps, it is a combination of both.
When my sons were babies, I never thought I would be such a horrible Mom...that never crossed my mind! I would never be one of those Moms that lost it and yelled all the time. I would be firm but always loving. I mean, my heart burst with love for them, how would someone that inspires so much love in your heart could ever cause so much frustration in your soul...so much pain??? That was never going to happen to me! I was not going to let that happen to me...but it did...and it has...
The thing is that the road I had mapped out for my motherhood has not worked out as I planned it. It has turned out to be very different from what I imagined when I first held my boys in my arms as infants. It has been a completely different road which I don't recognize at all! What I thought would become so familiar that I could even navigate with my eyes closed, has become so strange and new it's scary! Yes, I have two adolescent boys...it's no wonder I feel lost, and that I am traveling on a very dark road right now...but again...I don't like who I am on this road...I don't like how I am walking on it...sigh...and the main reason is...I am forgetting to be loving...
I am forgetting the most important thing: to do it all in love.
I need to love like Jesus! Who, regardless of the beating, the crown of thorns, the insults, the crucifixion and the grave, loved us still even beyond his death.
I know love like that is pure perfection, and I am incapable of loving at that level...but He lives in me, and one of the fruit of His Spirit in me is Love! So, through the Holy Spirit, as He grows His fruit in me, love would be possible! Through His power, I should be able to love others in a way that my love can reflect the way I am loved...I cannot allow my frustrations, disappointment, pride and selfishness block the flow of love from the Spirit in me towards those around me. That is just not an option. The funny thing is that often it is not up to us to worry about how that is going to happen.
Back to our trip to Kennywood, I decided to trust Lola and follow the road even if it was not what I had expected...even if I was frustrated... After a few turns and bends we saw the familiar sight of roller coasters picking in the horizon so we knew we had arrived. We had been on track all along, just on a different road.
And that's the thing, isn't it? Often, it is just a matter of surrendering our ways to the Master of all Roads and allow Him to lead us where we need to be. As long as we are intentional about laying it all out, being honest, humble ourselves, set aside pride and selfishness, and pray without ceasing, He will get us where we need to be...even if at times we feel so lost that we don't even recognize ourselves. He knows us and He will never let us go...in Him we are never, truly lost!
Thursday, August 30, 2018
Thursday, August 23, 2018
Releasing them...
The first day back to school could be such a bitter-sweet moment for parents. Of course you are happy that they are progressing and that they are doing what they are supposed to do: grow up. However, it's also the day when it becomes clear that the sleepless nights you'd thought would last forever as you held your fussy infant in your arms are nothing but a distant memory of a time that will never come back...
When I was a young woman, I didn't understand why my parents wanted to hold on to me so tightly? It was truly a mystery why they didn't want me to go anywhere! As a parent now, I totally get it. It is hard to release them, isn't it? But that's exactly what we have to do: let them go. If we don't, we harm not only them, but ourselves as well, because we make them the object of our idolatry.
That is a hard truth to swallow. I don't want to let go of the hold I have on my children...but I cannot allow my sons to become my idols. Therefore, I must release them...I must let go...
Above all, I must trust that I am releasing them into the most qualified hands, the hands of their Maker! I must trust that the same unending love, mercy and care God lavishes on me, He will lavish on my babies too! I must trust that no matter what, they are loved by their Heavenly Father just as much as the Heavenly Father loves me...and that must bring my heart the peace I need to release my tight grip.
The weak rays of sunshine hit my face through the window. It's a rather chilly late August morning, and the distant memories of a summer that is closing intermingle with those of an ending era. I watch my growing boys walk away from me without looking back, without even waving goodbye...sigh... That is the right course of life, however, and for that I Praise the Lord, even if I have to wipe away a runaway tear as I look down at the fingernail marks left on the palm of my hands...
When I was a young woman, I didn't understand why my parents wanted to hold on to me so tightly? It was truly a mystery why they didn't want me to go anywhere! As a parent now, I totally get it. It is hard to release them, isn't it? But that's exactly what we have to do: let them go. If we don't, we harm not only them, but ourselves as well, because we make them the object of our idolatry.
That is a hard truth to swallow. I don't want to let go of the hold I have on my children...but I cannot allow my sons to become my idols. Therefore, I must release them...I must let go...
Above all, I must trust that I am releasing them into the most qualified hands, the hands of their Maker! I must trust that the same unending love, mercy and care God lavishes on me, He will lavish on my babies too! I must trust that no matter what, they are loved by their Heavenly Father just as much as the Heavenly Father loves me...and that must bring my heart the peace I need to release my tight grip.
The weak rays of sunshine hit my face through the window. It's a rather chilly late August morning, and the distant memories of a summer that is closing intermingle with those of an ending era. I watch my growing boys walk away from me without looking back, without even waving goodbye...sigh... That is the right course of life, however, and for that I Praise the Lord, even if I have to wipe away a runaway tear as I look down at the fingernail marks left on the palm of my hands...
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
I Am Beautiful
Do you believe in affirming yourself? Do you know what I mean? That whole school of thought that promotes self-affirmations like standing in front of a mirror and saying to yourself things like: I am smart. I am talented. I am caring...so on and so forth... Anyway, I have NEVER gone for that. I don't believe in it. I think it's foolish. And I think it is useless...until today, that is...
This morning, one of my devotional readings wrapped up with the following prayer:
"Dear God, thank You for forming me in the garden and completing me on the cross. Today, I choose to believe I am beautiful simply because I was created in Your very image. In Jesus Name. Amen"
I have to tell you, this prayer struck a chord in my heart. It encompases the full-circle truth of our creation: we were formed in the garden, and like our forefathers, Adam and Eve, we fall...but then Jesus' sacrifice on the cross completes us...therefore His final words: "it is finished..." nothing else is needed. Jesus did it all and paid it all...in Him, we are a new creation. And, it reminds us of the other crucial element of our creation: we were wonderfully and fearfully made to bear the image of Our Heavenly Father.
I mean, really? What else do I what? I AM BEAUTIFUL! There is no way around it! And so are YOU, too!!! We are not being conceited, we are being grateful. We are acknowledging the fact that our beauty is not of our own or of this world. Any beauty that is in us emanates from the One whose image we carry. We are beautiful because HE is beautiful! Any other reasoning is a lie! Just like the images of beauty that fashion magazines present, the world's concept of beauty is a total fabrication!
The enemy attacks us by pushing the buttons of our insecurities every time we see ourselves in the mirror and dislike what we see. It is an old-age tactic designed to separate us from the truth...to separate us from God...to make us doubt His love. Add to that the ignorant comments and ill-intended actions of others, and it's a miracle we ever get out of bed in the morning! Our insecurities distort the image on the mirror. Our lack of trust in the One who made us makes us feel unloved.
So...what can we do? Remember the truth!
This morning, one of my devotional readings wrapped up with the following prayer:
"Dear God, thank You for forming me in the garden and completing me on the cross. Today, I choose to believe I am beautiful simply because I was created in Your very image. In Jesus Name. Amen"
I have to tell you, this prayer struck a chord in my heart. It encompases the full-circle truth of our creation: we were formed in the garden, and like our forefathers, Adam and Eve, we fall...but then Jesus' sacrifice on the cross completes us...therefore His final words: "it is finished..." nothing else is needed. Jesus did it all and paid it all...in Him, we are a new creation. And, it reminds us of the other crucial element of our creation: we were wonderfully and fearfully made to bear the image of Our Heavenly Father.
I mean, really? What else do I what? I AM BEAUTIFUL! There is no way around it! And so are YOU, too!!! We are not being conceited, we are being grateful. We are acknowledging the fact that our beauty is not of our own or of this world. Any beauty that is in us emanates from the One whose image we carry. We are beautiful because HE is beautiful! Any other reasoning is a lie! Just like the images of beauty that fashion magazines present, the world's concept of beauty is a total fabrication!
The enemy attacks us by pushing the buttons of our insecurities every time we see ourselves in the mirror and dislike what we see. It is an old-age tactic designed to separate us from the truth...to separate us from God...to make us doubt His love. Add to that the ignorant comments and ill-intended actions of others, and it's a miracle we ever get out of bed in the morning! Our insecurities distort the image on the mirror. Our lack of trust in the One who made us makes us feel unloved.
So...what can we do? Remember the truth!
Proverbs 31:30 - "Charm can be deceiving, and beauty fades away, but a woman who honors the Lord deserves to be praised." (CEV)
1 Samuel 16:7 - "The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. A man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (NIV)
Open up your Bible and trust the Holy Spirit to guide you through Scripture to find the truth of God's Word affirming you and reminding you about your value, your beauty and your worth.
Let's stop paying attention to the voices of this world which do nothing else than bring us down, and start listening to the voice of truth! The only one worth paying attention to. That's how we will be able to stand in front of the mirror and confidently say: I am beautiful, yes I am!
Friday, August 17, 2018
Loving the Imperfect
Holley Gerth's book, You're Loved no Matter What, states right at the beginning the profound truth that we do not need to be perfect to be loved. Considering that fact, I realize that the same is also true from a different perspective, which, by the way, I often forget: Others do not need to be perfect in order to be loved by me...
I spend so much of my time wondering how to be lovable, and almost NO time trying to figure out how to be loving.
Sigh...
If "love IS the answer," that means, it is the answer not just in an inward direction, but outward as well. What I mean is, I cannot be so preoccupied with fixing my own insecurities and making sure I understand I am loved without making sure I love others well, regardless of their imperfections. The same way God's love toward me is not performance-based; my love toward others cannot be performance-based either.
The problem is, that even though I say it is not, it sure seems as it is. I am so quick to react to the actions of others with harsh words and violent behavior, that it is very hard for them to feel loved after they have failed to perform to my standards. Yes, I'm talking about my kids...and my husband too, to tell you the truth...
Those whom I love the most have the hardest time perceiving the love I actually have for them. And that makes me really sad. The problem is that I have a hard time accepting the reality that the same way I am not perfect, others aren't either. No matter how much I love my sons and how perfect I believe they are, they are not! They are imperfect, messy sinners just like me. They need God's Mercy just like I do. They need Jesus' Saving Grace and Forgiveness just like I do. They are the "neighbors" that I am supposed to love just like I love myself.
The first step on this road to figuring out the way to love others well is to assimilate the fact that I cannot expect others to be perfect. I cannot expect perfection the same way I don't want others to expect perfection from me.
I pray the Holy Spirit guides me on this road. I pray that, as I discover that I am, indeed, loved no matter what, that I can, also, love others no matter what...no expectations, no perfection...just as they are. This doesn't mean that I will overlook their inappropriate actions and that I will quit trying to show them the way they should go, the narrow door, but that I will make sure they know I love them, despite their wrong choices and their mistakes, because my love for them is not based on their performance. My love is an extension of the love Jesus demonstrated for us on the cross...no strings attached.
I spend so much of my time wondering how to be lovable, and almost NO time trying to figure out how to be loving.
Sigh...
If "love IS the answer," that means, it is the answer not just in an inward direction, but outward as well. What I mean is, I cannot be so preoccupied with fixing my own insecurities and making sure I understand I am loved without making sure I love others well, regardless of their imperfections. The same way God's love toward me is not performance-based; my love toward others cannot be performance-based either.
The problem is, that even though I say it is not, it sure seems as it is. I am so quick to react to the actions of others with harsh words and violent behavior, that it is very hard for them to feel loved after they have failed to perform to my standards. Yes, I'm talking about my kids...and my husband too, to tell you the truth...
Those whom I love the most have the hardest time perceiving the love I actually have for them. And that makes me really sad. The problem is that I have a hard time accepting the reality that the same way I am not perfect, others aren't either. No matter how much I love my sons and how perfect I believe they are, they are not! They are imperfect, messy sinners just like me. They need God's Mercy just like I do. They need Jesus' Saving Grace and Forgiveness just like I do. They are the "neighbors" that I am supposed to love just like I love myself.
The first step on this road to figuring out the way to love others well is to assimilate the fact that I cannot expect others to be perfect. I cannot expect perfection the same way I don't want others to expect perfection from me.
I pray the Holy Spirit guides me on this road. I pray that, as I discover that I am, indeed, loved no matter what, that I can, also, love others no matter what...no expectations, no perfection...just as they are. This doesn't mean that I will overlook their inappropriate actions and that I will quit trying to show them the way they should go, the narrow door, but that I will make sure they know I love them, despite their wrong choices and their mistakes, because my love for them is not based on their performance. My love is an extension of the love Jesus demonstrated for us on the cross...no strings attached.
Tuesday, August 14, 2018
Perfect...
In my quest to conquer, or at least, to not to allow my insecurities to ruin my life, I have been realizing that all of them are deeply rooted in a sense of unloveliness...I'm not sure if that is a real word, but, what I'm trying to say is that my insecurities, which turn me into a time-bomb/Mommy Hulk-anger-machine emerge from me thinking I am not worthy of being loved.
There!
All this inner-exploration of the dark corners of my heart/mind and soul has brought me to the place where I am now: Love is the answer.
I came across another book by one of my favorite Christian writers, Holley Gerth, called You're Loved No Matter What and of course I had to buy it! I began to read it, and it starts with this sentence:
"Here's the scandalous truth: we can be loved, accepted, happy, and less stressed without being perfect."
Hmmm...
We don't need to be perfect to be loved...WOW...I mean, it sounds simple and common sense...but hearing this thought bounce in my brain feels like a most profound revelation to me! I never knew it, but now that I have taken some time to let this thought sink in, I realize that I have strived for perfection my whole life. I never considered myself a perfectionist. But I have always wanted to BE perfect. I always wanted to be the perfect daughter, the one that never gave my parents any trouble (I secretly boast to myself about that all the time...). I've always wanted to be the perfect teacher. I've always wanted to be the perfect writer. I've always wanted to be the perfect Christian. I've always wanted to be the perfect friend. I've always wanted to be the perfect counselor. I've always wanted to be the perfect wife. I've always wanted to be the perfect Mother...and I'm exhausted and frustrated because I've never been able to be, nor will I ever be any of these.
Hence, my constant sense of inadequacy and unloveliness...or unlovability...see? I can't even come up with the perfect word to describe my imperfections!
Sigh...
The good news is, I don't have to be perfect to be loved.
There!
All this inner-exploration of the dark corners of my heart/mind and soul has brought me to the place where I am now: Love is the answer.
I came across another book by one of my favorite Christian writers, Holley Gerth, called You're Loved No Matter What and of course I had to buy it! I began to read it, and it starts with this sentence:
"Here's the scandalous truth: we can be loved, accepted, happy, and less stressed without being perfect."
Hmmm...
We don't need to be perfect to be loved...WOW...I mean, it sounds simple and common sense...but hearing this thought bounce in my brain feels like a most profound revelation to me! I never knew it, but now that I have taken some time to let this thought sink in, I realize that I have strived for perfection my whole life. I never considered myself a perfectionist. But I have always wanted to BE perfect. I always wanted to be the perfect daughter, the one that never gave my parents any trouble (I secretly boast to myself about that all the time...). I've always wanted to be the perfect teacher. I've always wanted to be the perfect writer. I've always wanted to be the perfect Christian. I've always wanted to be the perfect friend. I've always wanted to be the perfect counselor. I've always wanted to be the perfect wife. I've always wanted to be the perfect Mother...and I'm exhausted and frustrated because I've never been able to be, nor will I ever be any of these.
Hence, my constant sense of inadequacy and unloveliness...or unlovability...see? I can't even come up with the perfect word to describe my imperfections!
Sigh...
The good news is, I don't have to be perfect to be loved.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3: 16
The condition is not "that whoever is perfect..." The condition is "that whoever BELIEVES in HIM..." The love of God pours over us since eternity. It is not a love based on performance. It's a love based on Grace:
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2: 8-9
And NOBODY deserves it:
As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one..." Romans 3: 10
Whatever perfection is in us stems from Him, who is the ONLY Perfect One:
I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Philippians 4: 13
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Philippians 3: 12
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1: 6
I am not going to be able to free myself of my perceived unlovability/unloveliness, but with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, one day I will assimilate the truth, and the Truth will make me free! Until then, let us press on and see what this book has to say on the subject. Shall we?
Friday, August 10, 2018
Here's to Many, Many More!!!
Birthdays are something, aren't they? If you're anything like me, arriving at my birthday is kind of chaotic. My mind is usually twisted in tight nuts. I'm a walking contradiction. For instance, I don't like people making a big fuss about it, but I enjoy the attention of those who remember. I want to celebrate, but I also want to keep it quiet. My birthday makes me sad and happy at the same time. Turning one more year is blessing, but it could also feel like a slap on the face...sigh...it's exhausting...
This year, however, I'm praying the Holy Spirit helps me just be at peace.
I want to feel the peace of Christ flowing through my heart, body and soul as I bask in thanksgiving for the gift of another year surrounded by my loved ones. I'm going to leave behind the insecurities and celebrate the fact that I'm turning a new leave in my life...and I'm going to enjoy the new colors of that leave, even if it comes with an AARP card...sigh...because, just five years ago, today, I was digesting a cancer diagnosis that left me submerged in a pit of fear and shadows.
I don't care what anybody says, receiving the news of malignancy residing in your body is an event that marks the receiver for the rest of his/her life. Regardless of how good the prognosis might be...the moment you hear the words coming out of the mouth of the person who tells you, becomes tattooed into the walls of your brain in a way that not much else does...to the point that just recalling it makes you shudder...no matter how faint the memory might be...it always has the power to shake you deep inside...
All my life I've known Jesus, but I never, truly surrendered my days to Him as I have been doing since that fateful August 9th, 2013...I've never boasted in my weakness the way I've done it since that moment...I've never realized how my destiny is so completely in His hands...I've never trusted Him like I do now...I never truly knew what walking through the valley of the shadows of death meant until that day...I've never known true intimacy with Christ like I've known it since then.
For all these reasons and so many, many more I can't recall in here, I want to say Happy Birthday to me! And a big, BIG thank you to all who have walked with me along this road full of bumps, valleys, meadows, beauty, joy, sorrow, loneliness, fear, peace, friendship and much, much love!
Here's to many, many more!!!
Thursday, August 9, 2018
Immortality without a Soul?
Have you ever thought about how our culture pushes us into materialism? And I'm not just talking about the idea of material acquisition. What I'm thinking about today is how our culture pushes the pursuit of youth and physical pleasure as the keys to immortality...which is the only and most desirable goal worth pursuing.
I know this may sound as a strange thought, springing out of nowhere. But, what has made me think of these things is the fact that I just watched the last movie in the Twilight Saga last night...yes...I know, I know...and at the end, I was left with a really bad taste in my heart, if that is even possible. This movie and the novel(s) it's based upon forward the idea of immortality as the ultimate goal because as an immortal, life truly becomes magnificent and youth and pleasure become a permanent reality...all these mascaraded behind a love story that pulls at the romantic sensibilities of our lonely hearts.
The thing is that, such culmination of the quest for eternal life in this world comes after the person surrenders his/her soul...not to Our Loving Father and Creator in an act of trust and faith; but to nothingness. They surrender to a frozen life sustained by the blood of others who ceased to be brothers and sisters to become the next meal.
The paradox is, however, that the immortal life proclaimed is flawed. How could anyone be immortal without a soul, when the soul is precisely what makes us immortal?
As we see in these movies over and over again, the revered and sought after immortality it forwards, could, indeed, end, in an act of gross dismembering, finished by a torching that leaves nothing but ashes; a rather pathetic and hopeless ending to the glamour promised. The only way to avoid it is by sticking to strict rules and to keep running, always on the move...since losing the material life means disappearing forever.
The "forever" that is so prevalent in this example of a cultural product emerging from a society fixated on the material is, therefore, nothing more than an illusion. Its fragility is disguised in a costume of physical strength and beauty that seduces the senses, but that, in the end, could still turn to dust. The soul is disregarded as something of lesser value when compared to the lust and the longing for the things of this world.
This "forever" is a deception that blindly leads its victims to forfeiting the seed of true immortality that already lives in them:
For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. 4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.
6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. 2 Corinthians 5: 1-9
I know this may sound as a strange thought, springing out of nowhere. But, what has made me think of these things is the fact that I just watched the last movie in the Twilight Saga last night...yes...I know, I know...and at the end, I was left with a really bad taste in my heart, if that is even possible. This movie and the novel(s) it's based upon forward the idea of immortality as the ultimate goal because as an immortal, life truly becomes magnificent and youth and pleasure become a permanent reality...all these mascaraded behind a love story that pulls at the romantic sensibilities of our lonely hearts.
The thing is that, such culmination of the quest for eternal life in this world comes after the person surrenders his/her soul...not to Our Loving Father and Creator in an act of trust and faith; but to nothingness. They surrender to a frozen life sustained by the blood of others who ceased to be brothers and sisters to become the next meal.
The paradox is, however, that the immortal life proclaimed is flawed. How could anyone be immortal without a soul, when the soul is precisely what makes us immortal?
As we see in these movies over and over again, the revered and sought after immortality it forwards, could, indeed, end, in an act of gross dismembering, finished by a torching that leaves nothing but ashes; a rather pathetic and hopeless ending to the glamour promised. The only way to avoid it is by sticking to strict rules and to keep running, always on the move...since losing the material life means disappearing forever.
The "forever" that is so prevalent in this example of a cultural product emerging from a society fixated on the material is, therefore, nothing more than an illusion. Its fragility is disguised in a costume of physical strength and beauty that seduces the senses, but that, in the end, could still turn to dust. The soul is disregarded as something of lesser value when compared to the lust and the longing for the things of this world.
This "forever" is a deception that blindly leads its victims to forfeiting the seed of true immortality that already lives in them:
What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Mark 8: 36
This movie and corresponding books are nothing more than false propaganda which, if not careful, might consume our minds and elevate lies to the place where only truth should stand.
To live forever? in this world? Why would I want that, if the truth states: to live is Christ and to die is gain. (Philippians 1: 21)
To forfeit our soul so we can have a body that does not know decay and death? Why would I want that if the truth assures me that, regardless of my current suffering in this flesh and blood body, God has something perfect waiting for me:
6 So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. 7 For we live by believing and not by seeing. 8 Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. 2 Corinthians 5: 1-9
I am not trying to be legalistic here and condemn those of us who consume the products of our culture that forward lies and a blurred view of reality. I'm just saying, mostly to myself, really, to be careful when we do, so we don't buy into the deception and become obsessed with the things of this world.
I pray I don't feed on the ashes this world offers me. I pray I don't fill my heart with a love for this world that leaves no room for the One and True Love that is in me. I pray that I am not conformed to the patterns of this world, but that I'm transformed by the renewing of my mind (Romans 12: 2). I pray that My Heavenly Father protect me from the evil one who rules this realm, as I am not of this world, like Jesus is not of this world (John 17:14-16). I pray for strength for this battle for my soul, because my "struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." (Ephesians 6: 12)
Yes, our culture pushes us to the pursuit and worship of the things of this world. However, this is not our home. I pray we are always aware of the truth, as we host Him, Who is the Truth, in our hearts, in the Precious Name, Above All Names, the Name of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ who is in me and in you...the protector of our souls...the most valuable commodity we possess.
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