Get Yer Fresh Faith!

The New Testament repeatedly records Jesus lauding those who had faith in him:

Matthew 8:5-10  When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith."

 Matthew 9:2-7  And they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.” At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”  Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?  But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.”  Then the man got up and went home.

 Matthew 9:22 But Jesus turning and seeing her said, “Daughter, take courage; your faith has made you well.” At once the woman was made well.

 Matthew 9:29 Then He touched their eyes, saying, “It shall be done to you according to your faith," and their sight was restored.

 Matthew 15:28 Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once.

 Matthew 17:14-20 When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”
“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.”  Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment. Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” And He said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.

 Matthew 21:21 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will happen.

 Luke 7:50 And He said to the woman [who was wiping his feet with her hair and tears], “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

 Luke 8:22-25 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?”

 Luke 8:42b-48 As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.  “Who touched me?” Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.”  But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.” Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”

 Luke 17:19 And He said to him [the leper], “Stand up and go; your faith has made you well.”

 Luke 18:35-42 As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord, I want to see,” he replied. And Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.”

So FAITH was a big deal to Jesus!  What IS faith, exactly?

Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as: "the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen,"  an awesome definition!  The Greek word for faith here is pistis, which primarily translated as "faith," also can mean "believe," "faithfulness", "given proof," "pledge," and trusted."  So faith is to fully rely on what the Lord has said and done, and to trust that He will do what He has said He will do.

 So how do we "get" faith?  Romans 10:17 (Amplified) says, "So faith comes by hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the preaching [of the message that came from the lips] of Christ (the Messiah Himself)."  I like that...we hear (or read) the miracles and teachings of Christ, and our faith is built not only by soaking up the word, but also by the Holy Spirit who not only gives us supernatural revelation of faith, but daily strengthens us to walk in faith!

Ephesians 3:14-21 says, "For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge —that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.  Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

So, get yer faith through the Word, through humble devotion to Jesus, and by the enablement of the Holy Spirit, and realize that WE HAVE BEEN EQUIPPED FOR MIRACLES THROUGH FAITH IN CHRIST!  Let's go kick some Satanic butt, faithful ones!

In pursuit of Treasure

I live in the "Mining City" in the "TREASURE State", and before yesterday, I never really thought about the spiritual connotation of these names.  Yesterday, however, during my quiet time with the Lord, I was struck by the truth that this state, this town, has great spiritual treasure, just waiting for holy excavating!

So like all good Holy Book lovers, I mined the Word for relevant scriptures:

 Proverbs 2:4-5 If you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.

 Isaiah 33:6 And he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is Zion's treasure.

 Isaiah 45:3 I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.

 Matthew 6:19-20 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

 Matthew 19:21 Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

 Luke 12:33-34 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

 2 Corinthians 4:7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

 Colossians 2:2-3 My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

I love the idea of gathering spiritual treasure: wealth I can amass that furthers the Kingdom of God; riches that never diminish and actually multiply the more I share them.

Not long ago, I read "The Ultimate Treasure Hunt: A Guide to Supernatural Evangelism Through Supernatural Encounters," by Kevin Dedmon and Bill Johnson, one of the most exciting books I've ever read.  In a nutshell, the authors record how Holy Spirit-directed evangelism works: praying for and receiving specific words/descriptions and using those "clues" to locate specific places and individuals to minister healing, encouragement, and ultimately the gospel to.

Dedmon introduces: "The Ultimate Treasure Hunt is about supernatural encounters. It is about learning to live a naturally supernatural Kingdom lifestyle, in which miracles, physical healing, the prophetic, and setting people free are normal occurrences, as we release the presence and power of the Kingdom of God to the people we know and meet every day...God wants to transform a community, not just those on the "streets." ...The Ultimate Treasure Hunt is about demonstrating God's goodness and kindness to everyone, wherever we go...As you step out and take risk, you will find countless, undreamed of Treasures that will cause incredible rejoicing on earth and in Heaven."

Oscar Wilde said, “Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you.”

Lord, give me a miner's heart for lost, wounded and afflicted, here in my home town: "the richest hill on earth!"

Bloom

Forcing a flower bud to open doesn't work: it just destroys the blossom. Left alone, the bud will open gradually, revealing its beauty. The blooming process is stimulated by sunlight, warm temperatures, water and soil nutrients.  Merely wishing, hoping, or intoning "Abracadabra!" won't unlock the flower.

I'm a bad gardener...I can't even grow irises. I know that sounds ridiculous, since irises normally grow like weeds, but MY irises won't produce flowers. Last summer, I proactively moved my irises from mostly shade to a sunnier spot, in the hope that would stimulate them to bloom. They have done nothing. They are tiny and anemic and I know why: the soil sucks. I planted them partially under a giant spruce thinking these tough plants could handle the acidic soil resulting from years of fallen needles, so I threw some powdered lime on them, and left them to get with the program.  They refuse to flourish. They have water, sun, and spring warmth, yet without good, rich soil, there they sit, stunted and yellow.

My irises are a picture of Christian lives lived under a shallow gospel: limp existences that never produce a crop.

Jesus said in Mark 4:3-8: “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, multiplying thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times.”

He went on to say in verses 14-20:  "The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown.”

So what necessary "nutrients" do we need to live fruitful life?  Jesus said in John 15:1, 5, 6-13, 16-17:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener..“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends...You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. This is my command: Love each other."

I have determined that there is NO way we Christians can flourish without remaining in Christ, without patterning our lives after His, without obeying his commands. To do so, we must first KNOW what His commands are!  How can we accomplish this without saturating ourselves in His Word? Without spending time in deep, fervent prayer? Without the infilling of the Holy Spirit?  To live the shallow, American life and clinging to  our day of salvation is to live like those stunted irises.  We'll never grow, blossom, or bear fruit.  Maybe that's all some of us want, but not me. I want to live a life of LOVE, power, richness, and abundance.  I want to nail my sins to the cross, of course, but I also want to live as Paul said in Romans 6:10-11: “For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus," but even more so as Jesus commanded in Matt. 10:8: "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give."

Which Are You Feeding?

As I sat today, open bible on lap, ready to read, pray, and soak in the Lord's presence, I kept finding my mind wandering...traveling to scenes and fantasies whereby I came out on top, the heroine of the day...an argument won, an enemy admitting her faults (as I magnanimously forgave her), a previously hidden talent appearing at a crucial time, wowing others with my amazing insight and spiritual giftings (!)... When I finally surfaced from my "I AM AMAZING" daydreams, I was ashamed and revolted at my childishness and pride.

While I pondered the origins of these juvenile fantasies, the following story popped into my head, one probably familiar to many: "An old Cherokee Indian was speaking to his grandson: 'A fight is going on inside me,' he said to the boy. 'It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil–he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other is good — he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside you, and inside every other person, too.' The grandson thought about it for a long minute, and then asked his grandfather, 'Which wolf will win?' The old Cherokee simply replied, 'The one you feed.'" 

Self-exalting pipe dreams feed the evil wolf. Pride was Satan's main sin, and I'm falling into his trap the minute my mind starts wandering into self-centered fantasies. Jesus warned, “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.’" (Mark 7:20-23). For the most part, I have conquered childish daydreaming, but occasionally, when I'm bored, distracted, or feeling insecure, I lapse into old fleshly habits. C.S. Lewis said, "Above all beware of excessive day dreaming, of seeing yourself in the centre of a drama, of self pity, and, as far as possible, of fears." Amen. By feeding myself on the Word of God and actively pursuing His presence, I feed the spirit inside me Holy things, amazing things.

 Galatians 5:16-25 says, "So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other."

 My deepest desire is walk with Jesus, to walk AS Jesus did, accomplishing kingdom things with my life. But on some crucial level, I have not matured, and niggling self doubt drags me into the pit of self focus.

 "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a [woman], I put childish ways behind me." (1 Cor. 13:11). "My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work." (John 4:34) Let me feast on that!

 

The Furry Face of Kindness

My cat has a new title: Nurse Caddis (not to be confused with the sadistic Nurse Ratched of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" fame) ☺. My fuzzy caretaker earned her title this past week, watching over me the four days "as I lay dying" (William Faulkner) of some horrible stomach virus ☺ Not that she had a lot on her feline itinerary, but still...she was there: never bored, never tired…head butting me periodically just to see if I still remained among the living…purring when I roused, bestowing sandpapery licks. I would frequently open my eyes to the sight of her face, inches from mine, eyes concerned (ok...that may be a bit much), seeming to ask, “you ok, boss?” When I slept she planted herself on my torso, making like a log roller whenever I turned over, settling on whichever part of me pointed up.

 Though scoffers may protest, my cat possesses the loyalty of a dog. When I adopted her three years ago, the shelter director told me that Caddis, though barely out of kittenhood herself, gave birth to several kittens and mothered them par excellence. I find it amazing that a mere furball, with a walnut-sized brain (she’s a small cat, with a small head), and no hands, is a better caregiver than many PEOPLE I know! The only time she blew off steam during those four days was middle of the night romps when I was forced to lock her one-cat slumber party out of the bedroom. Aside from her midnight revelry, most of the time she reminded me of Biblical Ruth:

"...Entreat me not to leave you, or to return from following after you: for where you go, I will go; and where you lodge, I will lodge: your people shall be my people, and your God my God," (Ruth 1:16), and as cheesy as this sounds when applied to a cat, she was my closest companion during the un-party. She put my friendship skills to shame, this simple animal did. This heathen cat demonstrated biblical love simply and quite perfectly:

  Proverbs 17:17 "A friend loves at all times,and a brother is born for a time of adversity." Proverbs 18:24 "One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."


Proverbs 20:6 "Many claim to have unfailing love, but a faithful person who can find?"

 Ecclesiastes 4:9-12a "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down,one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves."

 I think Warren Eckstein's quote is perfect, especially apropos of my past week's ordeal: "In the beginning, God created man, but seeing him so feeble, He gave him the cat"

 

"Yes," "No," and "Ain't that Nice?"

I talk too much. No, it's true. I have had that pointed out to me untold times since babyhood (my mom swears I said my first word at eight months of age). I am gabby, chatty, loquacious, garrulous, voluble... or as I prefer it: FULL of words. I aim to change that, however. I intend to adopt my dad's suggestion of three responses to all questions and statements, "Yes," "No," or "Ain't that nice?" (The latter said mildly, with a slight southern accent).

Here's the deal: Jesus knew how to shut up. He didn't find it necessary to defend himself (Matt. 27:12); He didn't sell himself; He spoke truth and let it be (Luke 9:23). (One blog I stumbled across went so far as to say, "Jesus' advice sucked!"...well, that's because He didn't give much advice, but I cracked up when I read that), He preached and taught, but in parables, to spark the hearer's thinking. In fact, much of scripture condemns overspeech (my invented polictically correct term for verbal diahrhea):

Proverbs 10:19 "When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise." Proverbs 17:28 "Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent." Proverbs 29:20 "Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him." James 1:19 "Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger."

 Ecclesiastes 5:2 "Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few."

 Proverbs 21:23 "Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble."

 Proverbs 18:2 "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion."

 Matthew 6:7 "And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words."

So, my only argument is that Jesus was a MAN, HELLO! I'm a woman, and we NEED to use up the our alloted 7000 words per day (men speak only about 2000). If any given female were to use less than her quota, the words would built up inside her until there would be a verbal explosion!

 A little humor: "A husband looking through the paper came upon a study that said women use more words than men. Excited to prove to his wife that he had been right all along when he accused her of talking too much, he showed her the study results. It read "Men use about 15,000 words per day, but women use 30,000". The wife thought for a while, then finally she said to her husband 'It's because we have to repeat everything we say.' The husband said 'What?'" :)

 My little granddaughter, a certified GIRL, talks A LOT. One time, when she was about a year old, she sat quietly in her Dora chair while my son (her uncle) and I carried on a lively discussion. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore, and she burst out in a stream of gibberish that lasted several minutes, accompanied by animated hand gestures. We burst out laughing, which only encourage her to continue. She needed to express her 7000 words, but lacked the vocabulary to do so, so she improvised!



But, in all honesty, my lack of verbal control leads to problems, including relational misunderstandings, overwhelming others with unsolicited opinions, hurt feelings...words I wish I could recover and bury. "Yes," "No," and "Ain't that Nice?" I think I'll give it a whirl.