Are we speaking the same language?

I am always amazed at those who claim to be Christians, claim to love God and boast about being humbled when in fact, we can’t give Christ 15 minutes of our day to study His word. Let me offer clarity folks….being humbled and being stripped are two very different things. Some of us have been stripped but many of us have no idea what humility feels like. I’m equally amazed at how we will study every manual that comes with our cars, HDTV’s, camera’s, cell phones and even manuals for inserting batteries into a clock, but so many people can’t give God the same study time. This is your life we are talking about and isn’t your life worth so much more than your television or cell phone? So how do you expect to learn who He is and what He requires? What’s selfishly worse is that so often, when we do pray, it is filled with our requirements of Him and our wants. It is filled with “gimme, gimme and gimme some more.” Can I enlighten you to a thought? God is not in place for your comfort and He never told us that life was about us, but when we willingly, unselfishly long for our hearts to be filled with God, He will bless us beyond belief and our cups will run over. Trust me. This I know. So, I am sorry to break the news to you, but it is not about you. It’s all about Him.

What is just as poor as always asking God for what we want are the many people who still carry around the King James Version of the Bible. Who do you know who speaks like this? As a people, in order to effectively communicate, you have to understand the language. When have you ever throughout your life used words like thou, speaketh, thy, or art so why and how do you expect to know God, what He’s like, what His requirements are and how you can be blessed if you are not able to understand what He is saying? Even a small child will cry out when they require food, and if we instead administer a diaper change, then we aren’t meeting their requirements of us because we do not understand the language. Let’s do a little bit of history here. Do you even know who King James is? I bet half of you would say no and I sure wish I could see your faces. Then let me ask you, why are you reading a Bible in this version when you don’t know who King James is and YET, you claim to know who Christ is and won’t pick up a Bible written in everyday language to understand Him better? Gotcha!

When was the last time you spoke and wrote in Greek or the Hebrew language? Here is the history folks….The King James Bible, published in 1611, was England's authorized version of the Bible translated from the original Hebrew and Greek languages into English at the request of King James I of England. At the time, other English Bibles existed, but King James did not like the most popular translation, the Geneva Bible, because he felt that some of the marginal notes encouraged disobedience to kings. So when a Puritan scholar, Dr. John Reynolds, suggested a new English translation of the Bible at a 1604 conference of bishops and theologians at Hampton Court Palace, King James readily agreed. Even though King James agreed to the new Bible translation, the King James Version was never officially recognized by the king, nor was it ever authorized as the only text permitted to be read in church. Despite this, we have taken advantage of the King James version and it has contributed to the detriment of our growth in Christ. How sad. Would you ever consider having an ongoing and meaningful relationship with someone if they spoke only in their native tongue of a third world country? No! Would you consider giving your children a chore list written in Greek or Hebrew? No! Then why are you reading your chore list in Greek and Hebrew from your Father? Elementary right? Thought so.

Now, I am not completely insensitive to those who were given this version of the Bible as a gift from dear old grandmother, your mother, your child or maybe you bought it yourself, but in any relationship it requires a true understanding, depth and meaning. In any relationship, it is required that one speaks while the other listens. You can’t hear what God is saying, if you don’t understand His language and won’t pick up the correct version to learn what He wants to share with us. And since you have this manual called the Bible, then we will assume that your intention is to understand what you are reading right? Right! When you understand what you are reading, you begin to become transformed which should ultimately lead to conviction right? Right! And true conviction causes a process of transformation right? Right! You simply CAN NOT read the Bible without it causing transformation and growth right? Right! So, it's safe to say that if you are not growing then you are stuck as a spiritual infant or could be spiritually dead.

Have you ever considered that one of the causes could be that you have a word that you simply do not understand? Another cause could be that you are not gathering with Christ-like people, who can help teach, grow, counsel and correct you and another reason is that your heart could simply be hard. Remember this…God wants us to confess it all. He wants us to tell Him when we are angry, upset, disheartened, afraid, and weary. He wants us to spill it all to Him. He longs to be closer to us and have a relationship with us. He’s God and He can handle it. When we don’t, we are not allowing Him to fill our hearts with Him and we begin to fill our cups with everything else under the sun. Sometimes it’s our jobs. We will spend countless hours at work trying to fill our cups with something that only Christ can fill. Other times it’s our children. We will become dependent on them for a love that only Christ can provide, or we may become intrusive and barge in where they simply do not want us or where we don’t belong. In other cases, we overdo it with our spouses…expecting them to fill our cups, make us happy or provide for us what they were never meant to provide. Ladies and Gentlemen, let me break to you a bit of bad news here….”You will always end up hollow and in search of someone or something to fill your cups when you don’t allow Christ to fill your cups first. Your jobs, spouse, children and material things are the overflow. God is the only one who can fill our cups. The rest is the cherry on the top.”

People, God hates sin and He will not take up residence in a sinner’s heart if they don’t want Him there. He simply will not do it. If He’s called you, you have one of two choices. You can answer or you can walk away and do it your way but let me assure you, your way will bring pain, emptiness and a hard life. Your way will cause brokenness, unnecessary tears and will leave you with a constant limp. It’s only when you are able to spill out the gunk in your hearts, can He then come in and fill it with Him. A start is your everyday language Bible. You must stay in His word and this word must be something that you can understand. Dear old grandmother, mom and your child did nothing wrong when they bought it for you, but today you require growth and healing. If you profess to be a Christian then you should be growing. If you are not growing, now is the time to start the re-examination process. That process always begins with you, Christ and His word. You don’t have to believe me. In fact you can delete my blog and never look at it again, but the reality is that the truth remains and the truth will place you on the path of complete and total freedom. Trust me when I tell you….I am a testimony to this and it makes no logical sense to choose death when you have already been given freedom and life though Christ. Get a Bible that you understand, one that allows God to speak loud and clearly to you. You owe it to yourself and you owe Christ so much more.

Fear Factor

What we fear the most we create. Fear has a way of manifesting itself in our lives over and over again. We can run from fear but we cannot hide from fear. Fear will always catch up with us and if we don’t face it, fear will overcome us. Fear shows up in different faces, places, circumstances, and situations, but it’s all the same….it’s FEAR! I’ve always been a courageous person….walking right up to that lion and roaring back. There was no way I could let anything make me cower and besides, I love the challenges because they push me and I thrive off of them. Some might call that stupidity, but stupid, I am not. When someone says “NO,” I say to myself, ”Yes.” I can’t even count on one hand the situations I let overcome me. I’ve always been a fighter and as God is my witness, I’ve always embraced situations that most would run from. My spirit doesn’t rest if I don’t face fear.

Well, at 47, my spirit hasn’t rested because there is a fear that I have not dealt with. My fear is math and now I have to take and pass a statistics class. In my earlier years, I recall changing my major in order to get away from math and it worked. Whew! Dodged that bloody bullet! Now re-read my first paragraph. It’s back! Fear will leave you stuck. You simply cannot move forward in life when you are stuck. Yes, you can fake it, play the game, act like all is well, go about handling your business but there is still this gnawing at you. You will remain in an infantile state and will never be able to grow. You can’t take on more success because you can’t get past the basics. Well, I refuse to become stale, stagnant and allow fear (math) to keep me in bondage. It’s back and so it must be dealt with.

There is good news though. You don’t have to face this fear alone…in fact, you don’t even have to do much fighting. All you need to do is trust God and walk up to this lion. Just take a step. I’ve lived long enough to know that when I face things, they fall away and not because I wished them away. Because in this lifetime, I am not alone. I possess something so much greater than my own strength and that is our Lord’s strength. Why live life fearing, running, hiding and being afraid? Our chief source of strength that enables us to withstand fear will always be the knowledge that God is with us.

We need not fear any danger from anything natural or supernatural, small or great. It is the love of God that overshadows us and gives us victory in and over all these things. Handle your business, shut that lion down, walk up to your fear and grow. You really have nothing to fear. John 14:27 - "Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful."

I DON'T SMELL ANYTHING!

You know what I have observed? The longer people live in their own stink, the more they become accustomed to it and fail to even notice. When these “stinkers” have trouble getting along with people, they always think the problem is with the other person. They never stop to look in the mirror and smell the real culprit.

Pepe Le Pew, the famous cartoon skunk, serves as a great example. He never bothered to realize that it was his stench that drove everyone away. He always saw his problem as external, and he never bothered to look within. Do you know any people like that? “Sin in others I can see, but praise the Lord there’s none in me.”

GETTING HONEST

As much as we don’t like to do it, the time is now to look soberly into the mirror of God’s Word and see what He wants us to see. Is there the stench of pride, bitterness, selfishness, anger, lust and resentment hanging on your life? Are you blaming everyone under the sun for your problems and failing to take responsibility for the way YOU are reacting to your unpleasant situation?

You and I can’t control a lot of what happens in our lives, but we can control how we respond to what happens. We can come before the Lord with a humble, tender heart and deal with sin in our own lives. We can hit the showers and let God wash us white as snow.

EARTHY OR HEAVENLY

When we sin, we smell earthy. An earthy smell is a stench in the nostrils of God. But the good news is this: through the cross of Christ, the Lord has provided all we need to take the stench of our sin to Him and be made clean, pure and fresh as a daisy. It all starts when you get real and honest before the Lord. It all starts when you quit pointing fingers at others and start looking at yourself. God wants to do a work in you. You can’t change others, but you can let the Lord change you.

The choice is yours. You can soberly deal with sin or you can go on lying to yourself, pretending all is well with you and Jesus when you know deep down that there is rottenness in your heart. You can keep smelling of earth, or you can start smelling of heaven. You can get right with God, or you can continue in your charade. Which do you choose?

unwritten…unspoken…unsung

I’ve got an unwritten book with unwritten words yet to be expressed. I’ve got unspoken words that have yet to be shared and unsung songs in my heart that have yet to be sang. Yet, each day I am hopeful that as I face each day, one more letter, word and song will be placed in my heart. I’ve got faith that as God blesses me to rise each day, I am to be in the moment and feel the presence of Him. I’ve got faith and staying power that as my life plays itself out, the pages of thought, words of expression and the gift of song will find its place like so many. It’s all a process and that is why it is important to stay close, remain open and willing to receive. I’ve got a book without pages, words unspoken and a song without a tune but I am highly inspired, highly hopeful and even more faithful that at just the right time, that perfect time, all will be delivered just as it has before. Don’t let your book collect dust, words fall on deaf ears, or song be for naught.

I know what love is...

I know what Love is….
Love! If you’ve ever felt love, ever been in love then you can’t mistake it. Love makes you want to do some crazy things. I’m talking about things that could certify you as a nutcase! Yes! That kind of love! Love forces you outside of yourself… to please the other person without thinking of yourself at all. I’ve been blessed with much love. I’ve been in love and I’ve given lots of love. I can’t help it; it’s who I am and what I am made of. God is love and if we can feel His presence, then we can experience the power of love. For those who love, keep loving. For those who struggle with giving love, let yourself go and move toward it and for those who struggle with receiving love, open your heart, take a chance and experience the wonders of love. There is nothing on this earth more powerful. You will be fascinated with love and once you’ve truly experienced love you will never be able to live without it. Say Yes to Love. Don’t wait until tomorrow, Say Yes to Love Today.
Love truly, always and forever Tori!

The Choice is Yours

Even when we know we are doing wrong, we still can’t help ourselves because we have convinced ourselves that just for the moment; I need to choose this behavior. Why is it that knowing that one day, we will all have to account for every single one of our actions, we still choose the behavior that we know God does not approve of? What’s worse is that we’ve convinced ourselves that we are saved, are Christians and can be forgiven, so we decide to please ourselves by hurting others, believing that our ticket to eternal life is guaranteed.

Why is it that some simply refuse to make an effort to improve their lives through sacrifice and hard work? It’s easier to believe that God wants for us what we want for ourselves and therefore, God will grant it. Let me be real clear for you.. God is so much more powerful than you or I. HE does not think as we do, act as we do, sin as we do and choose as we do. HE Is God!

Men are called men for a reason, yet so many men fail to understand what the true definition is. A real man is a Godly man. A man with honor, who loves and serves God unconditionally. A real man will protect, provide and put himself last to ensure he has cared for those who God has given him. A real man will know and love who he is and will want to be all the man he can be for himself, those who depend on him and God.

Women are called women for a reason, yet so many women fail to understand what the true definition is. Women are the brides of Christ. She is a caregiver, lover, nurturer and supporter, yet she sells herself short each time she engages in behavior that is not becoming and pleasing to God.

We are all given these titles and more for a reason, yet day by day, we consciously choose to ignore. Day by day, we choose not to love and day by day we choose to behave in such a way that would bring tears to any mother’s eyes if it were his last.
You don’t have to believe me. You don’t even have to like or agree with what I am writing, but one day you will have to answer to an authority so much higher than you. One day, you will have to recall each time you hurt someone and knew it, did not honor or love your wife or husband, ignored your children, did not live up to your obligations, lied, cheated, stole, manipulated or wavered in your faith to make it convenient for you.

You will have to answer to not knowing how to drive in life when you had the manual all along. You will have to answer to manipulation, selfishness, being controlling and trying to even outwit God. Even when we know we are doing wrong, we still can’t help ourselves because we have convinced ourselves that just for the moment; I need to choose this behavior. No you don’t! Choose God's way.

Father ~ Father

Father~ Father

I could not have hand picked a better father for my daughters. A man who is committed, loving, unquestionably and undeniably 100% dedicated to his daughters. I've never quite understood the chemistry they have for him, one that simply does not allow me in, but I surmise that's the mystery of a father and his daughters. When his smile looks upon them, my heart skips a beat. His smile becomes so wide and although no words may come out of his mouth, anyone witnessing this will know that it's pure and unconditional love.

When he speaks, they listen. When he advises, they take it. When he comforts, they ease into his arms like a small child. They run to him with their cares and concerns because they know their father will always have the answers. He is their cure. He is upright. His actions, conduct, attitude and purpose is always filled with good intentions toward them. With as much love as I have for my daughters, I as their mother can't compare to the type of love he has for them. This love has to be celebrated. There are not many feelings that can touch me than when my daughters say, "Mom, we have the best father in the world. " I know what they mean. I have a Father too.

Father, thank you for blessing me with the gift of two daughters and for blessing them with a Father who, like you, would lay down his life for them.