The Spirit at Work in Believers, Part 2

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I Will Never Leave You Nor Forsake You

John 14:18a,26 says “I will not leave you orphaned…The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all I have said.” … 
Our first story comes from The Hiding Place, the biography of Corrie Ten Boom, a Dutch Christian whose family saved a number of Jews from the Nazis, and were themselves arrested and put in concentration camps. In telling about their lives under Nazi persecution, Corrie shows how God the Holy Spirit was with them and comforting them, and performing miracles that were seen and experienced not only by them but also by their fellow prisoners. God protected the precious little Bible that they with God’s help were able to keep with them for some time in their captivity, and He made it possible for them to hold Bible study and worship – turning the circumstances of evil into a sacred place. 

God dwelt with Corrie and her sister, and though sometimes Corrie became overwhelmed by the difficult trials, her sister would always speak the Word into her and pray. 

At the women’s concentration camp at Ravensbruck, one of the miracles the Spirit used to confirm Christ’s presence with them relates to a small bottle. Betsie, Corrie’s older sister, was sickly during much of her life, and required daily infusions of vitamins to help strengthen her physical frame. Under the Spirit’s watch, Betsie’s vitamins had been smuggled in and preserved. Corrie would put a drop or two of the liquid vitamin onto Betsie’s daily black bread ration. 

It would be daily that The Spirit moved more of their fellow prisoners to thirst for Bible study and worship. Hearing their prison mates from different nationalities translate the Bible words being read so that others could understand was like divine music. 

And it would also be daily that Betsie was moved to share her small bottle of vitamins with other ill women, starting with one or two women, then the number kept growing. Corrie was worried that all of the vitamins in the small vial would be used up, leaving her sister without. Yet, the more generous Betsie was with the drops, the more the bottle filled. Corrie was amazed! The small bottle should have given up its last drop after only a few days, but the more the medicine was needed, the more it would come from the bottle. 

Like with the widow of Zarapheth who gave the prophet Elijah a room in her home, whose oil and meal were almost gone but by God’s miracle through Elijah, she never ran out of meal and oil, and survived the famine in the land. 

The miracle of the never-ending vitamin drops were a source of awe to the women being helped by them and a turning point for their faith. That divine delivery continued for a while until one day a fellow prisoner obtained a large supply of vitamins and yeast compound, sharing it with Corrie. Corrie was grateful to God for this windfall. She happily took enough for Betsie, thinking maybe they should finish the small bottle of vitamins first. 

But, when she got back to their bunk and Corrie took out the small bottle and tipped it, nothing came out. No matter which way she turned it or how hard she shook it, not another drop appeared! 

In many such ways the Spirit continued to move in their lives even in those persecutions, working in & through them to save others for Christ, even enemies. They were just regular people, old women who had given themselves to Christ, learning how when younger to submit and depend on the work of Christ’s Spirit. They and their family are now with the Lord, but the accounts of their living by the Spirit still lead others to Christ.

How the Holy Spirit Works in the Lives of Believers - Women, Listen Up!

For many women, service is a part of their character. Many of us learn as little girls to serve others as part of a daily routine. Even some of us have been taught to perform various types of service in the church from a young age -- e.g., altar guild ministry, acolyting, hospitality initiatives, and others (we all have our own lists). Because of the ingrained programming of service, some of us then may miss, may not be aware, of God's call to service. It is a huge difference that too many churchgoers fail to recognize, and thus, there are those instances in some churches where 20% of the people do 80% of the work of ministries. Consider the following message I gave to members a while back on knowing who you are in the Lord:

We are many of us involved in various ministries at church. Many of us have come to know what God has called us to do in the building up of the church. 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and Ephesians 4:11-13 share the types of ministry gifts that God has bestowed on individuals and on the local church. The ministry gifts on and in individuals do not happen when you sign up for church membership. They do not happen when a priest or clergy task you with an assignment. You don't get them as a result of going to meetings or classes. THE ONLY WAY WE RECEIVE INDIVIDUALLY THE MINISTRY GIFTS SPOKEN OF IN THE ABOVE SCRIPTURES IS THROUGH THE INDWELLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT WHEN WE ARE BORN AGAIN AND ADOPTED AS SONS OF GOD. I can't say it any more plainly. The 'deposit' of the Holy Spirit in us - our guarantee from God of salvation - is the first gift of rebirth. From that point, the Holy Spirit operates within a believer and follower of Christ in a unique way that was preordained for Him to work, part of which is the bestowing of your personal ministry gift. Because many churches do not talk about the Holy Spirit, who He is and what He does in the lives of Christ's followers, so many churchgoers are ignorant of this part of their life in Christ if they have been saved. It is that call by the power of the Gospel and Holy Spirit working in us that God initiates our new life in Him - we have no power to do it ourselves.

The blessing of that calling is that God will enable us to do what He has called us to do. What He has called us to do has spiritual implications, and is outside of the natural -- therefore we cannot successfully respond to God's calling in our own strength. That is, we must do all things in Christ who strengthens us for the work we have been called to do.

How do you accomplish God's will in Christ? As believers, we have Christ living inside us in the form of the Holy Spirit. (please read 1 Peter 4:11; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Philippians 4:13,19; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 3:16-18) How do you know how to respond to the indwelling of God? Well, how does He speak to us? Through study and meditation of his Word, the Bible - the believers' handbook and authority, through prayer, and through circumstance. If you leave out the first two, it will be hard to discern the third one. When you leave out the first two, you will find your calling may begin to feel like a burden, or that it has become a routine duty - something on your checklist, something to satisfy your church membership or sense of doing good. When you don't do the first two regularly, the intimacy to which God is calling you to be in with him may escape you. When you don't do the first two consistently, it will be challenging to do God's will with joy. The sad truth is that there are those throughout Christendom who have been going to church for years and giving to the church in time and money and, yet, they have never known God because they will not do the first two things. (2 Peter 1:3-11, 20-21; Isaiah 5:13; Hosea 4:6; Ezra 8:22-23; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 4:1-4; Hebrews 5:11-14; 6:1;Psalm 119:114; 1 Timothy 4:10; Hebrews 10:23;1 Peter 3:15; Romans 15:4,13; Nehemiah 1:3-6; Matthew 26:41; Luke 6:46)

Ladies, I pray that the only true burden we have in our work for the Lord within the Body of Christ is the burden of desperately wanting to please God in fulling His purpose for us. He will help you do whatever He has called you to do, sometimes using your God-given natural talents to accomplish the work. Do not forget though: do your utmost to continue first to seek relationship with Him who has called us, rely on His strength, and allow God's Word to dwell in us richly as we do his will.

Blessings.

Sabbath Rest

It's less than two hours before midnight and I'm writing a post about sabbath rest. What does that tell you? God graced us with a period of rest on purpose - we need the un-wind, decompression, refocus and most of all physical rest. He did not make us to be a 24/7 machine. This principle applies universally - a need for adequate rest and refreshment of spirit. We are desperate for sabbath rest whether we admit it or not. Stress takes a chunk out of our lives, leaving us sometimes in emotional distress, and rushes us sooner than we would like to the grave. Our cognitive skills are strained and our bodies' organs must work overtime to compensate for how the stress is affecting us. We retain body fat when living in stress because the body reacts to stress relative to fat the way that squirrels react to the changing fall weather, storing up vittles for themselves. The body clings to the fat. Google "fat and stress" to see the results of research in that area. Scary.

I am one of those persons who needs to be busy. At least, that is what I have been for x# of years. Since I couldn't say no, and did not include sabbath rest in my schedule as a fixed event, it was only a matter of time before I hit the wall so to speak. It's not that I wasn't warned - I was warned countless times. You know -- 'you can't burn a candle at both ends,' 'even Jesus slept' (to which I have cynically replied inaudibly at least once, 'but He arose early'; tsk tsk), and - well, you've heard them all, too. See, sometimes us women of faith think that as long as we are doing ministry and keeping the home fires burning, God is going to keep us going even when we start to violate the parameters (we don't see it as violation - we see it as a failure or some kind of  - dare I say it - lack of faith to reject or say no to new challenges that never ever end). I kept thinking, well, that probability of crashing is way off in the future, and besides, I'll be able to tell when I need to stop and wind down. Deception! Even after hitting the burnout phase, thinking that maybe one more year will be ok before I take a vacation or take time off to do nothing, and step down from the responsibility of those things outside of true life necessities (arrrgh - we even blur 'necessities'). An individual with this personality doesn't have guardrails that are reliable. We keep moving them so they have no permanency. Eventually, we will move and move and keep moving and never see the brick wall until it is 2 feet away.

I am a recovering workaholic trying to practice a sabbath rest that works in real time for me - time when I can relax, lay back, read, and not have to be anywhere or required to be doing something. And I don't mean vegetating before the TV necessarily. It's hard, though, to go from 200 mph to 0. Especially the time for exercise - well, I'm supposed to be a steward of my time so why don't I act like it? The reality is that very few of us women who are householders, moms, or business owners, working a night shift, engaged in ministries, and/or any combination of these and other life needs can take a full day 'off' each week. But can we schedule 2 hours two or three times a week that we fix into the calendar to take a sabbath for restoration of our spirits and bodies? If you are graced to do so, could you take a full day once a month or bi-monthly to do something outside of your routine to give yourself a fresh perspective? I won't disrespect anyone reading this and needing sabbath rest in their life to draw a picture of how to do this in 7 easy steps. Each of our circumstances are unique - unfortunately/fortunately, we have to work it out for ourselves in ways that fit our realities. Women of faith need sabbath times especially as an opportunity to commune with our Heavenly Father to strengthen that relationship.

Take the idea of sabbath rest to God in prayer asking Him to give you wisdom in this area of your life. Ask Him to bring into your life women from similar lifestyles and routines as yours who have learned to do sabbath rest so that they can show you how it may work in your life. Ask others to pray for you, too, that you will find a blessing in your effort to establish this in your routine as a way of life, and a way of thanksgiving to God. As the psalmist says boldly in his own stress in Psalm 30: "To you, O LORD, I cried, and to the LORD I made supplication. 'What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness?' Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me! O LORD, be my helper ... you turn mourning into dancing; you take off my sackcloth and clothe me in joy, so that my soul may praise you and not be silent."

I will listen to my own exhortation and shut down the computer and dim the light. Time for rest.

Women who Create are Women who can Bless!

Women of faith are some of the most creative women around. Many use their God-given talents for both pleasure and for ministry. The skills are as diverse as are the women who practice them. One of my favorites is sewing. I am most glad when I am able to use it for ministry, and for giving to others. Also, cooking, gardening and giving away the 'fruits' of my labor. I am amazed at the skills and natural gifts of women in my congregation. They sew, knit, crochet, draw, cook/bake, sing, you name it. The principle of God blessing us with good things and abilities so that we may become a blessing to others is important to remember because it reflects who we are in Christ (see 2 Corinthians 1:3-4; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15).

I was reminded of these things when my daughter brought me back the heirloom dresses I had made for my granddaughter several years ago. I have not taken the time in a very long time to create in my sewing room - only to supply. I had forgotten what God had given me to use, and I praise Him for reminding me. It is a double blessing for us to express our natural gifts freely - we are blessed in the opportunity for increased intimacy with God as we create, and those who will view or receive the beautiful work of our hands will also be blessed.

I have a friend who used her God-given talents in sewing and needlecraft to teach young women who are learning to re-orient their lives to care for themselves and their child. Her gift of sewing machines, time, fabric and supplies, not to mention of herself and her time are a real inspiration. And the blessing has impacted the young women by building their self-confidence as they realize that they have a hidden and valuable talent, offering them a new skill for self-maintenance and for creating for their child and/or future home, a creative outlet for their energies, and possible income source. My friend not only gave blessings - she created a legacy.

What do you create? How have you used your natural God-given talents to serve others?

For those who cook, any favorite recipes?

"Dating" Christ - Advice to my single sisters

My sisters,
Before you get apoplectic and begin to question my theology (that's the nicest way I could put it), know that I am not speaking as the world speaks of "dating". The idea of dating for this world has moved from using the time to know a person's character and essence to a mere encounter and sleeping with someone. I can say more on this subject, and I will later, but I'm talking about an old Queen's English expression for dating or seeing someone: walking out with so and so. The "walking out with" inferred that it was an exclusive relationship, one that actually involved walking around with someone as well as seeking to know him or her better, to know their character, etc.

Many women - both young and older alike - frustratedly move through life single, desiring to be linked to someone with whom they can share their lives. Christian women are no different. There is nothing wrong with this desire, for God created us to be capable of finding love and companionship with a mate. In fact, after the Fall, one of the consequences to befall the female race was that our "desire and craving will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." (Genesis 3:16 AMP) Many of us truly crave for a husband to be in our lives, so much so - and I'm talking of us Christian women - that we will grab the first person in britches who looks 'respekkable' as my girl friend says, who appears to be enough of a man of God, who kind of resembles that. And who can blame us? Everything about us cries 'coupling' - music, movies, television, books, and in some cases culture. Ancient cultures of the Middle East, the Far East, Africa and elsewhere shape the outlook and desired future for women of those cultures - to be married and settled is a primary goal, an ultimate fulfillment and affirmation, followed by a very fruitful womb. I recall speaking recently in a group of women from various cultures, and one of my African sisters who now lived in the western metropolitan culture with its stressful demanding insistence on two-paycheck households, reflected how blessed she was to have several children - even though it often proves difficult to raise and discipline them in this foreign culture estranged from the 'norms' of her mother country. Others have spoken of their need to be married by a certain age, and begin in their early teens learning and preparing for such a future role. The complexities of living in this hemisphere are so demanding mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, with its high cost of living and need for both woman and man to earn a paycheck in the household, unless of course, the man is very well set in his career, and for the woman to put all of that education she received to 'good use'. Some of us Christian women find it hard to locate a man who can fulfill our - and I'm going to say it even though you will holler - unrealistic dreams of Prince Charming with all of the necessary credentials. We often put forth great energy, and great $$ storefronts (clothing, beauty shop, etc.) to be ever ready for 'catching' the One.

Is that really what God wants for you - frustration, endless toil, conflict with your spirit and the Holy Spirit, raising the search to almost idol proportions? To what limits will this lust for a husband push us? Once you charm Mr. Good enough, will he be able to keep you strong in Christ and encourage your spiritual growth and intimacy with Him, hold your hand and with him step into eternity with Christ?

To my Christian sisters who are still single and feeling tempted to break through the moral barriers or guardrails God has established in His Word for us for our protection so that we can experience the best in life, let me point you to something beyond our immediate, and in the face of eternity, temporary fleshly cravings. Walk first with Christ - 'date' Him and grow in relationship with Him first. Get to learn His desires for you, His will for your life. I recently heard a Christian man admit to the world that he was a virgin in his single life because his Godly mother had instilled Christ in him, and he had walked with Christ until, in His will, He brought him to his mate for life. He was 37 years old before he was married, and think of the beautiful story he could tell his wife: that he remained pure for her, that he waited to give the gift of intimacy to the one whom God would choose for him. How powerful an aphrodisiac is that ladies? Will our stories be similar?

Have you 'dated' or walked out with Christ - or more specifically, walked with and in Christ? I don't just mean going to church regular and looking for Mr. Right in the pews, or even being a churchgoer and maybe getting on this or that church committee and/or doing all things churchy. I'm referring to putting Christ first in your life - before the pursuit of that man, so that your focus is first in getting to know the Christ of the Bible (not the version we are taught by the world to believe). Seriously, do you think God has brought you into the world simply to copulate and fulfill fleshly desires? Did He save us through His blood to satisfy ourselves first and foremost?

No! We are told to seek Christ's kingdom first, then everything we need for life in Christ will be given to us. (Matthew 6:33) Christ calls us for a 'date' - not the other way around! Notice the underlying principle in that truth. (Romans 1:6; Hebrews 12:2) He invites us to walk out with Him, to walk in His light - His countenance and character. (1 John 1:6-7) He invites us to desire a heart for Him. (Ephesians 3:16-17) He invites us to walk in His truth and His life (John 14:6; 3 John 3,4; 1 John 5:12; Romans 6:4). He tells us what "dress" pleases Him (Ephesians 4:18-24, Revelation 3:4), and that He desires us to walk in His name - to know true intimacy with Him by taking on His name (Zechariah 10:12, John 20:31, Colossians 3:17, Revelation 22:14). He asks us to walk in His Holy Spirit and grow an attitude for Him (Romans 8:4; Ephesians 5:8,10; Philippians 2:10-11) He invites us to ask of Him good things (Luke 11:13; 1 John 5:14) He is able to 'elevate' us to the highest levels, to give us treasure beyond imagining (Ephesians 1:3,4; Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1-4; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Colossians 2:2-4 KJV) He promises us that He will make all things of our life and in our life work together for good - He wants only the best for our lives - if we love Him. (Romans 8:28; John 10:10)

These truths are not a 'placeholder' until a man comes along. Like God doesn't know our true motives. When we put Christ first and foremost, if it is His will for us to marry, He will guide us to the correct mate (compare Psalm 25:4, 5, 12). Can you think of anyone more qualified to do this? No matchmaker at any price can lead you to the one God has chosen for you, one in whom with Christ you will delight (compare Proverbs 5). We can ask Christ for a God-fearing mate because as a believer He does not want us to be unevenly yoked to a person who does not also put Christ first in his life. (2 Corinthians 6:14) These words God has given us for our benefit, so that we can experience the best that He has for us. (Colossians 2:6-7; Proverbs 8:32-26)

My single sisters in Christ: Do not forsake or reject these words - it will be sure to bring your unhappiness. (Proverbs 4:2, 20-22) Wait on the Lord and walk with Christ, for He is your true future. (Psalm 27:14; Psalm 130:5; Lamentations 3:25; Micah 7:7; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Philippians 3:20; Jude 21; compare Romans 8:18, 2 Timothy 4:8) I can tell you from personal experience and going my own way to find Mr. Good enough, that the Word of God always proves true regardless - and that truth is absolute. May your hearts be filled with the peace of Christ as you let Him call on you, and that you take Him up on His offer to walk out with Him.