Hey! God's Knocking on Your Front Door...

If God pulled up today in front of your home, knocked on your door and said, "I need your help"...what condition would He find you and your home in?  Would you be ready to help Him?  God's been telling me for a while, "get ready" and He reminded me again this morning. It's easy to dismiss this if something does not happen right away, but I do believe God is telling us to "get ready."  Do you have things in order...in your home, office, family, relationships, have you apologized to a loved one, are you harboring resentment from an old offense, are you embracing each day God gives you...are your closets organized, calls made, have you gone through that stack of papers on your desk...what's your yard look like, is your car clean, things from the garage given away...maybe you're over involved in something that is a distraction to you that God has told you to walk away from. God looks at each of our individual circumstances, so if you are a young mom with a baby, if you are a single mom, a broke college student-wherever you are, God makes allowances-He knows what you can and can't do-but don't let that be an excuse to miss your call.  God doesn't expect perfection...but He wants us to have things in a general order-emotionally, physically, financially, and spiritually. Seek Him-He will guide you and give instruction on where to begin.  Many people miss their call because things are out of order...they've grown weary, overwhelmed, don't feel qualified or have accepted "undone" as status quo-God wants new things for you, friend...but you must "get ready."  Don't delay taking care of your personal business because you're always helping others.  We should help others, but not to the point of "avoiding or delaying" our personal responsibilities.  In Matthew 25, the five virgins that remembered their oil were not responsible for the five that forgot theirs.  Get ready, get things in order, it's time for a new position-God's calling you...but when He does, don't trip over the junk in your garage or not hear Him because of the mess and commotion in your home.  Get ready friend...God's calling you to the great plans He has for you (Jeremiah 29:11). Blessings!

Got Anxiety...

Anxiety results when we realize we're not in control.  Intellectually, we know we're not in control but this becomes a reality when we're faced with an impossible situation. We say we know God is in control, but when faced with an impossible we often revert to a state of panic. God says do not have any anxiety about anything (Phil4:6) and Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, live righteously, and He will give you everything you need (Matt6:33). That includes...everything you need...that means any situation you're facing-His power will manifest through you. Do you have faith in His ability...to handle your inability? His ability is available to everyone who believes in Him-but you must consistently factor in His Presence...all the time. If you do...God will think and speak for you, give you the courage and stamina you don't have, lead you to people who can help you, give you fresh ideas, work through unimaginable grief, restore dead relationships, forgive the unforgivable, connect you to the job that is matched to your skills, lead you to a friend who will understand and walk with you, find the school that has the teacher who knows how to work with your child, see the doctor that has a cure for your disease, connect you with the loan officer who meets you instead of your FICO score, gives you the opportunity you've needed to market your concept-but most of all...God Himself breathes His life into you to give you a hope and a future. His love soothes your mind-bringing it into proper focus of His truth. Next, He tenderly pours His love into every hurting area of your heart-continuing until the wounds find relief, finally overflowing into your spirit and refreshing you-giving you the stamina needed to move forward with His confidence. Will you factor in His Presence in all you do and know how crazy in love your Father is with you-then let His ability move through you to handle your inability? Take a risk ...trust Him-I guarantee it will work...because He said so and He never breaks a promise. Blessings!
Rev10/7/12CIFL-LMM

When we let go...we let God...

Are you holding on to something trying to save or revive it? Do you feel like it consumes you, weighs you down, wakes you in the middle of the night, determines if you spend money or not, if you go or not go-essentially all plans you make are contingent upon this something? We say we believe God can do anything...but we really don't give Him much of a chance to prove He can do anything. "Somethings" are in our relationships, jobs, investments, churches, dreams, children, businesses-essentially anything that we attach value to. We mess up when we trust God in some areas to help but not in others. We trust, as long as we do not see any immediate harm to our something, or as long as we can figure out what role God wants us to play, but if we don't...we jump in with our human plan. We rationalize that we are being selfless and committed but we're actually being unbelieving and fearful. We become entangled in helping and figuring out a plan for rescue but all we're really doing is delaying God's intervention and plan. That's what happened to me years ago-I ran to God, to only fuel up enough and then run to my something. God said, "enough." Only when I began to let go, could I begin to let God intervene in a mighty way. This was not overnight, but a slow unveiling of God's clear power when I got out of the way. I had to stay in scripture, speak His word to renew my mind, spend time with Him everyday, careful of the words that came out of my mouth, and examined how I spent my time in general-who was I hanging out with, what was I watching on TV, and what did I listen to on the radio. Friends, He will make a way...but you must get out of the way.
I love the story of Abraham-I'm encouraged because he messed up a bunch and God still called him the father of many nations. He interjected his human plans when God told him to leave his homeland. He let his nephew Lot come along causing much strife and later he agreed to sleep with Hagar and had Ishmael-another series of conflicts. His human help to his family created huge problems. We often try to save people from pain...but it's the pain that helps them turn the corner to recovery. But he learned from his mistakes and God worked his mistakes into His plans-that's why we can be so encouraged. Our God loves us so much and He's waiting to to help our something. Will you let go...and let God?

Your "Situation" Does Not Determine Your Destiny...

Will you give God your situation???  Many Christians allow "situations" in their lives to interfere with the plans God has for them.  In all things God works for the good of those who love Him.  He uses our mistakes and misfortunes...every stinking one of them! Really He does; He recycles each one of them into His perfect plan.  Situations can consume, overwhelm and paralyze you but they "do not" determine your destiny! God does and He wants to give you the ending that He wrote...will you let Him?  

I've listened to many people over the years tell me their situations: lost virginity at 13 year old, learning disability, married four times, stressful job, three abortions, can't afford it, chronic illness, divorced again, uneducated, depression, interest rates too high, parents abusive, anxiety disorder, below average, financial hardship, DUI's, inferior, frozen job market, numerous affairs, Aspergers, fearful, overweight, nothing to say, drug use, just average, jail and prison time,  and the list goes on.  Listen closely, what you bring in the light...loses its power. One touch of God's hand-give it to Him, friend.  He's for you, there's no, nada, none, nothing bigger than our God! No situation can be against you, if God is for you.  

Will you make a decision today that you will no longer allow your situation to rob you of the good plans God has for you? He turns every situation around for His glory for those who love Him. Blessings friend; He really does love you! LMM (Rom 8:28, 31, Phil 1:6) #Godisforyou #transform #believe #trust #onetouch #christianinsightforlife www.facebook.com/christianinsightforlife

Jesus Took the Fire...

When my granddaughter, Hope was two years old, she blistered the tips of her fingers on our cook top. If you've ever heard the piercing screams of a child, you know the fear that runs through your being. My heart races as I recall the cries of Hope's despair and her running through the house, yelling "fire, fire, LaLa, fire!" I taught Hope how to call on the name of Jesus that day...I picked her up and held her tightly as she screamed-I softly whispered to her, "you're going to be okay baby-you are okay." As I ran cold water over her little fingers, I instinctively called on the name of Jesus for her pain to subside.  I heard deep in my heart..."now, have Hope to call on My name." I instructed her to call on the name of Jesus and to thank Him for taking the fire-she did through sobs and tears. I thanked Him for "taking her fire," as I held her close to me and kissed her tear stained face. The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children (Rom8:16) giving us direction, instinctively from His Spirit to ours. I'm not sure how many minutes passed, as I rocked and held her but I continued to thank Jesus for taking her pain...then suddenly she looked up at me with her big turquoise blue eyes and said, "LaLa, Jesus took the fire; He did, He took the fire!" Jesus not only delivered a child from pain that day but also spoke to the spirit of a grandmother who didn't have a clear revelation of calling on the name of Jesus. The Holy Spirit intercedes when we don't know how to pray (Rom8:26). He will speak to whoever seeks Him. Do you need to seek the Holy Spirit for direction? He will help you in your weakness when you don't know what to pray. The Holy Spirit continues to comfort me, soothe me and leads me in the direction I should go in any circumstance-He's with me always...Blessings friend, may you choose to seek Him too! 5/2011CIFL-LMM

Freedom Guaranteed...

Our freedom is guaranteed...Many Christians agree we can have this in Christ...but not so many live it. We all want it.Why aren't all Christians living the freedom Jesus spoke of? Many say, "well yeah, but look at these times or this situation or this is hard what I'm going through." Was the bible only for those times and certain situations and some hard things? If God says I can have freedom...then I expect to experience freedom. I found freedom in Matthew 6:33...seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you. What we seek...is what we serve. Many people spend most of their lives seeking the absence of something like financial problems, family rifts, reputation, daily stress, food, drug, or alcohol addictions and on and on. Seeking absence of these things actually increases the focus on these things. For example, when I see someone with an eating disorder, I focus on them filling up with God which corrects the eating problem-there's much more detail, but that's the principle foundation. If someone overspends, teaching a budget would be helpful, but first they must fill up with the love of Jesus to address the hole in their soul...that's what they're trying to fill up when they overspend. The point is...seeking absence of any of these things will actually create dominion over you, because what you seek becomes your god...let this soak in because it is the opposite of what the world teaches. We only find freedom in Christ...What are you trying to escape from or find a solution from? Is it taking dominion in your life-covering you-consuming you-ruling you and becoming everything you're about?  We are deceived in believing we are being responsible by committing our time and efforts to be absent of the problems in our lives. It seems so right but it is...so wrong. We will overcome by seeking freedom in His presence...our Father who will give us all things...that we need to overcome. Absence of something is not freedom....but presence of Him is freedom. Please don't misunderstand this message and believe I'm minimizing some overwhelming situation you're facing...I'm not, but I am saying our Savior says we can have a peace that surpasses all understanding, to cast our cares, to know if He's for us-who can be against us, that His yoke is easy-not a burden. Seek freedom in Him as your solution...then all these things will be given to you. Rest in Him.  Listen to Him...let Him comfort you my friend-He will. Blessings! 
5/19/12Rev11/10/12-LMM

Jesus Drives Really Fast...Buckle Up Baby

Jesus pulled up to my office one day and said, "come on, we're going for a ride." I said, "excuse me Lord, I have a lot of work to do, can this wait?" At this point in my life, I thought I had dealt with all my major issues. I was spiritually, emotionally, and physically healthy-had worked through my guilt, let go of hurt and anger, forgiven those I needed to, and believed and confessed God's Word. But I was not taking any risks in the name of Jesus...I loved Him but was not living a life totally committed to Him. I was very safe, orderly, and predictable...these are good things, unless you use them to hide behind, like I did. God had put some big dreams in my heart...but I thought it was my imagination and I would entertain them for a while, then shelf them. Think about these questions...how do you know God will do the impossible unless you stand back and trust Him to do it? How do you know God uses the foolish and weak things to confound the wise unless you're willing to look foolish and weak? How do you know the bold courage of the Holy Spirit flowing through you unless you're willing to do bold and courageous things? God in His relentless love for me would not allow me to settle. He stirred me up and challenged me...did I really love Him like I said and was I really allowing Him to manifest Himself through me to make an impact or was I playing it safe and predictable-loving Him but not totally living for Him? Well, I got in with Jesus that day...I am going for it friends...I want to be found and known as in Him, not having any self-achieved righteousness...but a determined purpose that I may know Him more each day-more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving, recognizing and understanding the wonder of His Person more strongly and clearly, and that I may in the same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection-which it exerts over believers, and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed-in spirit into His likeness even to His death (Phil 3:10). Jesus said in John 14:12...anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing-he will do even greater things than these. Let your life be used by God as He planned to do great and mighty things through you. Wake up sleeper, lift your head, come out from behind your busy schedule, it's not about your ability-it's about your availability to serve as God has called you to serve-make a difference. Jesus drives really fast...buckle up baby...we're going to make a difference for Him! 5/16/12CIFL-LMM

I Was Saved... but in a Dysfunctional Relationship with Jesus

I'm sharing what I've experienced in my personal healing through Jesus Christ and what I've learned in 27 years of being a counselor. Many Christians have received Jesus as their Lord and Savior but remain in bondage; having only moderate to minimal, if any, impact on the Kingdom because of unresolved issues. I lived in bondage for years; presenting only to others what I thought they would endorse or accept. I feared if they really knew me, they would reject me. I tried to amputate my past, it never died...instead became more alive. Whatever we don't deal with will work its way out like any infection in the body-it's God perfect design to have us to address our unresolved issues. I loved God, but felt I had to earn His love by being good enough for Him to love me. The Holy Spirit revealed to me that I was in a dysfunctional relationship with Jesus...what??? 
I was sincere...but sincerely wrong. I had fallen into the deception of working really hard and being good enough to receive God's love. I asked Him to show me how to receive His love...freely and He taught me how to renew my mind being in agreement with His Word, even though I did not "feel" like it was true for me. You will never walk in complete victory until you have revelation of God's love for you and agree with what He says about you and see yourself as He sees you. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom! This is ongoing until the day we go to Heaven. Next, I had to lay down the feelings connected to my past experiences. Up until this time, I had tried to detach from the actual experiences and left with the feelings. I see this when I work with people. We can't separate from the actual experience...we separate from the feelings created during the experience. I laid these feelings at the Cross-Jesus died and rose again so I could completely live for Him-not mostly live for Him. What happened to me...no longer defined me; I laid the feelings at the Cross. I no longer need to prove...because I've been approved-this is my testimony. There's so much more I want to say and I will as God directs me, but for now, I pray what I've shared will help you. Life can be very hard, but God made us for hard. While we're going through the hard, we can experience a peace that surpasses all understanding...because His love and confidence is in us and He's overcome the world...for us! The joy of the Lord is my strength. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me-if He's for me...who can be against me. Blessings friends! 5/14/12 - LMM