No Options!

the liberator by dbking

Few weeks ago pastor Susan Allen taught a lesson on "Beating the Odds". My apologies in advance for my almost plaigiaristic post.

In the information age it is so easy to stumble over statistics, facts and figures. The odds are that a certain percentage of people will develop cancer, get the flu this season, die in a car accident, get divorced, etc. We live with an almost constant stream of negative programming from the entertainment industry, from.the medical community, law enforcement officials, the news media, even well-meaning friends and family are eager to tell us what the odds are that we cannot succeed, and they usually let us know that the odds are stacked against us. 

How do we tip the scales in our favor? 

Why?

Tears are tasteless by magyarsh

In the blink of an eye, everything can change. Often, we look at the things that happen in our lives and the lives of others, and inevitably someone asks the question...

"Why?"

Reflections on Life Lived

Of course, at the end of our journey, we want that to read “a life lived well”, or “a life well-lived”.

I have spent time over the last several days contemplating and reflecting on my life thus far. I look at my birthday as a sort of personal “New Year”. The changing of the calendar year doesn’t mean that much to me, really. I’m not much into making New Year’s Resolutions. But, my birthday I take a little more seriously – not in a celebrating, let’s party kind of way. In fact, I prefer that not much is made of my birthday. Yes, I appreciate the “happy birthday” wishes, but don’t rely on a party or presents. In many ways, it’s just another day.

When You Pray

"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."

~Matthew 6:6

I've been struggling with the events of a week ago. Especially, I've been struggling with opinions, beliefs, cause and effect, the cultural changes that have taken place in America...

One Nation Under God

American Flag at Half Mast by brianDhawkins

As the news broke on Friday about the school shooting in Connecticut,my first instinct was to pray. I worked for the rest of the day with live news coverage playing in the background on my computer.

Let me apologize at the beginning for what will likely be a rambling, disjointed, opinionated and passionate post.

We have had school shootings in the United States before, but not like this. Not in an elementary school with such young, innocent children.

Waiting for Isaac

Katrina, Courtesy of NASA

Have you ever seen those Christians who, like Nancy Kerrigan, ask "Why me?" When disaster strikes? Something inside me wants to ask, "Who would you rather this had happened to?"

I understand the questioning. There have been times in my life that it seemed I was hit simultaneously on all fronts with problems, disasters and heartache. And I will also be honest and admit that there have been times when I have wondered why. Not that I believed God brought these problems into my life, I know He's a good God and that anything evil doesn't come from Him. But I would wonder why He allowed them. I would give Him my best Nancy Kerrigan prayer through my tears and ask "Why me?" as if I thought someone else was more deserving of sorrow and pain and struggle than I was. 

Take No Thought

"Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air; for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking though can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they toil not, neither do they spin; And yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to  morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knowest that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."~Matthew 6: 25-34

Take no thought... It's important to realize what Jesus is saying here. He isn't telling us not to think ahead, he isn't telling us not to plan for the future. The word "thought" in this passage is the Greek word merimnaō which means to be anxious about, or worry. What Jesus is telling us is that God has my back, he's watching over me, he will provide for me, he is my Jehovah Jireh.

I See Rain, Lots and Lots of Rain

(Laughing in the Rain (c) Greything via Creative Commons @ Flickr.com)

Walking by faith. It's sometimes easier said than done. I love my church. Have I said that lately? I don't go to one of those "feel good" kind of churches that perks you up so that you can have a good attitude for a week and then come back for a refill when the feeling wears off.

We have some light messages, but the vast majority of them are designed to convict you and point you in the direction of living more Christ-like and less narcissistic and selfish. The lessons are also heavily centered on responsibility -- personal responsibility for your circumstances, and responsibility as a steward for everything you have dominion over, which would be... well, everything if I read the creation story right.

God of Abundance

"Overflowing Hospitality" PhotosByDavid under Creative Commons License

I am a God of abundance. I will never run out of resources; My capacity to bless you is unlimited. You have access to as much of Me as you have faith to receive. Rejoice in My abundance--living by faith, not by sight.

~Sarah Young, Jesus Calling

It is so easy to lose our perspective when we take our eyes off of God and look at our circumstances instead. We get caught up in what we see and, while those are facts, those things exist, they are not Truth. 

And, the real problem is that what we concentrate on, what we look at, what we think about, tends to grow. So, if you are worried about a lack of finances and concentrating on that, you are, in effect, watering that plant of lack so that it will grow.

Lessons from the Past

2012: A Year of Thanksgiving and Praise

Day 16: Today, I'm Thankful for Lessons of the Past

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. day. The banks and post offices were closed. Some offices were closed. But many of us went to work just like any other day.

I was a young girl when Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed. It was a brutal, deadly time in American History. It seemed we went from one tragedy to another.

President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 2, 1963.
Lee Harvey Oswald was killed on national television 22 days later, November 24, 1963.
Bobby Kennedy was killed on June 5, 1968.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated only 5 days later, June 10, 1968.

It was a lot for a small child to take in.

Choice

2012: A Year of Thanksgiving and Praise

Day 13: Today I'm Thankful for Choice

Have you ever caught yourself saying "I had no choice..."? That is a phrase that we should all abolish from our vocabulary. I know that there are times when we may not like the choices we have, and it may seem that one choice isn't any better than the other (I frequently feel that way come election time!). But, to say we have no choice is a lie.

From the very beginning, we were created with the power of choice.

Health

2012: A Year of Thanksgiving and Praise

Day 5: I'm thankful for health.

There is nothing like not having something to really appreciate it when you do have it. For the majority of my life I have been "as healthy as a horse", as the old saying goes. I was raised in one of those families that just didn't get sick. We didn't miss work or school due to illness, because we just weren't ever ill.

Sure, we would get an occasional case of the sniffles, but nothing ever kept us down.

2012: a Year of Thanksgiving and Praise

The first day of the new year. I must say I'm glad to have 2011 behind me, and looking forward to 2012.


One of my Facebook friends posted their declaration for the new year and thought I would make my own. I have decided to declare 2012 a Year of Thanksgiving and Praise. 


So, on Day One of the new year, I'm thankful for new beginnings. I'm thankful that I have a New Year in which I can imagine and create what I want for my life. I'm thankful that I have the promises of God's Word to back up my desires, and there is no better guarantee than that possible anywhere, anytime.

What Are You Afraid Of?

Have you ever noticed that the things you believe in you usually also feel strongly about? They are tied to an emotion, either good or bad. 

You know the old saying, never discuss religion or politics. Why not? Because generally speaking, people have strong feelings about those subjects and discussions frequently turn into arguments that have bee known to tear apart family and friends.


So, what does this have to do with faith? 


I think that often our emotions give us a big clue as to whether or not we really believe, or have faith in, what we profess (or confess). 

Guarding Your Heart

It's hard to believe it's been two months since I've posted. Life intervened... I had a health issue that had literally grown out of all proportion and needed to be addressed, as well as a variety of messes in my personal life that I  couldn't put off any longer. But, I'm back! Today, with a lesson on why bad things sometimes happen to us.


If you are anything like me, you probably wonder why, when you go to church, study God's Word, try to live a good life, practice kindness, mercy, love and grace, tithe, eat right, exercise -- why do bad things happen to me?  And why does it sometimes seem to follow the old adage "when it rains it pours?"


It's easy to blame the enemy, and see everything that goes wrong in our life as a direct attack. But, I think we give the devil too much credit when we do this.

Receiving the Promises Through Faith

"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree: That the blessings of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith."
~ Galations 3:13-14


Redeemed is from the Greek word "exagorazo"; to ransom, rescue, purchase out, buy up from the possession or power of someone, to set free from service or bondage. 


What a powerful word that is!  We are no longer bound by the curse of the law but set free by grace. How many of us grew up thinking that we could somehow earn our salvation or earn the promise of the blessings that God's Word holds for us? I know I did -- or at least, I thought I was supposed to be able to. Of course, I always fell short so I always thought that I didn't deserve and couldn't receive the promises because I wasn't "good enough".


The problem is, we can never be "good enough". The good news is, we don't have to be.

Invent the Future

"A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the luster of the firmament of bards and sages. Yet he dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his." 

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Day 17 Assignment: Invent the Future by Cindy Gallop

My favorite quote of all time is Alan Kay: "In order to predict the future, you have to invent it." I am all about inventing the future. Decide what you want the future to be and make it happen. Because you can. Write about your future now.


I'll take that thought a bit further. Not only CAN we invent our futures, but we DO invent them whether we are conscious of doing so or not.  I firmly believe that yesterday's thoughts created today's circumstances. If I don't like the results, then I need to change my thoughts. God created us with the ability to create what we can imagine. Any image held in the mind long enough, and believed strongly enough, will become manifest in our circumstances.

I apologize for my blog taking such an extreme turn from the type of posts I had been making, but I'm enjoying the #Trust30 challenge and hope that you all find it at least somewhat entertaining. If nothing else, it gives you a glimpse of my personality and who I really am. There are 13 days left, and then "Walk By Faith" will return to its regular programming.  ;o)

Wholly Strange and New

"When good is near you, when you have life in yourself, it is not by any known or accustomed way; you shall not discern the foot-prints of any other; you shall not see the face of man; you shall not hear any name; the way, the thought, the good, shall be wholly strange and new."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Day 16 Assignment: Wholly Strange and New by Bridget Pilloud

Can you remember a moment in your life when you had life in yourself and it was wholly strange and new? Can you remember the moment when you stopped walking a path of someone else, and started cutting your own?


Write about that moment. And if you haven’t experienced it yet, let the miracle play out in your mind’s eye and write about that moment in your future.

Your Personal Message

"To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart is true for all men, that is genius." 

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Day 10 Assignment by Eric Handler

What is burning deep inside of you? If you could spread your personal message RIGHT NOW to 1 million people, what would you say?

One Strong Belief

It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude. 
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance

Day 3 Assignment by Buster BensonPublish Post


The world is powered by passionate people, powerful ideas, and fearless action. What’s one strong belief you possess that isn’t shared by your closest friends or family? What inspires this belief, and what have you done to actively live it? Buster Benson

One Strong Belief

I believe in the power of faith. I believe that we live under a Covenant of Divine Protection. This protection extends itself over every area of our lives: spiritual and physical; it covers our health, our finances, our circumstances, our household, or children, our pets.