Without Apology, I Have My Boxing Gloves On

Let's give the enemy a black eye or two by speaking Truth today, shall we? 

Cutting right to the chase: there are NO perfect marriages, there are NO perfect parents, there are NO perfect families, and there are NO perfect people. Let's drop all the pretense that life is "peachy."  It isn't.... it is far, FAR from it! 

BUT what God expects it to be for His Christ-followers is a schoolhouse, a place where we study Kingdom law and apply It daily while still in this broken world.

*IF* we take our enrollment in this School seriously, what we will have are marriages being perfected, parents being perfected, families being perfected, and people being perfected.

In other words, movement in the RIGHT direction, and we sure could use more than a tad of that right now in our day with our cultural climate!

We, as Christ followers, are to be preparing on the daily for Christ's physical coming rule that will last forevermore.  This means that our success in this present "school" depends on the extent of our study and our knowledge of the Word, our Textbook.

Are you getting failing marks, just barely passing marks, average marks, or excellent marks these days? 

(Each time through out this reading, when you see red letters, click on them to see the Bible reference.)

The fact of the matter is, be it that you are a Christian or not, every relationship in life is a challenge. But those of us who are Christians, experience an increase in difficulty with regards to our relationships for two parallel, set-apart reasons: 

1) We belong to God's Kingdom, and our King said, "But I say to you...." -- over and again in the Gospels - He didn't LOWER the standards of relationships.... He RAISED them!

2) Once we enter God's Kingdom, we have a known enemy who has a plan of destruction set for us and will use every opportunity to bait us to follow his path....right over the cliff.  

There is no hard and fast "earthy" formula for success. However, I have GREAT news to the Christ-follower!

The Word of God is  to be THE  "lamp unto (our) feet and a light unto (our) path"  (from one of my favorite passages I read often, Psalm 119).  

I have shared this in the past, but I was raised Baptist, who are known for their "Sword drills" and strong memory work.  As a result, to this day, the Lord faithfully brings a Scripture to light my path when evil has, once again, moved in to (unsuccessfully) eclipse the Son.  

Years ago, the Holy Spirit spoke, "Look at your shadow. It is as evil is. It always appears twice a big as what it is, but always remember from this day, it is cast down beneath your feet."   I have never forgotten those words... nor will I ever forget them.  It is a decree of placement.  It is a decree of power in the Spirit.  It is a decree of Kingdom citizenship.

Perhaps you have yet to open the Word.  Do you own a Bible?  Maybe that's your first step?  Buy one!  You can't pass your studies without the Textbook.  

Perhaps you have forsaken your studies, been held back a few years....or perhaps your entire life?  Being "held back" isn't punishment.... it's for your protection.  Just like in real life - it does the student a grave disservice to pass them on without mastering the work.  The deficit becomes all the more evident the longer it is overlooked. Perhaps you have lacked personal discipline, studying only when you "feel like it." But to be a successful student, you must master your will over your feelings....doing it even when you don't feel like it!

Accept where you are now. I remember watching a movie many years back where a grown man was found to be illiterate. He humbled himself, confessed he couldn't read, and got on to studying. In no time, he mastered what had previously kept him in defeat.  He could have stayed in pride, refusing to acknowledge he had a problem.... and he would have lived all his days defeated.... with Jesus grieving and the enemy smiling.

Which will it be for you?

Our King wants us to succeed, but we MUST do things His way!  To do things His way, we MUST know the Word.  We will NEVER walk successfully supposing God's ways.   "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways...."     

Much like a child who is just beginning school - they must lay aside what they thought they could do or what they thought they knew - and RENEW their minds with brand new, daily input, so too MUST we! 

We MUST come to God....laying aside our long-held presuppositions for the sake of inputting The Truth contained in His Word, thereby renewing our minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. 

There will always be the proud, those who resist acknowledging their ways don't cut it in God's Kingdom.

But to truly become a Kingdom citizen, you have to first know the King (the point most often and perhaps a bit too quickly taken to heart without fully understanding what follows), then study the "laws of the land" (often forsaken for long periods of time, if opened at all), and then the most challenging, rarely fully achieved due to lack of study ... obey them.

Yes, there is God's grace.  There is always God's grace.  But God's grace was never to nullify Kingdom living.... but to EMPOWER it!  Learn the difference (by study)! Know the difference (by renewing your mind)!  Walk the difference (by obedience)! 

"....seek FIRST the Kingdom of God and His righteousness..."

No exceptions. No exclusions.  No addenda.

No way around it!

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Inertia... A Real Enemy

Here's a little experiment for you: buy a helium balloon, put it in your car, press the accelerator, and watch it move BACK as the car moves forward.  It's an example of inertia.

Inertia can be defined as "a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged." 

In the example above, the balloon resists a change in position, despite the car advancing.

This evening I went for a run.  I was angry. I had just read an assortment of comments from individuals terribly affected by pornography.  I sensed the Lord say, "Run it off."  (Thankful for His ever present direction!)

While running, I heard, "The violent take it by force."  (Matt 11:12)  (I encourage you to go HERE and read up on the short explanation of that verse.)  

Certainly, everything and everyone associated with pornography is a part of "the violent".  It is one of a number of tactics used to hold people in a state of unholy inertia. 

One of my favorite books is "The Screwtape Letters".  A quote from the book is as follows: "You can make him (the human) do nothing at all for long periods. You can keep him up late at night, not roistering, but staring at a dead fire in a cold room."

That's what porn is.  I think to myself how many people stare at one "dead fire" after another in a cold room indeed night after night. The true warmth of God and sanctified marital relationships chased off by the foolery of it all.

Screwtape goes on to say in the same chapter, "One of my own patients said on his arrival down here, 'I now see that I spent most of my life in doing neither what I ought nor what I liked.' ....'Nothing' is very strong; strong enough to steal away a man's best years....in a deary flickering of the mind over it knows not what...in gratification of curiosities so feeble that the man is only half aware of them....once chance association has started then, the creature is too weak and fuddled to shake off."

Indeed, the enemy and his forces are constantly PLOTTING to keep you entangled in the many trappings of unholy inertia.... from self  to all manner of depravity. 

The second definition of inertia is "a property of matter by which it continues in its existing state UNLESS that state is changed by an EXTERNAL force." Glory; there is HOPE!

The external force that breaks the bondage of unholy inertia can only be one thing: GOD. 

NOTE:  the external force changes the state of  matter. You are no longer the same, but permanently altered; transformed!  (2 Corinthians 3:18)   There can be NO blending of the two! Your will and God's will cannot coexist within you!

But you've got to want it more than you want to stay as you are.  Are you too weak and fuddled?  Pray without ceasing until He breaks the yoke..... then put the pedal to the metal (transformation MUST have correlating ACTIONS supported by the Word) and floor it .... the "balloon" being contained in the car (God) WILL move WITH the car.   He is a Force unlike no other, but He will not go against your true desire/your will.  You've got to want Him more than anything this world offers!

Wake up out of your stupor!

Is inertia winning?  Or are you actively pursuing holiness, doing what you ought?

Heavy questions.  Heavier consequences.

"Turn my eyes away from worthless things,

and revive me in Your ways."

Psalms 119:37

"Flag of Convenience"

Perhaps you have not ever heard of the 'flag of convenience'.  It's a fascinating term that defines a shady business practice among ship yards. Simply put, it is where a ship owner may register a ship in a ship register of a country other than the country of the owner.  These registers are called open registries.  This shady practice then allows a ship to fly a flag of a country that, let's say, upholds lesser values, lesser regulations, and demands less tariffs.  The practice is, as you imagined it, viewed as contentious. Typically substandard working conditions are present, as well as they pose environmental hazards due to rules and regulations being routinely skirted.

I want to challenge each of you today to look upon the relationships in your life.

How many of them are marked with a flag of convenience instead of a Kingdom of God flag?

I not only see, but have experienced, the damage when someone I trusted CHOSE to fly a flag of convenience, forsaking Kingdom values for the lesser substandard.

I get it. I truly do. I, like you, am human, and I know the challenge of seeking God's Kingdom and His ways as my solo path. But as difficult of a path as that often times is in this tempting, baiting world,  the fallout and utter pain when we choose to switch our flags even but for a moment is extensive and excruciating; particularly to families as the devastation most certainly extends far beyond just a moment.

For the sake of those around you, if you claim Kingdom of God citizenship, BURN every single last flag of convenience!

For the love of all that is holy and right, raise your Kingdom flag and make certain ....using ONLY God's Word as your navigator (ie: forsaking your emotions and what 'seems' right) .... set you conduct in all your relationships to God's high and holy standards.  It's the only correct choice for a true citizen of God's Kingdom!

Godspeed!