Notes from the Father IV

Do not doubt my Spirit.  Do not doubt my power to redeem your mistakes.  Do not doubt my love and compassion for you.  Why would I not tell you that you are doing something that will bring harm?  I love you!  I want NO harm to come to you.  I want you to know my voice.  As you listen to my voice, I will direct you.  Don't worry.  Keep moving forward inspite of what you see or feel.  Do not let fear have control or motivate your decisions.  Let faith reign!

Naked and Thirsty

I've been reading through the gospels this year and more recently the Gospel of Luke.  I've been learning so much as I've been studying about the life of Jesus.  Several weeks ago I read something Jesus said that has confounded me for years.

 

Luke 5:36 He told them this parable: "No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. [37] And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. [38] No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. [39] And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, `The old is better.' "

I've heard people talk about this referring to new paradigms.  Ok.  But I really wanted to understand this parable.  So I ask my Teacher to teach me.  And Oh boy!  The Holy Spirit opened my mind to understand this scripture, and spoke to me very personally.   I'd like to share what He revealed to me.

So Jesus gives two examples, to make a point.  First He uses clothes.  When your clothes or old, what do you do?  First, consider the culture in which Jesus lived.  The common person only owned one item of clothing--maybe two..  Believe it or not, many people around the world live like this.  Anyway, when clothes became worn, one would patch the holes, until it couldn't be patched anymore or until they were able to get a new garment.  Why would a person damage a new garment, to patch an old garment?  If you have access to a new garment, you would replace the old garment with the new garment, not patch up the old.  If a person were to patch up the old garment with the new cloth, the patch would be ineffective.  The new cloth would pull away from old cloth, and end up becoming an unwearable garment.  And guess what?  The new garment is ruined too!  The result:  No wearable garments.  

We end up naked!!!!

 Jesus uses wine and wineskin to illustrate the same point.  When a person was out of wine, they would need to make more wine.  If a person was to put new wine in an old wineskin, the wine would burst through the wineskin, leaving the person with no wine.  So instead of having wine, and a wineskin, they end up with nothing.  

They end up thirsty! 

So why would anyone do such absurd things?

Jesus answers that in His last statement.  "And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, `The old is better.' "  

No one wants "the new", because...

• The old is familiar
• The old is safe
• We think the good of the old will stay good

When we hold on too long to the old, being UNWILLING to change, we end up losing everything.  The good of the old is gone, and we don't experience the good of "the new" either.  We find ourselves in need of change, but instead of changing we want to patch our lives. You know, just fix the things in our lives that don't work.  

When "the new" presents itsself, take hold of the new.  Stop trying to make the new, fit into the old.

I'll be honest here.  The Holy Spirit is convicting me of this BIG TIME!  I've been praying that the Lord would change some things in my life, and I've been praying for a patch job.  God wants to give me a new garment.  Something I've never seen.  Something I'm not familiar with.  Something-- better.  Don't get me wrong.  The old garment wasn't bad.  It was good for a season, but now it's outdated and no longer provides the best for our family.  It's time to let go, before I lose all that I'm trying hold on to.  

Just as the old garment was good, I can trust that the new garment is good too.

Just as the old wine was good, the new wine will be just as good--maybe even better.

Are you in need of a big change in your life?

What are you refusing to let go of? 

 What are you asking God to patch in your life?  Are you asking Him to fix the things you don't like, so you don't have to really change?

Can you trust our Loving, and completely wise Heavenly Father to give you that which best for you?

Will you give Him permission to change anything He wants to change?  Anything.

 

He wants to replace your old and worn garments with a fresh new garment.  He wants you fully clothed, not naked.  He wants to replace your old and empty wineskins with new wineskins full of wine.  He wants you satisfied, not thirsty.

Let's encourage each other on this journey.

Let me know what big change you've been praying for, and how God surprised you (or is surprising you) with the most amazing blessings as you walked out into the unknown of "the new".  

I'll be sharing my story of change soon.  I think this post is long enough.  ;-)

In the Storm

This morning I was reading Matthew 7:18-27.  While reading and thinking about friends who are in the midst of some difficult circumstances, I was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write these words.  I pray that you are comforted, and encouraged as you read.

Jesus got in the boat, and is disciples followed Him

Into a furious storm

How often does that happen?  We follow Jesus into the storm, and not away from it.

And Jesus slept in perfect peace. He knew he was in the perfect care of His Father.
That's how he wants us to be in a furious storm.  When our lives are falling apart.  When there is one thing, then another.  It's like a hurricane, and like the disciples, we become Frantic! 
saying...

"Lord SAVE us!"
"I think I'm going to drown!"
"Help!"
"Where are you?"
"Do you even care?" 

And He responds.

Oh you of little faith.  Why are you so afraid?  Why, my child?  Why do you not believe my promises?  Why do you not trust me?  Why?

Then He causes the storm to cease.  Everything becomes calm again.  And we are again amazed by the God who controls the very storms of lives.   
He brings us into the storm, and at His word, He brings us out.

Oh Lord, help me to trust you and to rest in you in the midst of the storm.  In the midst...  You are there beside me, in the midst of the storm.  Every wind and wave is under your complete control and I will not drown.  I trust you.  I trust your every word.  Oh God help my unbelief.  Make me lie down in your green pastures.  May your rod and staff comfort me.  As I walk through this difficult place, may your perfect peace cast out ALL FEAR and ALL ANXIETIES.  
So I lie down beside you in this boat, on the stormy sea.  As the winds and waves threaten to destroy me, I snuggle up next to you.  As people all around me scream, in a panic telling me what I ought to do, I look to you alone.  Embrace me that I might rest.  That I may know your perfect protection.  And the storms will become strangely dim as I listen to your loving voice lulling me to sleep.  Amen.  

Enjoying a Feast in the Midst of life's Difficulties

The journey to the higher places (the  place where we enjoy greater intimacy with the Father) often leads us face-to-face with our greatest fears.  As we experience His protection in these difficult places we learn, that our shepherd doesn't need to remove our enemies (or problems)  in order for us to be secure.  We can enjoy  perfect peace, security and abundance because the Good Shepherd is near.  We can enjoy the feast prepared for us by our Great God, while our enemies look on with utter contempt.  What sweet victory that is!

I've witnessed this with my own eyes.  I've had the blessed opportunity to meet a new friend this past weekend--Linda Giebelhaus.  She's experienced several devastating blows in her life:  losing her wealth, colon cancer (and overcoming it) and now terminal cancer.  According to the doctor, she has about 30 days to live, but you'd never know it if you're around her.  You'd think they've given her 30 years!  She is enjoying the magnificent feast that the Good Shepherd has prepared before her, relishing every choice morsel of her life.  She speaks of the love of the Shepherd and how He daily satisfies her and provides abundantly for her needs.  She is such a delight to be around!  I just love her!  She is one who dances before the Lord.  She truly LOVES the Shepherd.

Please join me in praying that our Heavenly Father would completely heal her and give her many more years to proclaim His goodness here on earth.  If you'd like to follow her journey, see:

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/Lindagiebelhaus

 
May each of us proclaim along with the Psalmist and  Linda:

PS 46:1 God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.

  PS 46:2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
    and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,

  PS 46:3 though its waters roar and foam
    and the mountains quake with their surging.
        Selah

Collaboration

   
I was recently blessed with the opportunity to collaborate with some wonderful artists on some art projects.  I've never done anything like this before.  When Kathy first asked me about being a part of the collaboration, I was excited and honored that she would ask me.  But as the time approached for us to begin the collaboration, I began to get nervous.  This was totally out of my comfort zone!  I didn't know what to expect.  There was no plan.  And I had no control over what would happen. I had to trust that God had a plan.
     The first day we met, I remember the anxiety I felt.  I was like, "I'm here.  Now what?"  We prayed.  And God did a marvelous work through us.  We brought our scraps, and leftover pieces and over the course of a month, we're created 6 beautiful works of art.  I'm amazed!  Each piece is so different.  We each contributed in some way, to each piece.  And each person's contribution was absolutely vital to creating that final product.

Interestingly, we are each very different.  We come from different ethinic and cultural backgrounds.  We each work in different mediums.  Our styles are very different.  Even our methods of creating art are different.  But you wouldn't believe how much harmony we've had.  The Spirit of God has worked through each of us enabling us to work with oneness of mind.  We committed ourselves to be servants, listening to the Spirit and being sensitive to the ways that He was moving.

     Did we agree at every moment?  No.  But we always came to an agreement in a peaceful manner.  Sometimes it took time to hear what the Spirit was saying.

     I can honestly say that I could never have created anything like these pieces alone.  Now it almost feels strange working alone in my studio on my personal pieces.  I miss that interaction and feedback.

It's been fun!  And I've learned so much and grown through the process.

I have been given a small glimpse of what God wants to do in His people on a larger scale.  He wants us working together, each bringing our little bit to the table in order to create a Great Feast.  We can't do it alone.  We must be willing to give...and receive.   And in the process each of us will be changed.  Paul says in Ephesians that we become more whole, for you supply what is lacking in me, and I in you.   The church becomes a fuller expression of the Magnificient Glorious Infiinite God.  The knowledge of His glory becomes more complete and more fully displayed.  How exciting!

We need each other.  God wants to use us working together to do something beautiful for Him.

Let's collaborate.

Moving the Mountain of Fear--an excerpt from "Fear Lives Here No More!"

Faith the size of a tiny mustard seed moves mountains.   (Matthew 7:20 paraphrased)  I’ve studied, prayed and pondered over this scripture.  How can I move the seemingly unmovable?  How do I know I have enough faith? I’ve often heard people tell others that they didn’t have enough faith.  I’ve even read instances where Jesus rebukes his followers by saying, “O you of little faith.”

            It helps to know what faith is.  Hebrews 11:1 says faith is being sure of what we hope for and having a certainty of what we don’t see.  2 Corinthians 5:7(paraphrased)  says we should live by faith and not by what we see.  Hebrews 11:6 (paraphrased) says that we must have faith in order to please God.  James 2:26 (paraphrased) says faith without actions is useless.  So what is faith?  Faith is living my life in light of what God says about me, the world and what He says about Himself.  It’s living my life based on His promises.  It doesn’t matter how I feel or what I see.  I will operate my life based on the truth.  My actions must line up with what I believe.  If not, what’s the use in believing it?  God wants followers who are ALL in or not at all.  No more, “yes I believe your promises”, but living my life as though I don’t believe his promises.

            Interestingly, all of us have faith in something.  Is your check directly deposited into your checking account?  Every month, you confidently expect that you will have your money deposited electronically—though you don’t see it.  You don’t stay up worrying about it.  You don’t try to understand how that happens.  You don’t question whether or not your employer will forget, or decide not to pay you.  You live with the confidence that your money will be in your account at the expected time.  That is faith.  Have you ever been to the doctor?  Your doctor gives you a prescription, along with other instructions that he/she says will get you well.  Most of us don’t doubt it.  We take the advice without question.  We trust that whatever he/she scribbled on that paper is good for us.  We trust that the pharmacist is giving us the prescription that the doctor ordered, and we trust the pharmaceutical company that made the prescription.  We live most of our lives trusting people and things, having no concrete proof that anyone will deliver what they promise.   

            So Jesus was saying that the size of our faith is irrelevant.  What really matters is who we put our faith in.  Anything or anyone we put our faith in will disappoint us eventually—except God.  He’s the one who moves mountains. 

When Jesus performed a miracle, there was usually some action required of the person which demonstrated his/her beliefs.  Sometimes the action was simple, like when the servants filled the jugs full of water in order for the water to be turned to wine.  (John 2:5-11) Sometimes the action was difficult, like when he told the blind man to go wash in the pool of Siloam. (John 9:1-38) Sometimes the action required the person to take a risk, like when he told the lepers to go show themselves to the priest.  (Luke 17:12-19) Sometimes the act seemed impossible, like when he told the cripple man to pick up his mat and walk.  (John 5:2-14) Sometimes the act required persistence, like the woman with the blood disorder.  She pressed through the crowd so that she could touch the hem of his clothing. (Mark 5:24-34) Sometimes friends and family needed to get involved in order to intercede on behalf of the person, like the paralyzed man whose friends cut a hole in the roof in order to get him to Jesus.  Jesus said the man was healed because of his friends’ faith.  (Mark 2:1-12) Sometimes it was as simple as persistently calling on the name of Jesus, like the blind men who called out to Jesus in spite of the crowd’s rebukes. (Matthew 20:30-34) 

In every situation, each person’s belief was displayed by their actions.  That’s faith.

And I don’t mean rule-keeping.  None of the rule-keeping religious leaders experienced any miracles.

            So my challenge to you is this:  Do you want this mountain of fear removed?  Are you willing to do whatever the Holy Spirit tells you to do?  I cannot tell you exactly what to do in order to be free, but I can tell you how to get to the One who can tell you.

Creative Journey Into the Light- excerpt from my book "Fear Doesn't Live Here Anymore"

       Since I was about 12 years old, I’ve been involved with and loved art.  I took classes, exhibited at school and competed in art contests.  As I grew older, I started pursuing other interests and my art became a hobby that I pursued only occasionally.  I always kept notebooks for sketching.  After having kids, I sketched even less, since I disliked having kids looking over my shoulder while I was trying to sketch.  Anyway, the Lord began speaking to my heart in 2006 about pursuing my art again as a part of the art ministry at my church.  I never even considered being a part of the team because I didn’t think I was good enough.  Many of the people on the team went to art school, and some are professional artists.  I thought, “I can’t do that!” In spite of my fears,  I made the decision to obey.  I began showing people my sketches.  That was scary!  Then I began working on a piece for the next exhibit.  When I attended the first meeting where we showed our ideas, I was terrified.  I haven’t been that terrified in quite a while.  I was so afraid that I could barely speak.  I showed my piece and got a good response!  Whew!

Since then, it’s been an uphill battle with my heart.  I’ve had to deal with pieces being rejected, or not liked.  There have even been pieces that I didn’t particularly like.  I’ve battled myself.  I would hold my breath every exhibit when I revealed my piece or pieces.  I guess I still do, to a lesser extent.  “Will anyone like it?”  “Does it meet the standard?”  Ultimately, I have found my peace in knowing that I sought the Lord as I've created each piece, and knowing that I’ve given my best.   I must trust that God will speak to whomever he has ordained each piece to speak to.  I must trust that He will redeem my “mess ups”.  My job is to seek his face, listen carefully and obey him fully.  It’s that simple and it’s freeing!

      This fear of not being good enough permeates so much of my life.  I’ve always been a perfectionist.  In school, if I made a 99, I was trying to figure out why I didn’t make the 100.  I didn’t then, and I still don’t like making mistakes.  When I was younger, I would be willing to take risks to do something I wanted to do, thinking that I would succeed and not make mistakes.  Over the course of time, because of many failures, I became afraid of failure.  I now understand that failure is a part of life.  I’ve learned more from my failures than I ever have from my victories.  I am able to empathize with others when they fail.  The Lord has also taught me that He is achieving something far greater than we can see when we step out in faith to obey him.  Even greater than that, God redeems our failures.  He turns our ashes into beauty.  Isn’t that what the cross is all about?  If I never fail, how will I know of his redemptive power in my life?

             The Lord is continuing to renew my mind daily with his truth.  I am learning to accept my inadequacies, and failures.  Actually, I'm learning to embrace my insufficiencies .  Though it is painful to have my weaknesses and failures exposed, I know that it is good for me to live in truth.  And truth sets us free.  I am freed to become all that my Creator designed me to be.  I am free to fulfill my purpose in life.  He made me with certain strengths and certain weaknesses.  They were put there on purpose.  Why?  So that I may completely rely on Him.  So that I might know, that I am truly weak.  That is reality.  That is truth.  I am insufficient, but He is ALL-sufficient.  Also, so that I may be united with others in His body.  He calls us to help each other in areas of weakness.   God wants no self-sufficient "lone rangers".  

I'm learning to  make myself available to be used by our great and glorious God.  He specializes in using the unqualified and weak to accomplish great things.  And His plans can't be stopped!

So I ponder the question: Why am I so afraid of others seeing my failures, my weaknesses, sins, mistakes, etc?  I care more about what people think about me, than I care about obeying God.  I want the approval of people rather than, God.  It all comes back to ME.  Let me tell you, the Father is exposing these things by His Spirit.  They aren't easy lessons to learn, but they are worth it.  And every time I think I'm over other people's opinions, the Spirit exposes another area!   I want a heart that is completely devoted to Him.  I no longer want to live my life as a prisoner of other people's opinions.  I no longer want to make decisions because I want the reward of the applause of people.  I want the greater reward.  

1.  Are you resisting obeying God in some area of your life because you’re afraid you will fail?  Are you willing to take the risk?  Isn’t God BIG enough to accomplish GREAT things through you inspite of your weaknesses, sins, and other insufficiencies?
2. Can you think of an area of your life where God revealed his glory through your failures?  What good came of this failure?
3. Are there weaknesses or failures that you've refused to admit?  Perhaps you've made excuses.  Maybe you simply think you need to try harder, or at least try a different method.  Admit, accept and embrace your failures.  Cling to the sufficient grace of our Lord.
4. Who are you trying to please?  A spouse?  Your parents?  Friends?  Colleagues?  Are you using their approval or disapproval to gauge whether or not you're ok?  Ponder this thought:  You are more than Ok, because of the righteousness of Jesus Christ.  Now go deeper:  God knows you completely, through and through and He loves and accepts you as you are.  Meditate and pray over these truths.

Meditate on the following scriptures:

2 Peter 1:3

Hebrews 10:11-14

2 Corinthians 12:9-10

John 15:5-8