Clear Vision musings

It appears that after great revival God sends great trials and afflictions to test the faith, to see if it be true and pure, to separate the chaff from the wheat.

Many may come flocking to the physical church through revival, a visitation from God, religious stirrings, or perhaps even church growth programs. But as the dust settles, when the trials and afflictions come, who is left standing? Those who have had an outward reformation rarely stand long when the trials and afflictions come. But those who have been inwardly transformed shine ever brighter as they come through these refining fires.

… but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. - Matt. 10:22

SDG,
Lisa

Greetings from Me and My House,

I really have started many blog posts this week. But where last week was a week of listening, this week has been a week of reflecting and seeking to reason. I’ve spent much time reflecting on my journey in God, and why the paths taken have been. I’ve spent much time, again, just enjoying His glory.

Where last week my thoughts were toward future roads, this week my reflections have been on the road I’ve traveled thus far. Over my years of being a Christian, I feel so blessed that God provided a solid foundation in the Word for us from the very beginning. Though I’ve certainly deepened, and even readjusted some of that over the years.

There are so many things I’m chewing on right now that I really don’t even think I can write on at present. So I’ll just leave today with a statement - a life message/mission statement, if you will, that I’ve proclaimed for many years, but became more solidified into a concise “statement” last year. It is was I want my life, my ministry, and my church I attend to be about: Pursuing -
Passionate Worship
Pure Teaching
Powerful Ministry
Persistent Prayer
Productive Living

At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @Me and My House
Blogging Here
and There
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Greetings from Me and My House,

I’m a little “undone” this a.m. Perhaps the lack of sleep (nothing new) and the abundance of coffee (that I very rarely drink) this week could have a bit to do with it. That part is all consumebyfire’s fault If she wasn’t moving we wouldn’t have had the going away coffee with the ladies from church, PLUS her and I going out the next day. (By the way, I hope you can keep your consistency in blogging while you’re gone, K, so you don’t drive yourself nuts

But, really none of these are the real reasons for my “feelings”, for I’m not “undone” in the sense of anxiety or frustration or anything like that, but in being caught up in gloriousness of God, the sense of marveling at the goodness of God in all things.

We all face new roads in our lives, whether forks we must choose between or just new directions that must be walked out. This week I’ve blogged little, but listened much. I’ve listened to Father as I’ve prayed and read His Word. I’ve listened to some great teachers of the Word, and found further joy and steadfastness and passion in knowing my Lord deeper. I’ve listened to a “word from the Lord” that was a personal message of hope.

I’ve listened to my daughter who’s a brand new mom, definitely on a new road in life. I’ve listened to our dear friends (consumebyfire), who are going to IHOP, (no, not the pancake place) talk (over a great dinner last night - and other times,) about this new adventure in God they are heading into - a new road in their lives. I’ve listened to our eldest daughter talk about the new road they are on and being abundantly blessed in, in their new pastorate - and, as we stayed up late one night after all the kids were asleep, talking about her thoughts of her “baby” sister being a mom. I’ve listened to other friends, in our Bible study, on the new road of a new job, that is pure spiritual warfare every step. I’ve listened to another daughter, at a crossroads in her life, where some decisions that needed to be made long ago, are once again staring her in the face.

Many of these new roads affect our lives too, either directly or indirectly. Some of them cause new roads for us to walk too. Each and every day we all face new roads we must walk or perhaps must choose between. These roads may bring a flood of differing emotions; perhaps excitement, perhaps fear, perhaps joy, perhaps doubt and questioning. But each step of that walk on whatever new roads we face, as Christians, must be walked in faith. We must put doubt and fear behind us. It is impossible for the “natural man” to walk in faith. But Christians can be caught up in doubt and fear, too - and leave faith behind.

It is only as we rest, trust, in the sovereignty of God that we can truly walk by faith, not by sight. God does not always (ever?) show us ahead of time how everything is going to work out, let alone what each and every little step is going to be - bring. The walk of faith is truly that, trusting that God is in control of the unseen.

And this trusting that He is in control - not us, not satan - (that’s faith!) is how we please Him. Hebrews 11:6 (from another of my most favorite chapters of God’s Word - I have a lot of them) says: “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” And Romans 14:23 tells us: “for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” So not trusting in God’s sovereignty, that is doubting Him, is sin. Pure and simple if I’m not living my life, trusting that He is in control - that nothing is taking Him by surprise; nothing is causing Him to wring His hands, nothing has Him worried - then I’m walking in sin not faith.

There is nothing that He will not work out to His own glory, and “work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son.” (Romans 8:28-29) We can fully believe and trust in that. It is the assurance of our great and good God, that God has a plan for everything we face in life to be used for His glory, and to conform those of us that belong to Him, to the image of His Son. And His plan will not be overthrown.

When we truly know that “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” (Pro. 16:9) we walk by faith down whatever new roads we must walk, knowing that He is God and He has it all under control. So this has been a great week of marveling and resting in the sovereignty and glory of God.

At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @Me and My House

Order Christian and Home Ed Resources Here

Greetings from My and My House,

Are we lazy Christians, habitual creatures, in bondage, or faithless? My guess is a little of all in the area of today’s topic. We definitely show an area of unrenewed worldly thinking. But please don’t take what I write here today to the nth degree of extreme. Just think about HOW and WHERE it DOES apply.

I heard yesterday that self-help books were by far the largest category (I don’t remember if it was the largest section in the library or in bookstores). Our society is looking for help for their problems. And a plethora of writing and reading is done from the viewpoint of the foolishness of man.

From my own observations, I think the same is true of Christian book stores. The majority of the shelves are self-help, “Christian Living” - with “Christian” fiction, coming in a (perhaps close) second, and the Bibles in a small section in the back or tucked into a corner. Christians too are looking for help for their problems. But they aren’t looking directly to the Word of God. They are looking to self-help books. (Perhaps I should say throughout this post, “WE” - and bring this topic closer to home for all of us.)

I don’t believe, as Christians, we are purposely looking to the foolishness of man, but are truly hoping all these books contain the Wisdom of God from His Word. But for some reason we don’t think we can get it from the Word of God itself, by ourselves. Perhaps that’s because we live in a society of “experts” that thinks it needs an “expert” in every area of life to tell them what to do. They need certified teachers to educate their own children. They need licensed doctors to care for ALL their health needs - to the point that now pregnancy and child birth is a “medical condition”. They need registered dieticians to “prescribe” proper menus. And they need psychologists and clinical therapists to tell them what their problems are and how to solve them. The list goes on and on in our society. For being such anarchists that won’t obey any authority, our society sure sets a lot of them up for themselves. But it’s just an indication of the refusal to take any responsibility for themselves. If something goes wrong, there’s always someone else to blame.

I’m NOT saying that we should never consult someone that has more training in a certain area than we have, when we can’t figure things out for ourselves. Just that we should be doing more figuring out for ourselves, and relying less on the so-called “experts” for EVERYTHING.

But back to the “Christian” aspect of this. I believe that too many times Christians have the same “expert” mentality, and think someone else can give them all the answers that will solve all their problems. No wonder we have a Christianity that is so big in self-works and small in faith. Yes, we are creatures of habit, in bondage to the “ways of man”.

But I think it is more than just this. We think we cannot figure it out in the Bible for ourselves. We think we need an “expert” to figure it all out for us, to digest it, and then put it into to an understandable, “palatable” form for us. We think we need another mediator. We can not go to the Word on our own and trust the Holy Spirit to give us what we need, to be our Teacher to explain to us what He says, and desires from us. Bluntly, we do not trust “walking by faith”. We want something proven in the natural to “work”. And if this book doesn’t work, we’ll try the next one, and the next one, ad infinitum.

But we never think of going directly the Bible ourselves. We think that would be too hard. How could we ever figure out what it means and how to apply it, without some expert man interpreting it for us? We heap for ourselves “teachers”. We forget we have THE Teacher, living inside of us. Are we too lazy to expend the effort needed to figure it out for ourselves? We want our milk. We remain babes, by our own choosing, long after we should have grown up and been chewing the meat of the Word for ourselves. Yes, the Bible is not properly understood by the natural (unregenerate) man. It is spiritually discerned, understood by the regenerate spirit. If we are “in Christ”, He will cause our spirits to understand His Word. He will be our Teacher. But will we be good students who study?

The Dark Ages was a time when the common people fell into great ignorance. They didn’t learn for themselves. In the organized “church” this was characterized by a need for a Pope or Priest to read and interpret the Bible for the people. It was a time when man was in great bondage. Have we entered into a Neo-Dark Age? A time when people no longer think for themselves. Even Christians who have available to them individually the Word of God, very easy to find, very cheap to buy. Yet, the average Christian relies on the “Pastor” or books by experts to read and interpret the Bible for him, rather than going straight to the Word themselves. They’ve been sold a lie that the straight Bible itself is complicated and hard to understand, so they need a “dumbed-down” version that interprets for them, or another person to do that.

Rather than seeing the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers as those given by God to help equip them to do the ministry of God. They see them AS the ministers. Rather than being like the faithful Bereans who went to the Word itself to see if the things being taught were true or not, today’s Christian takes what is taught by these, unquestioned. And if the pastor isn’t preaching what is “relavent” to them, i.e. the self-help they currently need, they heap up for themselves teachers in the form of the equipping ministry of Author. Somehow I missed that one in Ephesians.

Now, I hope you realize that I am NOT saying we should not ever read another Christian’s perspective on anything. What I am saying is that when we read these things looking for Biblical answers without searching, studying the Bible itself, we are putting ourselves back in the Dark Ages, a place our society seems to be heading fast - where the common man is not encouraged to think for himself. He is not taught HOW to think, but WHAT to think.

What I am proposing is that we so thoroughly know the Word - or rather, continually study it ourselves to do so, that when we read these other things we compare them to what the Word itself says, to see whether they be built on Truth or not. Too many times, we read a book and think, “Oh, that sounds Biblical. It must be right.” Then we read the next and think, “Oh. No, THIS one sounds Biblical.” We are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine.

We need to be solidly grounded in the Word of God, so these other things we read are just further applications of the Truth, the Bible Principles, we already know - that we have found in the Word for ourselves.

In closing, here’s a favorite passage of mine. I think I quoted it on Me and My House musings last week, but here it is again - from a bibliophile:
And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. (Ecc. 12:12-14)

It is the Word of God, not other books, that changes our lives. It is Biblical literacy - studying and knowing the Bible for ourselves - that brings Liberty. We shall know the Truth and the Truth shall set us free. It is the study of God’s unadulterated Word for ourselves that will keep us from the Neo-Dark Ages.

At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @Me and My House
Blogging Here
and There
Order Christian and Home Ed Resources Here

Greetings from Me and My House,

I have nothing profound on my mind this weekend, just an awe of God and a joy in my salvation. I don’t usually send posts of just “my life”, but perhaps someone will find the comfort and peace of our Lord in this.

I have spent time in the Word. I have spent many opportunities in prayer. Even though I didn’t join our son-in-law and daughter in their (and their church’s) week of seeking prayer and fasting, I have spent much time this week thinking of this and praying for them. I have a new grandson to praise God for and rejoice over. My 3 grandgirls (and their parents) are coming again to visit - well, to see the new baby more than us, but that is perfectly OK.

Though this week had much to rejoice over, there was also much to bring worry. The need to purchase a new dryer - and then it quitting after 4 loads. The car that overheated, preventing my husband and sons from attending his uncle’s funeral - and now the probable need to purchase another car. The financial “problem” our 14 year old daughter got herself into. I started to toss and turn as I thought of these things, but gave them over to the Lord, realizing that there isn’t a thing I can do about any of them.

Instead I just focused on the fact that: “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. ” (Mat. 10:29-31) My Father is in control. Nothing is happening that is taking Him by surprise. There is nothing that He can’t do anything about. He loves me. He takes care of me. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

Though I can’t see how He will take us through all this, I know that He is faithful and will. He has brought me through the dark valley. He is with me and I have no fear.

And just to add “icing” to His “cake” of goodness to me, today I heard a message on wisdom, my (hopeful) topic of my posts this week. God is GREAT! All the time. No matter what. As my 6 year old quotes, “Because he loves me and takes care of me.” “I will fear no evil.”

Hope you had a blessed Lord’s Day! I did.

At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @Me and My House

Order Christian and Home Ed Resources Here

Greetings from Me and My House,

On the first day of the New Year (Sunday, yesterday) we were presented a great sermon, and it really got me thinking.

Our son-in-law, Mitch preached on Mary’s conception (kind of - actually it was on purpose - God-given and Eternal lasting). Anyhow, he talked about God’s visitation and how it is for the purpose of impartation. How God visited Mary and imparted something Eternal in her - Life, that she gave birth to. He related it to God’s visitations to us.

In revival, God many times presents Himself in very real ways, He seems “closer”, more real and active in our lives. But these times of God’s visitations aren’t just to make us feel good, and “have fun” in the presence of God, but rather to impart something eternal in us. Some people get all upset when the “felt presence” of the visitation is no longer there. But we can’t dictate when God’s manifest presence comes and how long it stays. But He does come for a purpose. To impart Life to us. He places a seed within us, and breathes Life upon that seed, and it begins to grow. That “thing” God imparts, has a life of its own, it grows and develops. It is God-given, not a work of the flesh (dead) striving, etc.

Anyhow, I really got to thinking on what did come out of the time we had that manifest presence at our church, several years ago - for me personally. I believe God did impart something Eternal, something with Life in me at that time. And it has been growing ever since. It was in the prayer room during that visitation (when I was great with child with Isaiah) that God spoke clearly to me that I would have a “Deborah” ministry (the prophetess in the Old Testament). I would lead others, but from under my own “palm tree”.

Up until that time, my focus was mainly on traveling, and going places to teach and such. I so wanted that to expand, but it wasn’t happening at that time - in fact was slowing down. I wasn’t happy about the circumstances that were slowing it down (and that wasn’t my children!) I also was really living under the feeling that, “a prophet is not accepted in his home city”. So I figured, that outside ministry was pretty much at an end for me - although, that is not what God was saying through others all around me. But I knew that all things go through a dormancy/wilderness stage - the death of the seed, before there can be the birth of the plant. Anyhow, I had cried out to God that I really didn’t want to keep teaching (or rather my main focus to be) on “beans” (my nutrition teaching). I didn’t care about “beans” and wanted my emphasis to be on teaching things of eternal purpose.

The Deborah “anointing” had been applied to me many times, but I really didn’t (and still don’t) know all the implications of it. But it was within that next year, that God greatly expanded my “online” ministry. It has been an area of great growth continually since then. My email list is far bigger than I ever dreamed, and many others are ministered to through my homeschool blog, and my website and my other blogs. I have several individuals that I have personal, close connection with, that truly feel God is using me to help disciple. I am truly ministering from “under my own palm tree”. I am truly teaching of things of eternal purpose.

GOD IS TRULY GREAT AND FAITHFUL - not that we deserve any of it, but He is faithful to His purposes and His plans - and He chooses to work them through us, unworthy vessels. To Him be all the glory and honor. Amen.

At Jesus’ feet,
Lisa @Me and My House

Order Christian and Home Ed Resources Here

July 12, 2005
I’ve heard it said in contemporary American churches that we need to steer away from theology and doctrine. That they are just divisive issues, and should stay out of our pulpits and home group discussions.

I agree they are VERY divisive. But they are exactly what we need to stay close to, and build our lives upon.

Theology and doctrine are at the heart of Christianity. In fact there is no Christianity without theology and doctrine. Theology isn’t some high minded legalistic argumentation. It is nothing more than your beliefs about God. Everyone has them. The question is, are your beliefs about God Biblical? If not, you need to hear the Word that tells you what is Truth about God.

Likewise Biblical doctrine isn’t some man-made ideas about how we should worship God and live in this world. It also isn’t a optional thing. Doctrine means teaching We are commanded to adhere to the doctrine (teaching) of the Apostles about Jesus.

Theology and doctrine. They are what makes Christianity, Christianity. They are our Biblical beliefs about God, and the teachings of the Bible. They are the only hope of every person on earth. To come to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, whom You can only know and understand through Biblical theology and doctrine.

At Jesus’ feet,
SDG,
Lisa

Greetings from Me and My House,

“Count it all joy when you fall in various trials.” Has that always been your favorite verse? I really don’t see many Christians applying this one - me included. But this I know, God wrote it; it is truth; I need to do it.

I wrestle with God’s Sovereignty and man’s sin. Although I know that God works all things for good for those that love Him and are called according to His purpose, I don’t believe that sin is God’s design and plan. But this I do know, God allows sin, and the good that He wants to bring out of it is the conforming of my character to the image of Christ.

Clay that I am, I don’t like being pushed and squeezed. I don’t like being in the heat of the fire. But…

He works good for those that love Him and are called according to His purpose, so when others sin against me, and I am in the midst of various trials, I can - WILL - count it all JOY, because He is conforming me to the image of His Son, as I submit to His work in my life.

At Jesus’ feet,
SDG,
Lisa

Greetings from Me and My House,

I’m having a “no brainer” moment. So if you get offended by reading “no brainers” just skip today’s blog.

It is said that if you tell people they are sinners, they won’t “come to church”. Duh!! People that are unregenerate don’t need to “come to church”. The Church is the Body of Christ, therefore unregenerate people aren’t part of the Church - so why do they need to “go to church”? Why would they want to?

They are totally opposed to it and its ways. Duh!! They are at enmity with God, why would they want to gather together with Christ’s Body to worship Him? So tell me, just why is it that the gathering of the saints for corporate worship would want to conform to the world to appeal to the unsaved? They aren’t gathering together for them. They are gathering to worship God. It isn’t about the sinners or their comfort. It is about the saints worshipping, praying, and feeding for growth on God’s Word. The ‘natural man’ (unsaved) cannot understand spiritual things. Period. It is only by the drawing power of God’s Holy Spirit that man has any interest in the things of God.

Man-made, especially pragmatic humanistic, methods cannot draw man to God. They can draw man to “church” and programs that the ‘natural’ man may think can meet his needs, but he will be left in his uncomfortable sins, sitting in a comfortable church, without the drawing, saving power of God. Filling the “church” with unregenerated people and trying to help them feel good? Why?

What unregenerate people need is to be saved, not “go to church”. They are lost and need to be found. They have problems that need to be fixed. Duh!! They have no hope of anything else, without the Truth. They need to realize that they are in rebellion to the Almighty God, their Creator, and that their need is to repent, and be converted. Then and only then will they want to gather with the saints to worship God, to learn the depths of His Word. Only then will they not be offended by the message of the Cross. Then and only then will they have any hope for their true needs to be met.

“Church” is not somewhere for unregenerate people to go to, to feel better about themselves. Church is someone, the Body of Christ, and their assembly together, not to stir and please their flesh, but to strengthen their spirit, giving them the grace to crucify the flesh.

It is said that Jesus met people’s (sinners’) needs. Duh!! Of course He did. He met their physical as well as spiritual needs. What He did not do was stroke their carnal self esteem (ego).

This message is not callous to sinners’ needs. Quite the contrary; that is exactly my concern. I’m not advocating that we walk up to people and tell them they are sinners and going to hell unless they change their ways. Though that is certainly Truth, it must be told in love. No, I have a really novel idea, when people recognize/ admit they have a need, how about we introduce them, not to ‘going to church’ so they feel better through pop psychology, but to Jesus the Messiah? How about we tell them of the Almighty, Holy, Righteous God who made everything including them, who loved them so much he came to earth as a sinless man to take the punishment for all of their sins, IF they believe in Him, repent for their sins, turn away from them that they may be truly changed into an entirely new creature. That they put all their trust in Jesus and lay down their life for Him, denying their flesh and picking up their cross to follow Him. Its a radical idea, but hey it’s worked for thousands of years and God Himself thought of it. How about we give it a try?

Perhaps we might even have evangelistic meetings for those that God is drawing, that want to learn more of Him and the different life He will give them - the Full Gospel message for those that are truly seeking and have ears to hear. Whoa, what a concept! Perhaps we might even talk to them ourselves and lead them to a saving knowledge of and relationship with the Lord.

I just started a new book I got. (Yes, in the middle of writing this.) I’m not even to the end of the first chapter, so I don’t know how good it is or isn’t yet. But it sounds promising. It’s called Set Apart. A quote from the first chapter says what I’m saying, so much nicer: “A worldly church cannot and will not reach the world. The church must be distinct from the world to reach the world. We must set ourselves apart to God if we hope to reach the world. In a word, the only hope for us and the lost world is a holy church.
“From the onset God’s plan for reaching the world has been to create a people distinct from the world who would then minister to and reach the world.” Novel idea for meeting people’s true needs.

At Jesus’ feet,
SDG,
Lisa

There are several kinds of churches in America. I’m not talking about different denominations, or different religions. I’m talking about aspects of “Christian” churches. I can sum up 4 kinds with 4 W’s.

Many of the most common ones today - found throughout a WIDE difference of doctrine and denomination backgrounds from one another, dead, alive, whatever - is the Worldly church. These are “market driven”, denying the sufficiency of Scripture (perhaps not vocally or consciencely) adding much psychology, pragmatism, and entertainment to make the gospel appealing to the masses. Now I’m not against reaching the world, just justifying pragmatic methods that compromise the Gospel to do so, and I question the true and lasting “fruit” of such.

Then there is the Weird church. They have taken Bible truths of freedom and power and left the ones of holy living and reverence behind. They’re usually pretty pragmatic too, attempting to justify anything by “God told me so.” Now I’m not against “God told me so”, nor freedom in Christ, nor the power of the Holy Spirit alive and active today, only when the “word from God” is against clear Scripture commands and principles, and freedom becomes a license to sin, and power is man-constructed.

Then there is the Wasting church. The ones that are both dead and dying. They follow a ritual with no life in it. Make a check list of the few things they should do, and if they’re done it doesn’t matter what else they do. I’m not against Disciplines, only when they replace a transforming relationship with God.

What I’m wanting to see is a WOW church. One full of passion, purity, power, and purpose. A church based wholly on His Word, walking in the power of the Holy Spirit, trusting in the redemptive blood of Jesus. A church that loves God with all its heart, soul, and mind. A church that is set apart to be holy. A church that proclaims the Word in power with signs and wonders following. A church that has a mission calling from God that they pursue wholeheartedly for His glory alone by His prescribed methods. Many of the above churches may claim to be this, but … I just don’t see it.

At Jesus’ feet,
SDG,
Lisa