The Necessity of Light

January 31, 2009 By 1 Comment

By Cyndi

Where would we be without light? Why do we need it? It is light that allows us to see things around us, that keeps us from bumping into things when we’re walking. It is light that helps us to see and not just feel and touch objects. When there is no light, there is darkness.

Light dispels darkness. Things are exposed when light is present. When you were a kid, did you ever think you saw something in your room that wasn’t really there and it made you afraid? Whenever I did, my dad would come into my room, flip the light on and confirm to me that what I thought was there, in reality, wasn’t. The light revealed the truth to me. It dispelled my fear. Sometimes we don’t know what is true until light is shed upon it.

Light reveals, darkness hides. Do you ever think about how evil is portrayed in literature or movies? Usually it is characterized by nighttime, shadows, the color black, or darkness. Even certain people can be considered “shady”.  Light, on the other hand, tends to characterize hope or something new-a “dawn” of some sort.

Think about this-you can bring light to something, but you can’t bring darkness. Light can be contained, but darkness can’t because the minute you reveal it, it’s no longer dark. We can put light in a box, in a bulb, in a room, in something that can hold it. When you switch on a flashlight, the light comes “on”; when you switch it off, the light goes “off”. We don’t say the darkness goes away and then comes back, no, it’s the light that changes things. Darkness is the absence of light. You only get darkness by eliminating light. The natural state of the world is darkness. That’s why in Genesis, the first thing God created after the earth itself was light. (Gen. 1:3)  

Jesus says, “I am the Light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”(John 8:12) Here in this verse, Jesus refers to Himself as light personified-a living, breathing example of what light is. I believe He did not come to condemn sinners and threaten evil doers, but to expose the darkness in their lives and reveal a better, brighter way to live. Even as it is hard for us to function physically in the dark, God doesn’t want us to live spiritually without light either. He is the light, the hope that can dispel the darkness in our lives, whether it is fear, anxiety, or desperation. It is His light that can change everything.

Filed Under: Christianity

True Love Sets Us Free

January 25, 2009 By Leave a Comment

“If you love something, set it free. If it comes back, it was, and always will be yours. If it never returns, it was never yours to begin with. (Author unknown)

No one has ever walked this out in a greater way than God. Jesus gives us a great example of Father’s love setting us free in the story of the prodigal (Luke 15). Deut.21:20, 21 says that this rebellious son should have been stoned, and yet Jesus shares how the father in this story actually accommodates his request for his inheritance.

Some people may have heard of the Invisible Fence for dogs. It is an electrical wire buried just under the grass on the perimeters of your yard. The dog then has a sensor on his collar that gives him a shock if he crosses the wire. Now when we get saved, we are committing our lives to the Lordship of Christ. At that prayer, He could have put some kind of shock system on the inside of us so that whenever we would go to spread a little gossip, tell a lie, or even cheat on our diet, we would get a shock. The Body of Christ, I believe, would very quickly become obedient! But it would only be an outward conformity. God is after our hearts. He wants us to choose to obey Him out of love, not duty. He has gone to incredible lengths to have a people who would do this in a radical way!

Filed Under: Agape Reformation, Christianity, Counseling

Unquietness

January 17, 2009 By 4 Comments

By Cyndi

This has been a real hectic week. It seems like I never have enough time in the day to finish all the things that need to be done. Ever been there? I just keep moving what didn’t get done one day to the next, then that day gets overloaded where things don’t get done, and so on and so on. But for some reason this week I was being overly frustrated with all my unfinished jobs; it just felt like I was living with an angry edge all the time. Traffic was always going too slow, the bank tellers were taking too long, the printer freaked out on me and I couldn’t seem to figure out how to do a stupid report on QuickBooks!

So during my quiet time one morning (that I’m trying to rush through so I can get to all the other stuff that needs to be done!), I was led to 1 Cor. 14:33-”For God is not the author of unquietness, but of peace”. Boy, is that what I’ve been living in-unquietness! Both my body and soul have been tumultuous, not sleeping well, irritable and constantly trying to play “catch-up” every day. But God is the author of peace and quietness this verse says. Well, obviously there was a different author of the “book” I was reading this week!

In meditating on this verse a little I recalled another verse. In Isaiah 30:15 it says, “In returning and rest shall you be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength“.  There’s that quietness word again. And I could sure use some strength too. So what was the Lord trying to show me? When I’m in the press, those super stressful times when all of life is rubbing me the wrong way, I need to return to Him and rest. To sit down in Father God’s lap and just lean on Him for a bit and recharge. I won’t be able to handle all the things thrown at me every day if I cannot quiet my soul. Without inner peace, I have no outer strength.

Filed Under: Father's Love, Rest Tagged With:

Fear Tactics

January 11, 2009 By Leave a Comment

A Climate of Fear

The article I am linking to today, “Don’t Believe the Hype“, gives a unique perspective to the climate of fear we are currently living in. I believe this is a real tactic of the enemy seeking to shut us down. A phrase the Bible repeats probably more than any other is to “fear not”.

I have checked some of the facts in this article and they do seem to be accurate. I searched quite a bit for the final retail sales figures for the ‘08 holiday season and could not find any. There were plenty of stories that made all types of doom and gloom claims but I could not find any hard data telling what sales were this year and last year. Does this mean there is nothing to worry about? I believe it is truly a time to press in and walk in faith, yet, how we communicate that is very important.

A Punative God

So often the “prophets” of doom communicate to us a punitive God and all the stuff we had better be doing if we are to have any hope of escaping His punishment. Personally, I believe we are coming into the most exciting season the body of Christ has ever seen. I believe miracles will be way more prevalent financially, physically and emotionally. I believe God’s presence will be accessible like never before and people will find answers in God in just hours, days and weeks where it used to take years. God is not punitive; He is helping us to see a way above so we might depart from low level living!

Past Examples

In 1991, Larry Burkett said, “I felt that our national debt and annual deficit were out of control and would eventually bring our economy to its knees, creating an economic collapse of historic proportions”. Instead, President Clinton balanced the budget. Larry Burkett, Pat Robertson and others jumped on the “Y2K bug” bandwagon in the late 1990′s making huge profits selling their books by propagating fear. My feeling is that these authors should give back the money they made on their books and repent to the body of Christ at large for all the fear they caused. Perfect love casts out fear!

This article, “Prophetic Words for 2009″ is by Loren Sanford whom I would consider to be a much more balanced prophetic voice. http://www.newsongfellowship.org/propheticmoments18.html

Article where Burkett seeks to restate his position after so clearly prophesying wrongly: http://www.crown.org/Library/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=587

Burkett, Catastrophic Warnings http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Burkett (Scroll down to “Catastrophic Warnings”

Filed Under: Christianity, faith

Listening

January 3, 2009 By 3 Comments

By Cyndi

Have you noticed that it is much easier to talk than to listen? Think about recent conversations you have had. Have you done most of the talking, did they do most of the talking, or was it really a true “conversation” back and forth? What about in prayer? Prayer is a conversation with God, yet many times I find myself doing all of the talking. This year one of my goals is to listen more, both to people and God.

Sometimes I find myself being the one who is doing all of the talking, striving for attention, trying to prove who I am and what I do is important. Why? Don’t I feel special enough to God that whatever man may give me is pale in comparison? Why do I need their approval anyway when I already have God’s? Oh, how easily I forget; so I talk about me and mine, not wanting to hear about them and theirs.

In prayer, many times I just pour out my heart to the Lord, say a quick, “I love You” at the end and I’m done. I’m still doing most of the talking. Yes, He’s always listening, but what about the things He wants to say?  Will I take the time to listen to Him? Listening honors the one talking, both with people and with God. It shows that you have value for them and what they say; and I believe what Father God has to say is always important. Like King David, I want to be someone after God’s own heart, but I need to take the time to listen to what is on His heart.

So after reading this, take a moment or two and listen. We are now in a new year with new experiences, new challenges, and new opportunities coming our way. Listen to what Father God has to say to you about it.

Filed Under: Father's Love