Thoughts on Exodus: Getting Out of Egypt and Getting Egypt Out.

I have recently been reading through the Book of Exodus with fresh eyes and what I have encountered is another facet of the journey from God calling Moses to lead His people out of Egypt until the establishment of the Tabernacle; basically the whole book of Exodus. I have been contemplating sharing these thoughts for a couple of months now and today feel drawn to put them in type and share.

God is in control at all times! He will defeat all other gods!

God is patient!

The plagues in Egypt were not only for Pharaoh’s sake, but also for the Israelites. The Israelites; God’s people, had been under the reign of Egypt for a long time; long enough for Joseph to be forgotten by Egyptian rulers, maybe even the people of God. The Exodus generation had been fully raised and immersed in the Egyptian culture; even if they were still worshipping God, it is likely that they were also influenced by the Egyptian gods and culture.

God heard the cry of His people and knew what needed to happen for their freedom. I believe that the Israelites (and all people that would hear their story) needed to know God’s heart and character in a more real way; something very visible and memorable.

A hardened heart suffers great consequences that God allows for a purpose. I believe that Pharaoh’s and other Egyptian’s hardened hearts were the result of fear and self-centered thinking. The Egyptian’s didn’t want the Israelites to leave because that would mean a great loss of manual labor because there were so many of them. Because of the number of Israelites, the Egyptians were also fearful of what God’s people could do if they didn’t maintain control over them. The cost of a hardened heart starts small and grows to death of something and/or of someone valuable. Some people look at the verses in Exodus that say that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart and wonder why God would do that. I wondered the same thing until this time of studying this passage of Scripture. In my NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, there’s a writing about the meaning of ‘God hardening’ Pharaoh’s heart. One thought that goes with Egyptian culture would point to God’s judging of Pharaoh’s heart. Another view that goes along with Egyptian expressions and could be a functional equivalent of the Biblical language could be a caustic satire of Egyptian ideas. The original term used in Scripture could mean a heart that grows hard, heavy, and strong which could be thought of as a positive thing in the Egyptian culture of the time; however, this could be God giving Pharaoh exactly what he wants or Pharaoh himself heaping guilt of wrongdoing upon himself, therefore dooming himself to punishment; along with his people. What it boils down to is that we don’t know positively what is meant by God hardening Pharoah’s heart, but we do know that God did not cause Pharaoh and his actions to come under judgement; he, the Egyptians, and their gods, had already come under judgement. The plagues were just giving them what they had already earned.

We will experience natural consequences to our choices.

God says what He means and means what He says. His yes is yes and His no is no.

God will defend His people against evil.

The plagues show the Israelites the true heart of Pharaoh, making the leaving easier. This may be the first step in getting the Egypt out of God’s people.

The process with Pharoah and the plagues shows what sin does in our own lives.

Pharaoh’s response to Moses/God is similar to that of the Israelites toward God. Let me explain a bit. The times of the plagues is a visual for the Israelites to see how they had been toward God. And in the end, He rescues them as He does all that accept Him through Jesus. It’s a heart issue!

The story with Pharaoh is similar to the Pharisees in the New Testament. (I will let you consider this on your own.)

Israelites. God spares their firstborns and takes the firstborn of the Egyptians; this to save His people. Jesus. God sacrifices His firstborn to save all His people through all eternity.

Each person’s ‘me-ology’ is incomplete and unable to have control over every aspect of one’s life because there are too many variables.

King ‘Me’ will be overthrown by the King of kings.

Getting the Israelites out of Egypt took less time than getting the Egypt out of the Israelites; as it is with Christ-followers getting the sinful patterns out of our lives and wounds healed. Walking out of our old lives takes less time than getting our old lives walked out of us. Putting ourselves in the Hands of God is the first step to His shaping us into the Masterpiece that He has created us to be. Ephesians 2:10 “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Creating a masterpiece takes time; chipping away at what doesn’t belong (ouch!), and intentionality.

God is patient!

The Israelites gave from what they had for the building of the Tabernacle and it was more than enough. In our time, people look to the church to supply for their needs.

The Israelites were willing to offer their skills and abilities for the building of the Tabernacle and the priestly garments.

The building of the Tabernacle seemed to keep the Israelites busy doing what God had asked of them so they weren’t idol and doing things on their own.

From the beginning of time, God’s people have desired to have a physical representation of Him. Without that, mankind tends to seek their own manmade gods that lead to worshipping gods other than the one True God.

Heavy Burdens

During a recent ice storm, I was driving down several roads where I had to dodge low hanging tree limbs that were completely weighed down by the layers of ice that had accumulated because of hours of freezing rain with cold temperatures. There was also one road that I traveled where I was met with a tree that had fallen blocking the entire road. The tree had been a fresh casualty of the heavy burden of the ice because it had not been in the road a couple hours prior. I traveled down many roads where I saw much of the same scene; limbs so loaded down with ice that they were nearly dragging the ground, large tree branches and whole trees that had split, or even fallen down from the weight of the accumulated ice. As I saw road after road of the same thing, it began to occur to me how this is a stark visual of how many of us tend to live many; if not all, the days of our lives. We tend to take on so many responsibilities or jobs or tasks; whatever is our ‘thing,’ and then when we are dragging; or even snapping in two from the weight, we wonder why. We tend to believe that we can grab an instant energy ‘whatever’ and keep going to the next thing. This may seem to work for a time; however, what tends to result is the weight of our burdens taking us down to exhaustion, physical illness, or depression. When the ice gets too heavy for the trees or the power lines, they collapse under the weight; this causes power outages, internet loss, and the list goes on. Human beings are similar to this; we can only take so much weight, whether it be from burdens, responsibilities, you name it, and then we collapse under the weight.

I am not trying to guilt anyone; including myself, because I tend to take on more than my humanness can manage. Seeing all the hanging and broken trees, was an eye-opener for me. God knows that He created me to be a visual person and visuals like the ice-ladened trees and power lines, was a great reminder to myself what happens to anyone or anything that takes on more than they were created to handle. I was reminded of a passage from Matthew (chapter 11, verses 28-30) “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” I am so grateful for a God that knows well my limitations and has provided a Savior who is willing to take my heavy burdens and exchange them for His that are so much lighter and life-giving. May you choose to release your heavy burdens to the One who has the strength to carry them and allow His rest to give you the energy that you need to carry on with the path that God has laid out before you.

THOUGHTS ON WAITING

Have you ever spent so much time thinking about, praying about, stewing about, talking about, journaling about, and pondering about something that you end up not doing anything; you basically just sit and stare at a cold dead fire because you aren’t moving in any direction? This has been me for the past five plus months! I desire so much to make sure that I move in the so-called ‘right’ direction that I am not really moving in any direction. I have prayed for God to help me to see where my next step is and I thoroughly believe that He’s actually repeatedly came right out and told me what my next step is; however, because I have a tendency to doubt that I could possibly be understanding Him correctly, I started to take a step in that direction, only to retrack my step because I thought that I couldn’t possibly be any good at doing what I sensed Him leading me towards. I mean, I believe that my fear of failure has taken over and pulled my forward step backward a step; or ten. My doubts have led to me being a sitting duck on opening duck hunting day and the duck hunter has distracted me from what I truly know that I need to do, to get out of the swamp with my life. Distractions. Over-thinking. Not trusting my instincts. In some cases, waiting is the ‘right’ thing to do; like waiting on God, instead of flying off into the air into the line of fire and hoping that God will surround me and be my bullet-proof surroundings. In some cases, it’s vital that I wait on God’s next move and then the flight path will be drawn out and my protection secure.

I feel that I may be being too vague in my sharing. About five and a half months ago I had a change in my employment status and found myself praying about what my next step would be for employment; I began to ask God and myself questions like: What area do I explore for a position or job? Do I look for another job or do I take some time to seek God’s will and direction? Do I forget about what I have been doing and seek another avenue altogether, for work? And most of all, God what do I do now??? Over the course of a couple of months, I continued to seek God for direction and next steps, I applied for several jobs, had a few interviews, worked one week at a job, and for the past few months I have been watching my grand Littles three to four days a work for their mama to be able to work and not have a huge child care expense. What I haven’t mentioned yet, is that for the past probably five months, every time I ask God what He wants me to focus on or do; He very promptly tells me to write; or specifically, to write for healing or wellness. I started to make ‘my’ plans of how this would work and found myself with several distractions; some of which I caved to and I really haven’t been working towards writing much at all. It is very easy for me to spend a lot of time doing good things and not necessarily the ‘best’ thing that God may be directing me to.

Recently, I have felt convicted over not being obedient to God’s promptings to write and I now am seriously pursuing His plans instead of my own. Is this easy? Absolutely not! The distractions continue to come my way. The doubts continue to surface in my mind. The obstacles continue; and actually, seem to be larger than before.

Sometimes, waiting is good; when the waiting is for God to say it’s time to … . However, waiting is not good when it’s actually stalling in moving forward with God’s Will or more extreme; when the waiting is in open defiance of what God is leading His child to do. Over the years, I have learned that God will allow us to stay in a ‘waiting’ space (holding pattern) for a season because He is trying to strengthen us for what He has next for us. Through patience; and even trials in these seasons, we grow closer to God, learn more about His character and ourselves, and grow in our spiritual journey towards God. These waiting seasons can be an amazing time of learning, worship, and quiet time with our Heavenly Father; how great these times can be! But also, these seasons can be excruciatingly painful! The pain can come from not knowing what’s next; it can also come from the trials and testing that can come during these times. In these times, the greatest thing to me is knowing that I am not alone in my journey because I know from Scripture that God is so close to me that He is aware of my every thought, breath, and fear.

My personal life journey has has included several ‘waiting’ seasons that were full of tests and trials. While I have struggled more than once through these seasons, I have continually grown in so many ways because of them and I have taken comfort in knowing that my Abba Father is as close to me as He can possibly be, so I never have to walk the journey alone or be a ‘sitting duck’ out in the swamp wondering if I will make it out with my life. My life is not my own, it’s God’s and wherever this next step takes me will be taken by someone stronger than she was in the last step.

I was just reading about the calling of the prophet Elisha (1 Kings 19:19-21) and he is an example of someone so focused on being obedient to God’s Will for his next step that when the prophet Elijah threw his own cloak over the shoulders of Elisha; which signaled a transfer of power from Elijah to Elisha, Elisha immediately responded. When Elijah approached Elisha, he was plowing in the field with his 12 pair of oxen. Once Elijah threw his cloak over Elisha shoulders, the newly called prophet slaughtered his oxen, burned the equipment to cook the meat, gave the meat to the people, and off he went to be the attendant of Elijah. Elisha didn’t wait, he responded right away. I want to be a child of my Abba who does that! I am striving towards that!

The journey ahead begins with one step forward; no waiting, unless it’s waiting on God!

#waitingonGodornotatall

Signs of Life… In the Snow

Looking out the window behind my desk, I have a wide open view of part of my back yard. Right outside my window, I see an antique metal children’s wagon that I use as a flower bed; and when I look up from there to further back in my yard, I have a great view of our propane tank. Not glamorous, right? No, it’s not but it is real life and a view that I have the privilege to see often. Beyond the propane tank, I have an old galvanized horse trough that is the future home of a garden bed. Hanging over the horse trough, are two shepherd’s hooks with metal watering cans that give the appearance of them pouring constant water into the horse trough. Why do I share with you my view out my desk window? Good question; I am sure I will get to that. Not much more than a week ago, my view was that of wet brown/green grass and dead flowers. Then the snow happened. I then had a beautiful view of a thick blanket of pure bright white snow that was; not only beautiful, but also a brightener to my spirit. Some may say that I have lost it because snow is horrible. Well, I may have lost it; however, I also prefer the bright white reminder of the purity of Christ and the blanket of love that He showers over me!

I enjoyed many moments looking out at the beautiful white snow that had no tracks in it, no leaves scattered through it, and no mud mixed into it; and then, I had the great idea of spending time with my grand Littles (3 years and 1 1/2 years old) out in the wonderful snow. I had no preconceived ideas of what our time outside would be like but I just wanted to spend some time with my Littles having some fun in the snow. This is not where I say that it ended up being horrible and that I regretted the thought; actually, it was one of the best ideas that I have had in a very long time. Not only did my Littles laugh and have lots of fun, but God met me outside and encouraged me to throw my frustrations at our six foot wooden fence, in the form of snow balls. That was invigorating! I taught the kiddos how to make snow angels; and yes, I made one or two myself because why let the kiddos have all the fun. The kiddos and I threw unpacked snow globs at each other and we made an interesting snow sculpture on papa’s car trailer. It was a great half hour that I wouldn’t trade for anything! The younger of the two wasn’t crazy about laying in the snow to make a snow angel; however, once I showed the older kiddo how to make one, he kept making them. The hardest part was getting them to go back into the house.

After the kiddos and I played outside in the snow, my view out my desk window wasn’t visually as pretty; however, it was still beautiful for my spirit because all the footprints and snow angels were a reminder of some life lived and some memories made with my grand Littles. How sweet those memories are!

A day or two after my Littles and I enjoyed playing in the snow, I looked out at my front deck and saw the undisturbed blanket of snow and admired it’s beauty; I also felt that it showed no signs of life lived through it. I decided that it was time to walk through that fresh snow and allow myself to think like a child; just for a few moments. Kicking up the snow and walking through it’s 12 or so inches of cold whiteness was refreshing.

Here I am again, looking out of my window and enjoying the latest blanket of white fluffiness. The blanket of snow is not smooth and seamless as it was prior to our playing outside; it bares a reminder of the fun memories of playing outside in the snow with my Littles, because it is bumpy and wavy. There’s still a clump or two of snow on the fence that reminds me of the frustration release that I experienced as I threw snow balls at the fence. I thought that I would get back around to why I shared with you about the view out my desk window; and I did. 🙂

I recently heard someone say that the world wants us to be less foolish and I can’t help but agree with that statement. What’s so wrong about being a little silly or foolish; in a healthy way, once in a while? We might just be happier. We might find a little more joy. We also may just be a little healthier if we play outside in the snow sometimes and make snow angels or throw snow balls. This is the silliness and foolishness that I am referring to. Who cares if the neighbors see you playing like a kid; heck, maybe they will give it a try as well. If my neighbors ever happen to see in my picture windows where my living room is, they will likely see me dancing like a monkey or a dinosaur with my grand Littles as we get some exercise before they take their nap. This type of foolishness is not only a great habit for them to get into but also great exercise for their grammy. I want to encourage you to go make angels in the snow or dance like a monkey, just live life in a healthy way; you could start a healthy trend!

#livinglifeinthesnow #besillyandlivelife

OUT OF FEAR…QUESTIONS & EXCUSES

3 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. ²There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. ³So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

⁴When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”

And Moses said, “Here I am.”

⁵“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” ⁶Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.

⁷The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. ⁸So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. ⁹And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. ¹⁰So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”

¹¹But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

¹²And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”

¹³Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”

¹⁴God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”

¹⁵God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’

“This is my name forever,
the name you shall call me
from generation to generation.

¹⁶“Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. ¹⁷And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’

¹⁸“The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.’ ¹⁹But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. ²⁰So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go.

²¹“And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposed toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed. ²²Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the Egyptians.”

4 Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?”

²Then the Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

“A staff,” he replied.

³The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”

Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. ⁴Then the Lord said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand. ⁵“This,” said the Lord, “is so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has appeared to you.”

⁶Then the Lord said, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, the skin was leprous—it had become as white as snow.

⁷“Now put it back into your cloak,” he said. So Moses put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored, like the rest of his flesh.

⁸Then the Lord said, “If they do not believe you or pay attention to the first sign, they may believe the second. ⁹But if they do not believe these two signs or listen to you, take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground. The water you take from the river will become blood on the ground.”

¹⁰Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”

¹¹The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? ¹²Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

¹³But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.”

¹⁴Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you. ¹⁵You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. ¹⁶He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. ¹⁷But take this staff in your hand so you can perform the signs with it.” (Exodus 3:1-22; 4:1-17 NIV) This is a long passage of Scripture to include in this post; however, I felt it helpful to include for understanding what I am sharing with you today.

Have you ever read a passage of Scripture and immediately felt the righteous conviction of the Holy Spirit? For me, this has happened many times; including recently, after reading the above passage from Exodus. Upon finishing my read up to Exodus 4:17, I realized that I have responded to God in a way similar to Moses. When God gave Moses his ‘mission’ and even shared with him the response that he would get, Moses replied respectfully to God with the reasons why he wasn’t ‘the man for the job.’

NOTE: My goal here is not to compare myself to Moses, but to share what has been laid on my heart that my own responses have been to God; over the years, when He has given my my own ‘mission.’ To simplify these similarities I am sharing them in a chart format.

God/I AM	Moses	Myself
God shows Himself to Moses in a non-consuming burning bush; God tell Moses that he’s standing on Holy Ground
God declares that He’s the God of Moses’ father and Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob	Moses responds by hiding his face	Over and over again; in my life, God has shown me His presence in my life, His provision, His faithfulness, and His divine Love.
God gives Moses his mission to bring the Israelites out of Egypt with detailed instructions	Moses questions God: “Who am I?”	God revealed to me a formal calling of going into pastoral ministry. I believed my husbands dreams were more important than my own calling and I pushed back saying yes to God until I couldn’t say ‘no’ any longer (about 5 years). I also believed the lie, “Who am I that God could use ‘me’ ?”
God reassures Moses that He will be with him and that he will succeed	Moses questions God: “What if people ask for God’s name?”	Through the years of serving in ministry, God has shown me that He is with me; however, I have also offered God many ‘What If’ questions. What if someone asks my a Bible question or a question about God and I don’t know how to answer.
God responds to Moses’ question: I AM (the One who creates or brings into being); the God of your fathers; the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; God gives detailed instructions in meeting with the Israelite elders and assures Moses that they will listen; and taking the elders to the king of Egypt, including what to tell him, what it would take for the king to listen; and that the Egyptians would give the Israelites much, including gold & silver	Moses questions God: “What if they don’t believe me or listen to me?”	Again with ‘What if ‘ questions; What if someone questions what I say; What if people ignore me; and so on.
God responds to Moses’ question with the gift of three signs: the staff, the leprous hand, and river water turned to blood	Moses gives God the excuse that he has slow speech and tongue.	There’s been many times where I have bulked at God’s prompting for me to speak before others because I am not a dynamic charismatic speaker or someone that draws others to them. My insecurity becomes my excuse, until God pushes me forward.
God responds to Moses’ excuse with questions of who gave…, who makes…, who gives… Then God says ‘now go and I will help you and teach you what to say’	Moses offers God a soft refusal by saying; “Please send someone else.”	I don’t recall coming out and saying ‘Please send someone else’ to God or telling Him that I won’t do what He’s prompting me to do; however, by not stepping out in faith and by allowing my doubts and insecurities make my decisions for me, I am basically telling God to send someone else.
God responds to Moses’ soft refusal with adding in Moses’ brother Aaron and a reminder to take the staff for the signs to perform	Moses goes.	God’s enlightening me with these similarities has been an eye-opener for me in stepping out in faith and trusting that God knows and is in control of the outcomes in what He’s asking me to do. Now I will respond, “Here I am, Lord; please send me, Your servant is listening.”

#TheLordProvides #TheLordSees #TheLordisThere

JOURNEY TO WELLNESS

I have been thinking a lot about what it will take for me; as a Christ-Follower, to get to a point where I have whole-being wellness. As I walk my life journey, I find that I am craving this whole-being wellness and I have a desire to share what I discover with others that have an interest in the same. Whole-being wellness encompasses; first and foremost, spiritual wellness, then mindful (mental & emotional) wellness, and physical wellness. This topic of whole-being wellness is a library’s worth of research, information, and application plans; however, I want to mind dump today on a piece of this that has occurred to me recently.

As a Follower of Christ, I have noticed and experienced that there are different types of battle that I have encountered; all of which I need to suit up with God’s perfect Armor that He has provided for me. In my humanness, I tend to wear my own faulty armor with all of it’s battle holes, dents, weaknesses, and shortcomings; and then wonder why I am struggling so much with life stuff. I have experienced battles in my spiritual life, battles in my mind that impacts my emotions and mental state, and I have experienced battles in my physical body; which, by the way have been related to the spiritual and mindful battles. The best plan of action for all the battles I face is to put on God’s perfect Armor that He has provided for me. This armor includes surrounding myself with God’s Truth and living in His Truth; putting on Christ’s righteousness that He has provided; linking arms in Faith with other Christ Followers (there really is strength in numbers); walking in and sharing Christ’s Peace with others; covering my mind with thoughts of the Salvation; and all that it entails, that Jesus has provided for me; and becoming one with the sacred Word of God so that I can verbalize it in times of battle with the enemy.

In considering other aspects of whole-being wellness, the thought of my body being a ‘temple of the Holy Spirit,’ came to mind so I looked at the passage in Scripture that talks about this.

” “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.”But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit.

Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” (1 Corinthians 6:12-20 NIV)

This passage; most obviously, is referencing sexuality; however, in considering this passage, I have begun to see that it could potentially be related to other areas of life. While being sexually connected to a person makes ‘two become one flesh,’ I can see that when I connect or accept as Truth something from the world (evil), I am joining in my mental state and my emotions with the world and becoming as one with it. Also, if I accept worldly spiritual things and connect with them, I am becoming one with them which impacts my spiritual life with the Holy Spirit because I would then be trying to worship God and other gods at the same time; which doesn’t work well, as we read in the Ten Commandments. Becoming one with the things of the world; even in thought, can; and probably will, derail my efforts in becoming well in my whole being. As is also true if I become one with the world in a physical sense.

How does all of this come together? I am thinking through this; however, I can see a couple really important aspects that I HAVE to be consistently persistent on if I am going to continue to pursue whole-being wellness. First, every day must begin with putting on the perfect Armor of my God and Creator. And second, I must reject worldly things and become one with only the things of God.

As you consider these thoughts for yourself, I would really like to hear your feedback; in a positive manner, please.

soulcarecoach.amy@gmail.com

#wholebeingwellness

MESSAGES

Messages come to us in a plethora of ways. Through my years, I have received messages through conversations with others, the music I listen to, reading my Bible and other books, through social media, interactions with strangers, and through events. There’s possibly other avenues where I have received messages, but I am sure that you get the point. I receive messages of all kinds through so many avenues; I am sure you can relate. The messages that I have received have contained some truths, some lies, some niceties’, some wounds, and probably many other things. In turn, I could probably; with accuracy, admit that I have delivered my own mixture of these messages to others around me.

MESSAGE: For anyone in my life that I have relayed a message to you that is anything but good, encouraging, or uplifting, please accept my sincerest apologies! From my heart to yours, I am so sorry!

Messages can come through words; but also through body language, gestures, and the emotions that we radiate from our presence. As human beings, we don’t always realize that how we are thinking and feeling on the inside can radiate out from us to those around us. I have learned that this is involved in our ’emotional intelligence’ and it sends some pretty intense; and at times, harmful or confusing messages to those around us; especially if these messages don’t line up with the words coming out of our mouths.

For more on emotional intelligence see this website: https://www.focusonthefamily.ca/content/how-to-become-emotionally-intelligent

For more on body language see The Science of People website at: https://www.scienceofpeople.com/

Many times in my life I have encountered situations where an individual that I was talking to said to me, “Why are you looking at me like that?” Or, I have heard some time later that a look on my face told someone that I was mad at them or something negative that made them feel badly. Has this ever happened to you? For me, I can attribute these ‘faces’ to my thoughts being on at least two different things; one being the person I was talking to and that situation; and then also something else that may be a concern, which would explain a not-so-friendly look on my face. I am learning that the remedy to this is probably more active listening and less thought multi-tasking. By me being fully engaged in my current conversation, and taking part in some active listening practices, my hope is that my face will portray a look of being fully present with the person that I am talking with. How does this relate to ‘messages?’ I am so glad that you asked! The messages that I am sending to the person that I am talking with; when I am fully present, is that they are valuable, loved, heard, respected, etc.; these messages are the ones that I truly want to send to others and the messages that I truly want to receive for myself. Do you know what messages you are sending/giving to those around you? Have you considered this question?

Even the kiddos in our lives receive messages from us. They receive messages by how often they are competing with technology for our undivided attention; by how often we not only say ‘I love you,’ but also how often we show them ‘I love you’ through playing with them, tickling them, playing games with them, etc. These messages come through loud and clear for kiddos, even though they can’t articulate it for themselves. Just look at how little ones gravitate to remotes, cell phones, computers; they are imitating what they see and at the same time, they are starving for the affection that they aren’t getting because we are too ‘busy’ retreating into our technology for our ‘me time.’ What messages are we sending to the next generation that will become evident in the generations to come as they raise their own kids?

This blog post may seem a little all over the place; however, I assure you there is a common theme running through it and that’s the messages that we give to and receive from others.

A couple of weeks ago I was watching my grand littles who are three years old and one and a half years old. While I was watching them, I became; not only very tired, but also quite agitated because I had to keep repeating the same thing and they continued to not do as I said. I got to the point where I lost my cool and had to walk away because I thought I was going to implode. Have you ever been there? I learned many years ago; while raising my own kids, that when you get to the point that you are about to ‘lash out irrationally,’ it’s best to walk away and count to ten or whatever it takes to calm down and think clearly. In this moment for me, God reminded me of their ages and that they are just babies. Some time later, He also brought to mind a great message for me to remember; and that was that I am so glad that He Himself doesn’t lose His cool with me when He has to correct me over and over again because I am just not getting the message or point that He’s making for me. WOW! That was a great wake up call for me. Now I am doing better with my patience and understanding; not to mention a little more humble as I remember that my Heavenly Father has to correct me often as well, and probably repeatedly for the same issue.

There’s so much more that can be said about the messages that we receive and I could go off on a rant because I do get really frustrated with the twisted messages that get sent to people through so many sources; however, I truly want to focus on what I (and you) can do to be aware of the many messages that we are sending to those that we come into contact with; especially young people, because they are our future and the future. Maybe I get focused on this because of messages that I received myself as a little person; but for whatever the reason, God has laid it on my heart to share the importance of being aware of the messages that I (and we) are sending to others, especially the next generations.

P.S. I also want to point out the messages that we send to our spouses. This is not listed last because it is the least important. After our relationship with God, our relationship with our spouse is to be the most important of our priorities. You could say that I saved the second best for last. This is a gut check for me as well! What messages are we sending to our spouses? The enemy wants us to hide from our spouse. He tells us all kinds of lies to make us believe that it’s best to keep things from our spouse; that we deserve better; that we need to focus on ourselves, and the list goes on and on. God says that He wants our hearts and He wants us to be faithful to our spouses; doesn’t being faithful require honesty and transparency. In the garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were naked and not ashamed until sin entered in. Hiding from our spouse came after sin. My desire is to send a strong message; one that stomps on the head of satan, and glorifies God; a message of love, openness, honesty, and transparency in all marriages everywhere.

#messageofgraceandlove

FINDING PEACE, HOPE, AND JOY IN THE CHRISTMAS SEASON

Isn’t it interesting how movies and media have such a big impact on our thoughts and expectations for the Christmas season?

~ For example, if I were to ask you what are some “ideal” Christmas elements, what are your first thoughts?

~How many of these elements came from movies or media?

~I am not saying that it’s bad to take things from movies and media; my concern is what happens in our minds and hearts when our season doesn’t look anything like that?

~What are some of your own Christmas family traditions?

~Name some Christmas memories that come to mind easily; good or bad, happy or sad.

~Is it possible to see Jesus in all of our Christmas experiences?

~In thinking about your Christmas memories, where do you see Jesus in them?

“What have been your Christmas goals/visions up to this point?

“To invite Jesus’ peace, joy, and hope into our everyday lives this Christmas season; Jesus’ presence is required, our presence is requested.”

HOW TO INVITE CHRIST’S PEACE THIS CHRISTMAS

Jesus is our source of peace. To tap into our source; it requires us to seek God’s presence. His Word repeatedly tells us that He is present with us. The question we need to ask ourselves is: are we present with Jesus? How do we be ‘present’ with Jesus? I am glad you asked. Let’s look at Psalm 46 and see what the Lord says about this. As you read to this passage of Scripture, please be mindful of each verse that tells us how God is with us.

Psalm 46

God is our refuge and strength,

an ever-present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way

and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,

though its waters roar and foam

and the mountains quake with their surging.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

the holy place where the Most High dwells.

God is within her, she will not fall;

God will help her at break of day.

Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;

he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

The Lord Almighty is with us;

the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Come and see what the Lord has done,

the desolations he has brought on the earth.

He makes wars cease

to the ends of the earth.

He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;

he burns the shields with fire.

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth.”

The Lord Almighty is with us;

the God of Jacob is our fortress.

In those 11 verses, it is mentioned at least 4 times how God is present with us. In the first part of verse 10, God gives us the secret to how to invite His peace into our everyday lives this Christmas season; and always, even when we are journeying through a stormy season. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;”. When we ‘BE’ still and seek our God, we are inviting His peace into our lives. In the verse, Be still, and know that I am God, what is the first word? (Be) God says that Be comes before know; our being with Him comes before knowing Him and knowing His peace.

I would like to share a spiritual practice with you today that can be helpful in amping up our ‘Being’ power in this season. Take 3 deep breaths and relax. Read and reread Psalm 46:10 shortening the verse by one word each time until you are down to one word. What I am asking you to do is focus only on the words and on Holy Spirit’s presence as you read.

Be still, and know that I am God.

Be still, and know that I am

Be still, and know that I

Be still, and know that

Be still, and know

Be still, and

Be still,

Be.

~Might there be an invitation for you today into a new way of ‘Being’ in this Christmas season?

“To invite Jesus’ peace into this Christmas season, Jesus’ presence is required, our presence is requested.”

HOW TO INVITE CHRIST’S HOPE THIS CHRISTMAS

I was recently reminded of how; as human doings, we misplace our hope. Not that we don’t know where it is, but that we place our hope in things or people other than Jesus. Maybe we place our hope in the ideal Christmas dinner or giving the perfect gift or hosting the perfect Christmas event. Movies and media can contribute to our misplaced hopes; can’t they? Movies and media can get us thinking about the ‘if onlys.’ If only I had… If only I could give… If only my family would … If only my life was like that Hallmark movie, then my hopes would be fulfilled and I would be happy. These false hopes can lead us to disappointment because our real Hope can only come through Jesus who is our Hope. Just like without the ground; or a tree stand, a tree would fall over, we are not upright without hope in Jesus; we can feel misplaced.

~What are some hopes that you have for these next several weeks?

As we move forward to establish one main hope, goal, or vision for this Christmas season, I want to take a few minutes and talk about SMART goals. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely.

Specific- When we establish a goal, we want to be detailed in the what, how, and when of the goal we want to work toward.

Measurable- We need to make sure that we have a way to measure if we are moving forward toward the goal.

Attainable- Our goals need to be something that we can reasonably accomplish.

Relevant- We want our goals to be a step toward the ultimate goal for our lives.

Timely- As we set our goals, we want to establish a timeline of what we will complete and when. This timeline should be realistic.

An example is: One of my goals this Christmas is to improve my active listening skills with my family and others around me. I will plan to be intentional with each of my conversations so that I listen to learn about the other person and so that they know that they have been heard. I will know that I have accomplished this by their verbal and nonverbal responses in our conversation.

~Can you narrow your hopes/goals/visions for this Christmas season to one main hope, goal, or vision?

Make sure to share your goal with someone who can hold you accountable; someone who will check in on your progress and encourage you to move forward toward your goal.

“To invite Jesus’ hope into this Christmas season, Jesus’ presence is required, our presence is requested.”

HOW TO INVITE CHRIST’S JOY THIS CHRISTMAS

Let’s look at some Scripture passages that tell us about the Lord’s joy.

“Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10 NIV) What do we learn about joy from this passage? (My thoughts: The Lord’s joy is our strength. Joy is a celebration and a reason to celebrate.)

“Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” (Psalm 126:2 NIV) What do we learn about joy from this passage? (My thoughts: Joy can come out in laughter and songs of gratefulness for what God has done.)

“and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.” (Isaiah 61:3 NIV) What do we learn about joy from this passage? (My thoughts: Life is a series of losses and Jesus restores them all. This is a reason for joy.)

“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). (Matthew 1:23 NIV) What do we learn about joy from this passage? (My thoughts: God with us is a reason for joy.)

We get focused on the earthly stressors of the Christmas season and everyday life; Jesus came as an infant; Immanuel, to the earth to show us how to refocus on the eternal things; such as, peace, joy, and hope. Looking at the Christmas season and our past expectations for the season can contribute to the earthly stressors that we experience. However, if we return to Psalm 46, verse 10 where God says, “Be still, and know that I am God” and then set our goals to begin with Being with Him and allowing Him to set our next steps; one at a time, we will have invited Jesus’ joy into our Christmas season.

Now let’s return to our goal, we need to talk about next steps. Let’s break down into bite-sized pieces how we will reach our goals.

It is important to remember that your next steps do not have to be big things, they can be as simple as praying a prayer; the point is forward movement toward your goal. Sometimes smaller steps are better because we can celebrate the completion of the step and gain momentum to continue forward. Big steps can lead us to failure and then we lose momentum.

An example from my goal:

Next Step 1- Spend some time studying basic body language and understand what my body language is saying to those around me.

Next Step 2- When in conversation with another person, minimize distractions and focus on them, using eye contact and body language.

Next Step 3- Clarify what they are saying by repeating what I heard to make sure I am understanding them correctly.

Note that I didn’t write out every step toward my goal; just the first three, this will keep me from getting overwhelmed with all that I want to accomplish. When I have completed these first three steps, I will establish my next three steps and so on. It’s important to focus on bite-sized pieces so that we can be successful. And remember to celebrate each accomplishment.

~As you consider your next steps, be mindful of how might “Being” present play into your posture moving forward? What is your first step toward your goal? Your second? Your third?

“To invite Jesus’ joy into this Christmas season, Jesus’ presence is required, our presence is requested.”

We have talked about how our childhood experiences, movies, and media have contributed to shape our expectations of the Christmas season. We have also talked about our goals, hopes, or visions for this Christmas season; and hopefully beyond, and how establishing a SMART goal with bite-sized next steps can help us to reach that goal. If you are interested in talking more about SMART goals, active listening, or anything else that we have discussed today, please reach out to me through my email: Soulcarecoach.amy@gmail.com

If you want to check out my blog, you can find it at: hopestable.home.blog or my Facebook page is Soul Care Coach. I also have an instagram at: amyedeberg.

From life to LIFE

Maybe it’s in reflection after my mother-in-law’s recent passing or maybe it’s with the many transitions in my in the past three months; but whatever the reason, it’s occurred to me the many seasons in our lives where there’s a death in some way that leads to a new life in another way. Take for instance plants; I have learned that a plant’s sole purpose is to produce seeds. These seeds then go into the ground and die to what they once were so that they can eventually become what they were intended to be and; themselves, produce more seeds to do the same thing. A mustard seed is a very tiny seed that; when planted, becomes a marvelous tree that provides shelter for birds and shade or covering for those that step under it. The seed had to die as a seed in order to become a seedling and ultimately, a sheltering tree. A pine tree starts out as a seed from a pine cone that when it is planted, has to die to what it was so that it can become a pine tree. Maybe it will be a Christmas tree in the home of a family where it will carry bright strings of lights and Christmas ornaments that bring much joy for the people that get to gaze upon it. Or maybe the tree will grow for many years in a forest until it dies or is cut down to make furniture for people to sit on. The cross that Jesus died on would have been made from a tree that once started as a seed that died to what it was in order to become what it was intended to become; a source of death that ultimately brought much LIFE to all who believe in Jesus.

We as human beings started as a seed; of sorts, that had to die to what it started as so that it could grow to become what it was intended to become; a living breathing wonderful child of parents, ultimately a child of God. Even in our lives we have many instances of dying to one thing so that we can be alive ultimately. I am going to share some of my own experiences of dying to one thing so that I can be alive to another. When I was a small child, I thought like a child; I was completely consumed with how everything impacted me, but when I became older I needed to die to that belief because the world is full of others with human needs just like I have. When I came head-to-head with Jesus as an adult, I had to die to my own ways to become alive to who God created me to be. As with the growth of a pine tree, the changes and growth hasn’t happened all at once for me. Since 1997 when I realized what God and His Word had to do with me, I have been dying to different areas of my life so that God’s design for my life could come to life. My partying mindset had to die so that I can live reliant on Holy Spirit instead of liquid spirits. My fear filled way of thinking and decision-making has been slowly dying to give life to the Holy Boldness fearless thinking and decision-making that God intended for me when He united the specific elements from both of my parents to create the person that He intended for me to be. The impact that wounds have had on my beliefs through the years have to die so that the healing balm of the Lord can seal that space in my spirit as whole, healed, and completely driven to care for others who have similar wounds.

Recent transitions in my life have been very difficult for me to process; however, after much prayer and time with my Abba, I can honestly say that in God’s great providence and magnificent wisdom, these transitions have been what I have needed for things in my life to dye so that God’s planned LIFE for me will grow exponentially greater than I could ever think or imagine. It would be easy for me to give up on pursuing God’s next steps for me because of the death of what I thought things were to be but aren’t; however, I am seeing more clearly how God’s plan for my Life requires that some things have to die for the New Life that He has for me.

In regards to the loss of a loved one, it is so difficult and painful when a loved one passes from this world. The comfort that we can have when we know that they have a saving relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, is that they have New Life where they are more alive now than they ever were here on planet earth. For old things have passed away and we can behold that ALL things, Christ has made NEW in the Life that He has planned since before time. May the Lord Bless and keep you; may His face shine upon you and grant you the Peace that is beyond any comprehension!

HAVE YOU EVER . . .

Have you ever . . .

Have you ever considered that we plant grass seed, fertilize it, water it, and then cut it; only to water it more and then have to cut it again, and again, and again?

Have you ever considered that we park in a driveway and drive in a parkway?

Have you ever considered the fact that many other people in this world struggle with some of the same things that you struggle with?

Have you ever considered what makes you smile also makes other people smile?

Have you ever considered how much your kids truly understand you; even if you think you have hidden those things from them, they see them?

Have you ever trusted someone so much that you let them in on your biggest hurts in life?

Have you ever trusted someone, told them vulnerable things and then they used them against you? Have you ever forgiven them? (God has.)

Have you ever known that freedom from those things that bind you, can really be yours?

Have you ever looked so deep into someone’s eyes that you felt their pain and wanted to help them to heal?

Have you ever struggled in this world and wondered why???

Have you ever wondered what your purpose is for your life journey?

Have you ever put your security in someone or something else only to realize they let you down; or even hurt you?

Have you ever started a gratitude journal?

Have you ever looked so deep within yourself that you saw God’s heart?

Have you ever; while talking to another person, tried to picture yourself in that person’s experience so that you could understand them better?

Have you ever; while reading Scripture, tried to picture yourself in that time so that you could get a better grasp on God’s story?

Have you ever wanted to start something new but felt you don’t have what it takes to accomplish it?

Have you ever grown tired of the everyday stuff and just wanted more than the world has to offer?

Have you ever experienced the presence of God? (WOW)

Have you ever given your life to Jesus? I pray that you have so that we can meet in Heaven.

HAVE YOU EVER . . . ??? I could go on for a long time but I think that you get the picture. I pray that you consider the things of God and find yourself in His loving Hands!

#Coaching#SoulCare#CreatorGod

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What do we do with Life Experiences?