Category: Blessings

The Key’s to Spiritual “Greatness”-

Lisa M. Price2 Comments

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us- Hebrews 12:1 ESV 

 I wrestle with a lot of questions. 

Most are one-hundred-percent irrelevant in the grand scheme of life and eternity.  Nonetheless, a few of them do have some validity. One of those is:  

What makes a person “great” from God’s perspective? 

What made men and women like Abraham, Deborah, Moses, David, Paul and Peter great people? 

Why is Abraham called a “friend of God” over and over again in Scripture (2nd Chronicles 20:7, Isaiah 41:8, James 2:23)? What was it about Moses that moved God to speak to him face-to-face “like a friend” (Exodus 33:11)? Why would Deborah be chosen as a Mother over Israel (Judges 4:4-5, Judges 5:7-8)? What made David a man after God’s own heart (1st Samuel 13:14)? What was it about Paul and Peter that qualified them to lead the most critical movement of all time (Romans 11:13, Acts 2:1-47)?

 These are the questions. 

I have spent countless hours pondering what exactly makes someone the kind of person God points at and says: “that’s my guy” or “that’s my girl”. I don’t have all the answers to this or any question (obviously) but I do have some ideas. Here are four of them:

They always got back on the horse (metaphorically speaking) immediately following a spiritual failure-

Not everyone on the above list has a spiritual failure recorded in Scripture. However, the ones who do, failed spectacularly.  Seriously. Abraham lied. A lot. Moses was a murderer with a foul temper. David was an adulterer, a liar AND a murderer. Paul was a blasphemer and a murderer. Peter denied the Lord after being on Jesus’ inside circle for three years. Nonetheless, not one of these folks let their massive failure define them or their relationship with God. Each one took their mess to God, asked for forgiveness, repented and got back to worshipping, working and praying ASAP. These folks didn’t hide from God. They didn’t fib about their failure or attempt to cover it up. They didn’t wallow. They didn’t allow sorrow over their failure to turn them into alcoholics or drug addicts. They didn’t quit church or synagogue because they screwed up. The spiritual greats all trusted God’s promises to forgive sins (Psalm 65:2-3, Psalm 86:5, Psalm 103:12, John 3:16-17, 1st John 1:9, Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:13-14) as fact and moved on. In the process each one learned from their failure and went on to live lives that brought God glory.  

They believed God- 

The spiritual greats all believed God, even when it made no sense. Most of the time it didn’t. They all believed anyway (Genesis 15:4-6, Romans 14:9, Hebrews 11:13-15). Their belief was more than simple head knowledge. Their trust in God and His plans always led to radical obedience and a steel-in-the-spine commitment to glorifying God, no matter the circumstances. God says the world is not worthy of such people (Hebrews 11:37-38).  

They were all willing to be second or third or fifth or whatever- 

There’s an intriguing little verse no one pays much attention to tucked into 3rd John. It says: I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority- 3rd John 1:10. Okay, so, this is a thought-provoking little verse for numerous reasons. First, what kind of prideful numbskull would refuse to acknowledge the spiritual authority of John the Apostle? Seriously. Who thinks like that? Diotrephes apparently. Second, it’s the apostle John calling someone out. John wasn’t known for that sort of thing. Paul called people out all the time (Acts 15:37-39, Galatians 2:11-14, Philemon, 2nd Timothy 4:10, 2nd Timothy 4:14). Peter could be counted on to throw some shade around from time-to-time (Acts 2:23, Acts 3:13-15, 2nd Peter 3:15-16). John doesn’t do that, he’s the nice one. Church history records him as the “apostle of love”. Nonetheless, Diotrephes desire to be “first” was so appalling to John and antithetical to the gospel that Mr.  Nice-guy felt compelled to call Diotrephes out publicly. John had some good reasons for doing so. Someone who loves to be first (in this context) wants to be the most important person in the room. These Christians want to be THE go-to person for spiritual teaching, moral advice and wisdom. People who love to be first have a stunning lack of humility that causes them to do anything including lying and slandering good people just to keep their position or standing in the church.  To the contrary, all the folks God calls great saw themselves as deeply loved by God but not as any more-or-less important than any other person. They were all willing to share the stage and give God ALL the glory. 

They took hardship on the chin (metaphorically speaking)- 

It’s simply a fact: hardship and difficulty affects people in one of two ways, it either makes them bitter or better (Hebrews 12:15). For God’s best and brightest it always makes them more like Jesus. God’s greats refuse to wallow in self-pity. Instead they choose to view suffering as an opportunity to grow and glorify God.  

God is merciful, kind and good. Seriously. God never places spiritual greatness out of the reach of anyone. All it takes is faith, a willingness to do life God’s way and a little humility.

God does the rest. 

The Number one “Rule” of Modern Christianity-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit. They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace- Jeremiah 6:13b-14 NIV

Life is full of unwritten rules. 

An unwritten rule is an expectation no one really needs to be told about. For example, we all understand it’s not okay to roam through a public space like a subway or a movie theater with music blaring out of a speaker. There are (to my knowledge) no signs telling people they can’t play their music in these spaces. We all just know better. Because we all know better than to break unspoken rules, when someone does, people judge. 

It’s just how it is. 

Christianity has its own fair share of unwritten rules. There are things we simply do not do in Church world. No one treats communion like a buffet, grabbing enough juice to quench their thirst or enough bread to tide them over until lunch.  Some of the unwritten rules in church world are biblical, others, not so much. One really prominent unwritten rule in church world is: 

No negativity allowed! 

The love of the positive (and aversion to the negative) is reflected in the following “rules” Christians are told to follow:

Christians should only preach and speak about what they’re FOR not what they’re against-

Churches should stick to preaching the gospel only because social issues are not relevant to the gospel-

A good Christian is always kind and never hurts anyone’s feelings-

It’s a terrible sin to speak against “the Lords anointed”-

All of the above rules are well-intended, a few even have Bible verses to back them up. Each one is meant to encourage kindness, cooperation, unity and inoffensiveness. 

All good things. 

But are these “rules” biblical? 

Nope, nope and more nope.

No one should seek to be unnecessarily offensive, nor should Christians preach about social issues to the exclusion of the gospel. It is not okay for believers to hurt people on purpose, slander Christian leaders or criticize good programs designed to help people (2nd Timothy 4:2, Ephesians 4:32, Hebrews 13:17, Isaiah 5:20). Those things are all wrong. Period.

However. 

 It is also true that Jesus routinely addressed the hot-button issues of His day. In the process, He made a lot of folks really angry (Matthew 19:1-10, Luke 20:20-25, Mark 7:10-13, Matthew 20:16). Jesus also openly criticized people, including religious leaders (Matthew 23:1-33, Luke 11:37-53). I suspect Jesus hurt a lot of feelings and yet, God the Father had nothing but good things to say about Jesus (Matthew 3:17, Mark 9:7)

Furthermore. 

There are many instances in the Old Testament where God had nothing good to say about some dearly loved prophets. These “prophets” angered God because they insisted on preaching messages of blessings and positivity when God had declared there would be nothing but a giant load of judgment and trouble for His people (Jeremiah 6:13-14, Jeremiah 14:14, Ezekiel 13:9, Lamentations 2:14, Isaiah 44:24-25). 

The problems with choosing to dwell entirely on the positive are countless. For one thing, it puts a lot of limits on what Christians can and can’t talk about. Any subject that makes people uncomfortable or angry is out. This eliminates much of the Bible and all discussion of sin. It also means Christians can never speak up about social issues, even really evil social issues. If seventeenth century Christians had chosen to only speak a positive, happy message, slavery might still be legal. Our aversion to speaking the negative is one of the key reasons there are so many bad leaders in positions of power in our churches. If one believes its poor form or sinful to discuss problems with a leader’s bad behavior, the silence that ensues gives that pastor plenty of space to keep doing what they’ve been doing. In every church or Christian organization where there has been moral failure there has also been an unspoken (sometimes spoken) rule against saying anything unflattering about the leader.  Never discussing the negative also limits the spiritual and personal growth of individuals. In some churches, spouses (especially women) are discouraged from any negative talk about their spouse’s behavior— even if the behavior is clearly wrong or even abusive. Instead spouses are encouraged to pray that God would speak to their husband or wife. This presupposes the person in question, who is walking in sin is going to listen the Lord when He speaks.  Those folks are denied growth opportunities because their closest neighbor (their spouse) is prohibited from confronting their sin. 

Sigh.

 Instead of insisting on positive vibes only, Christians ought to make a commitment to actively seek God’s best for all people in every situation. Seeking the best means we cover every difficult or potentially thorny conversation in prayer. Seeking the best demands we become biblically literate so we know an answer to prayer when it comes. It means there will times when we keep our pie holes shut because the issue at hand is not really critical or worth offending someone over. Other times seeking the best means saying what needs to be said as kindly as possible, even if offense is taken (Ephesians 4:15, Philippians 1:9-11). Seeking the best for others means we do the hard work of learning to discern right from wrong. It means we remember unsaved people naturally find the gospel and biblical truth offensive (1st Corinthians 1:18, 1st Corinthians 2:14). Loving people and seeking their good means we break the rules by preaching the gospel and speaking against social evil. It means we tell the truth because if we really love people we don’t want them to spend eternity in hell because they lacked pertinent information concerning right and wrong. 

That would be the most unloving thing ever.

How to Pull out a “Root of Bitterness”-

Lisa M. Price3 Comments

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery- Galatians 5:1 NIV

Bitterness is literally the worst.

Literally.

Bitterness is when chronic cynicism, resentment and hostility become a constant in a person’s life.  Other indicators bitterness is a problem are a tendency to isolate, a lack of compassion, relentless faultfinding and the inability or unwillingness to see the good in people and situations.  Bitterness hits its peak of awfulness when a person gets to the place where they want to see others suffer the way they feel they have suffered.   

Bitterness is one of those issues we rarely see in ourselves until after it has become an entrenched issue. This is because the emotions that lead to bitterness feel personal and private and more often than not: justified. When we perceive that we have been hurt or wronged it FEELS defensible and reasonable to allow our most negative, ugly emotions to run wild. However, when we let hurt or pain run the show we give the devil an opportunity (foothold) to sow chaos in our lives. One of Satan’s favorite things is a Christian who has been corrupted and hardened by a bitter spirit (Ephesians 4:26-27).   

The writer of Hebrews compares bitterness to a “root”. Feelings like anger, hurt, disappointment, jealousy or resentment create fertile soil for bitter roots to sprout. If left unattended bitter roots grow, spread and eventually choke out everything good, healthy and live-giving in a person’s life. Even more alarming, bitterness not only impacts the bitter person it also defiles (corrupts) the people closest to them (Hebrews 12:15, Ephesians 4:31, James 3:14). 

Yikes. 

It is on us to pray often that God will make us aware of any bitter roots that have sprouted up.  (Matthew 5:30).  Once bitterness has taken hold, the only way to get rid of it is to pull it out (metaphorically speaking). The keys to dealing with bitterness is as follows:

We must fully understand the implications of not dealing with a bitter root- 

Bitterness is no inconsequential thing. Making space for a bitter spirit is the fast track to spiritual uselessness, broken relationships and unanswered prayer (Leviticus 19:18, 1st Peter 3:12, Hebrews 5:7). Refusing to deal with the sin of bitterness is basically just acquiescing to the fact that you will be less spiritually productive than you could be. It also means accepting that your feelings of resentment will ultimately impact your kids, grandkids, church family and friends adversely. None of those realities should ever be acceptable to a follower of Jesus. Furthermore, Christians are commanded by Jesus to bear an abundance of good fruit and be a peaceful presence in the lives of others (Matthew 7:17-19, Luke 13:6-8, John 15:1-8, Colossians 1:10, Ephesians 6:15, John 14:27, Galatians 5:22-23). There is simply no way to fulfill that calling with a bitter heart. 

Stop nursing the dang thing- 

The most efficient way to kill a plant is to simply stop watering it. The same is true with bitterness. If we want to stop feelings of bitterness we must stop nurturing and indulging the feelings that lead to the bitterness in the first place. This means we must stop thinking about or talking about the situation or people who caused the bitter root to spring up. Instead, we must practice self-discipline in our thought life and conversations (Hebrews 12:11, 2ndTimothy 1:7). The easiest and most productive way to make that happen is to simply commit to only discussing the issue with mature fellow believers who are actively helping you to find freedom from the problem 

Bathe it in prayer- 

The most efficient way to kill a bitter root is to cover the situation and people involved in prayer. Prayer is the spiritual equivalent of a powerful weed killer (Philippians 4:6, James 5:16). Prayer is essential to pulling out a bitter spirit because it keeps us from ruminating on the situation or gossiping about the people involved. Gossip and ruminating on our pain are like pouring fertilizer on the bitter root (Matthew 26:41, Ephesians 6:18, 1st Thessalonians 5:17).

Let God be God in your situation- 

Most of the time, people do not become bitter without some sort of reason. There are situations where a very sensitive, immature or prideful person will become angry and bitter about something that wasn’t a big deal (like being called out on their sin or being slighted in some way). However, most of the time bitterness is the result of genuine hurt, loss or disappointment. In one sense bitterness is really just a desire for revenge that’s running amok in a person’s heart. The Bible is clear: revenge is best left to God (Romans 12:19, Hebrews 10:30). This is because He is far better at it than we are and the desire for revenge twists us up and turns us into a sad parody of what we could have been. Nobody wants that.

And finally,

The only way to totally break free of bitterness is to make the hard, sometimes painful choice to fully forgive those who have sinned against us (Matthew 6:14-15, Matthew 18:21-35).  Forgiveness is rarely easy, nor, is it typically a one and done. It’s a process that takes time. It often requires help from a mature friend, Christian counselor or pastor. Forgiveness is difficult but it’s also worth whatever effort it takes because it frees us from the ugly consequences of a bitter spirit and sets us free to be the people Jesus calls us to be (1st Peter 2:9). 

The Power of Encouragement-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, just as you also are doing-1st Thessalonians 5:11 NASB 

God loves encouraging words.  

 God considers encouragement to be so vitally important He straight-up commands Christians to encourage one another whenever and however they are able (Hebrews 3:13, 1st Thessalonians 4:18, 1st Thessalonians 5:10, 2nd Corinthians 13:11).  The simple and often undervalued act of encouragement has the power to: 

Remind us to live for Jesus and prepare spiritually for His return – 1st Thessalonians 5:1-11)

Embolden God’s people to fight battles against the worst kind of evil- Judges 2

Strengthen hearts in seasons of spiritual confusion- Acts 15

Deliver peace in the worst of storms- Acts 27

Boost spiritual endurance- Romans 15:5

Give hope in times of trouble and heartache- Romans 15:4

Promote unity in churches- 2nd Corinthians 13:11

Bring about a more complete understanding of our faith- Colossians 2:2 

Bring joy and refreshment to the weary- Philemon 1:7

Keep Christians from being trapped and hardened by sin- Hebrews 3:13 

No wonder God is a fan. 

Encouragement does far more than just cheer up those who are having a bad day.  Encouragement is actually an indispensable component of the Christian discipleship process (1st Thessalonians 5:14, Hebrews 3:13). Encouragement from the right person at the right time brings hope and clarity to the sometimes challenging and confusing life of faith.  Encouragement reminds the gloomy struggler God sees their situation. The right words of encouragement spoken at just the right moment can even lead a spiritual wanderer back to the narrow-path of faith. It is simply a fact that just right words of encouragement spoken at just the right moment have the power to literally change the trajectory of a person’s life. 

So. 

How do we encourage others in a manner that brings about all the above-mentioned benefits for the maximum number of people?

Genuine biblical encouragement is about more than simply saying nice things or even helping people. Biblical encouragers:

Do what Jesus did-

Jesus took the time to really see the people around Him (Matthew 9:36, Mark 6:34, Luke 13:11-13, John 1:47-50, John 6:26, John 9:1). He made a practice of being fully present in every situation. This one little habit allowed Him to see people’s pain, struggles, the longings of their heart and their deepest unspoken needs.  Because Jesus paid attention to people human needs did not go unnoticed or unmet when He was present. When we make a regular practice of noticing people our observations give us insight into the needs of the people around us. Encouragement comes much more naturally and is much more likely to hit the mark when we are fully present and tuned into the people God placed around us. 

Are willing to couple words of encouragement with action-

Words of encouragement are the biggest of deals. A positive uplifting word of encouragement spoken at just the moment is sometimes better than finding a sack of cash (Proverbs 25:11). Even more powerful is a word of encouragement combined with a generous or kind act. Taking a tired Mom, a meal, picking up groceries for a shut-in or handing out a baggie of treats and/or a gift card to homeless person reminds those on the receiving end of our kindness that they are seen and cared for in spite of their circumstances (Matthew 5:14-16). 

Listen carefully and prayerfully before speaking into an obviously tough situation-

It’s easy to encourage someone experiencing a tough day in the midst of an otherwise easy season of life. That said, tough situations necessitate more than glib, superficial sentimentality or simple pat answers. So, unless, you are a prophet with flawless track record, it is not encouraging or helpful to promise someone God will do a particular thing in that person’s situation. Humans have freewill and no one but God knows what God is going to do (Joshua 24:15, Isaiah 55:8-9). Therefore, it’s just good policy to avoid making promises you cannot keep. Nor is it encouraging to remind someone whose life has just blown up with unspeakable tragedy that “all things work together for the good” (Romans 8:28). It’s true, over the course of time, God does work all things out for good. However, it is better to let the hurting person reach that state of spiritual awareness on their own rather than forcing it on them before they have an opportunity to grieve their loss (Romans 12:15). The most powerful way to encourage the deeply hurting is to sit with them and just listen without judgment or even a whole lot of commentary (Job 38:2).  Encouraging those who are truly broken and disheartened demands we take the time to know exactly what kind of a situation we are speaking into before we speak. 

Back in the day.

When I was a young Christian Mom just kind of bumbling my way through life. I met a smart, gifted older woman who routinely sent me little notes encouraging me to seek the Lord and use the spiritual gifts she saw in me. To this day, anytime I need a reminder of God’s goodness I look up the Bible verse she wrote at the bottom of every single note she ever sent me: 

The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing- Zephaniah 3:17 NKJV

I don’t know if she remembers those notes, but I do. Thirty-plus years later, the echoes of her encouraging words still remind of God’s goodness and grace in every circumstance. 

That’s why God loves it when His kids encourage one another. 

The Blessings of Obedience-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

 If you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation- Exodus 19:5-6a NIV 

Obedience is generally associated with things normal people despise. Icky, gross things like restrictions, correction and disapproval. Because people tend to view the whole concept of obedience negatively, there is also a tendency to view God (who requires obedience) as a giant cosmic meanie. It is not uncommon for people to believe God sits up in heaven looking for those who step out of line so He can send calamity and punishment on anyone who refuses to do what He says. 

However.

Obedience comes with blessings. Lots of them. Contrary to popular belief God is not a meanie and He’s not all about the negative.  God is good, gracious, compassionate and forgiving (Exodus 34:5-7, Jonah 4:2, Isaiah 43:25, John 3:16, Titus 3:3-5, 1st John 1:9). Because God is good and because He knows goodness is hard for us, He has built blessing into obedience and every act of personal sacrifice. This does not mean we will be blessed with an endless stream of money and stuff simply because we choose to obey God rather than live in rebellion to Him.  Money and material possessions are not the best things in life. Following are just a few of the benefits and blessings we receive when we choose to obey God. 

More of our prayers are answered in the affirmative-

When we walk in obedience we are more in tune with God. As a result, we are much more likely to pray in accordance with God’s will. Anytime we pray God’s will for ourselves and others it always leads to more answered prayer (1st John 5:14). Obedience also gives us favor with God. God’s favor causes Him to be more attentive to our prayers (Psalm 17:1-3, 1st Peter 3:12, Nehemiah 1:11, Leviticus 26:1-13, Psalm 5:12, Proverbs 3:3-4). 

The Holy Spirit functions as He was intended to function in our lives-

The Holy Spirit has many functions in the life of a Christian. He comforts in times of trouble. He advocates on our behalf and He convicts us of sin and teaches us truth (1st John 2:1, John 14:15-16). But perhaps the most critical function of Holy Spirit is to act as a guide (John 16:13, Galatians 6:15). When we are walking in the Spirit the Holy Spirit shows us what to do and how do it (John 14:26). He protects us from getting into situations that could cause us harm and He guides into deeper wisdom and discernment (1st Corinthians 2:13). Habitual obedience creates an environment where the Holy Spirit can function in our lives at full capacity. This empowers us to know more and do more than we ever could on our own. 

We see around corners- 

Well, not literally. Obeying God will not give you superpowers or dramatically improve your eyesight. However, obedience leads to the blessing of wisdom (Proverbs 2:6-8). Wisdom is awesome. Wisdom empowers us to predict outcomes with astonishing accuracy, which is almost as good as seeing around a corner. Wisdom also helps us to live longer, keeps us out of harmful situations. Wisdom protects us from evil, allows us understand the times we live in and helps us to discern truth from error (Proverbs 2:12, Proverbs 3:13-17, Proverbs 9:11, Proverbs 8:12, Proverbs 24:14). All told, wisdom is almost as good as super powers. 

Our relationships are healthier-

When we walk in obedience to God we treat people with grace, dignity and kindness. Loving people well and treating them with consideration is a critical aspect of obedience (Matthew 7:12, Hebrews 13:16, Ephesians 4:32), because we reap what we sow this (usually) causes others to treat us better too. All this reciprocal goodness automatically leads to greater health in our closest relationships and greater personal satisfaction in those relationships.

God looks out for us- 

In one of my favorite books/movies of all time, The Count of Monte Cristo, there is a scene where the count finds himself in a situation that could easily have been the end of him. However, disaster is miraculously diverted at the last second. His servant says to him: “once again God has seen you out of the corner of His eye”. This perfectly describes what happens when we are walking in God’s favor. He sees us and most of the time He makes our path just a little bit smoother than it would have been (Proverbs 3:6). 

We want the right things- 

The human appetite leans towards all the wrong things in the natural as well as the spiritual. We want nutrition-less junk food to eat and horrible entertainment to feast our minds on. This natural inclination towards the unhealthy also makes us more prone to sin and shady choices. Sin and shady choices have never led to blessing of any kind.  However, when we walk in obedience our appetite for sin is decreased and our desire for God’s word is increased. This leads to more obedience and more obedience always leads to more blessing (Deuteronomy 28:1-14). 

Obedience is hard for humans, even redeemed humans, because at its core obedience is letting go of pride and self-will and submitting the will of another.  Fallen, sinful people universally want to be free agents and do their own thing. Because God is good and He gets us, God has graciously seen to it that consistent obedience has big rewards. Those rewards far outweigh the pain that comes with submitting our will to God.

The Spiritual Habits that Bring Transformation-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old.Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness. And rivers in the desert- Isaiah 43:18-19 NKJV

 The book of Ecclesiastes teaches God has written eternity on every human heart (Ecclesiastes 3:11). This is just a fancy-pants way of saying that all humans have a gut-level understanding that our days numbered. As a result, most individuals have an almost instinctual longing to make the most of the time they have been given.  

In order to assist us in making the most of our time God has also designed rhythms to life.  Morning and evening, springtime and harvest, birth and death are repetitious patterns that remind us of the brevity of life and teach us to order our days in such a way they make a difference in the grand scheme of life and eternity (Genesis 8:22, Psalm 90:12, James 4:14). The first month of every year is another God-ordained rhythm of life. January is a yearly opportunity to reflect on the past and consider how we can make an impact on our world in the coming year. There is no end to the advice given on how to make each day count. Most advice is focused entirely on improving one’s eating habits, losing weight, making more money and improving one’s overall level of happiness. There is nothing inherently wrong or sinful with any of those things 

However.

Christians are commanded to live for more than their personal health, financial wellbeing and even their own personal happiness and pleasure. Christians are called to be transformed into the image of Jesus, to love God and people and to bring others into relationship with Jesus (Matthew 22: 34-40, Matthew 28:16-20, Romans 12:1-2, 2nd Corinthians 3:18). The following seven attitudes and habits are a spiritual game changer that will empower you to fulfill that calling:

Commit each day to the Lord-

If you make a practice of committing each day to the Lord before you do anything else (drink coffee, get out of bed, think about or plan your day) it will be spiritual game-changer (Psalm 37:5-6). Committing each day to the Lord serves as a reminder that you gave that day to the Lord. That knowledge will help to keep you spiritually on track throughout the day.

Know who you belong to and what that means- 

If you are a follower of Jesus in a very real sense your life is not your own. You are literally the legal property of Almighty God (1st Corinthians 6:20, 1st Corinthians 7:23, 2nd Peter 2:1).  Christians are most content and make the biggest impact on others (and eternity) when understand and embrace this reality. Walking daily in the knowledge of who we belong to frees us up to fulfill our ultimate purpose of pleasing Jesus and bringing others into the kingdom (Matthew 10:6-8, Matthew 25:33-35, Luke 9:60, Ephesians 5:6). 

Surrender-

Every Christian—no matter how long they have been a Christian has a “thing” in their life. It might be a habit, a relationship, an attitude, a sexual proclivity, or maybe a love of money or some other worldly thing. Whatever, IT is, it will hold us back from our next big leap of growth and maturity.  One critical aspect of spiritual health and impacting our sphere of influence for Jesus is figuring out what our thing is and then letting go of it so God can work through us (Hebrews 12:1, Galatians 5:13-25)

Regular self-evaluation-

The key to spiritual growth is ultimately super boring. Our growth is determined by our spiritual habits and practices. The habits and practices we adopt around Bible reading, prayer, church attendance and self-examination determine our spiritual maturity and usefulness. Start with an inventory: What does your prayer life look like? Do you read the Bible routinely? Do you get anything out of your Bible reading?  How often do you attend church? If you pray less than a half hour a day, don’t read your Bible at least four days a week, attend church less than three times a month or aren’t getting anything out of your Bible reading, I guarantee you your spiritual habits and practices are holding you back (Hebrews 10:25, 1st Thessalonians 5:17, Matthew 26:14, Hebrews 4:12-13, 2nd Corinthians 13:5). If you want to make a spiritual impact you will have to change them. 

Be open to the Holy Spirit- 

Being open to the Holy Spirit is not about being weird. It’s about spiritual awareness and being open to God’s leading at all times (Galatians 5:16). In Acts three Peter and John passed a crippled beggar as they entered the Temple mount. The beggar asked for money, instead of giving him money they healed him in the name of Jesus (Acts 3:1-10). Peter and John doubtless passed dozens of beggars before they engaged with that one. Why? Because they were open to, in tune with and willing to be led by God in everything. So, when God said “that one” they knew exactly who He meant and what to do. We become open to the leading of the Holy Spirit through a combination of prayer, obedience and knowledge of the Bible. 

Pray on the armor of God- 

Life is becoming increasingly complex and scary because we are living in a world at war (Ephesians 6:10-13, Daniel 10:7-14) and the war is heating up (2nd Timothy 3:1-5, 2nd Peter 3:3-4) Ephesians 6:14-18 gives us the tools we need to protect ourselves, pray effectively and impact our world for Jesus. For an example of how to pray through Ephesians 6:10-18 click this link:  https://lisamargretprice.com/2020/02/03/ephesians-6-prayer/

And finally, 

We must make spiritual community a reality. Church is not optional for Jesus followers. Without Christian relationships and the spiritual stability godly people bring to our lives everything else on the list becomes a challenge. When we have a healthy spiritual community, we have the support and help we need to make every one of our days count for eternity.

The Unintended Consequences of Refusing to Give it up and Repent Already-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Also keep Your servant back from presumptuous sins. Let them not rule over me;
Then I will be innocent, And I will be blameless of great wrongdoing- Psalm 19:13 NASB 

For most of us, our biggest fears besides spiders, snakes and germs are:

Fear of being judged. 

Fear of social shame or humiliation. 

Fear of the future. 

Fear we will not get our needs met. 

With all due respect to everyone’s fears, these are all the wrong things to be afraid of. The short-list of things the Bible says we ought to fear are: 

God (Ecclesiastes 5:1-2, Matthew 10:26, 2nd Corinthians 7:1, 1st Peter 2:17). 

Missing out on the grace of God (Hebrews 12:17, 1st Peter 5:5). 

Getting tangled up in some sort of sin (Hebrews 12:1). 

And:

The obstinate refusal to fully repent of a known sin (Jude 1:4, Psalm 19:13, Hebrews 10:26). 

There are all sorts of reasons why Christians choose not to repent. But, truth-be-told almost all of them go back to the list of all the wrong things to be afraid of. Folks resist repentance because admitting wrong (a crucial aspect of repentance) might lead to social shame or change how people see us. Sometimes we fear the confession that might need to go along with our repentance will affect our future or keep us from getting our needs met.  

So. 

 None of the above concerns are entirely irrational. Those are real issues. Sometimes there are consequences for coming clean and getting things right with God and people.  But we have to remember that all Christians sin.  Most Christians sin mostly on accident, a few sin on purpose but all Christians sin (1st John 1:8-9). There is grace for sin (Romans 3:24), but only when we choose to do things God’s way and repent. Choosing not to repent is effectively choosing misery. It will not result in a loss of salvation but it will create all sorts of other painful problems with unintended consequences, including:

We open ourselves up to all sorts of other sins- 

This is a real thing. Anytime we sin and refuse to acknowledge the sin, feel remorse for it and turn away from it our conscience becomes seared (1st Timothy 4:1-3). The human conscience is an oddly delicate thing. Once it is seared it becomes much less prone to feeling conviction and sinning feels like a lot less of a problem. This is why when a Christian is outed for some form of moral failure there is almost always a long list of their sins. They lied AND they cheated on their spouse AND they used drugs, AND they stole money AND they treated people like garbage. Nevertheless, the whole ugly muddle always begins with the very first sin they refused to deal with God’s way (Acts 3:19, Matthew 3:8, Romans 2:4)

We run the risk of making ourselves sick- 

Again, this is a real thing.  If someone is a genuine Christian refusing to repent always leads to feelings of guilt and even self-loathing (Psalm 32:3). Because there is a connection between our minds, hearts and bodies eventually those feelings of guilt and self-loathing create stress that damages our physical bodies. (Proverbs 13:12, Proverbs 14:30, Acts 2:26).  Symptoms of stress eventually affect every part of our bodies. 

It becomes very difficult to us to do ministry and life well–  

All Christians receive the Holy Spirit when they put their faith and trust in Jesus (John 14:16-17, Acts 2:38, Romans 15:16, Ephesians 1:13). Nonetheless, believers in Jesus are also told to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17). A continual filling of the Holy Spirit brings joy, peace, wisdom and insight which empowers us to do ministry and life well (Acts 4:31, Acts 13:8-10, Acts 13:52).  It is possible to grieve the Holy Spirit. We grieve the Holy Spirit anytime we live in a way that runs counter to the biblical truths we have been taught (Isaiah 59:1-2, Isaiah 63:10, Ephesians 4:30). Anytime we refuse to repent we forfeit the spiritual power and sense of peace that comes with having the Holy Spirit operating in our lives at full capacity. The net effect of this foolishness is we do life and ministry in our own feeble strength and power (Philippians 4:13).  This never leads to anything good or life-giving. 

Intimacy with God is broken-

Sin has caused human beings to run and hide from God (metaphorically speaking) since the fall of mankind. This inclination is literally part of our human DNA (Genesis 3:8-10, Romans 5:12). We hide from God because we understand intuitively sin breaks intimacy with God. This dynamic creates all sorts of problems and unintended consequences in our lives. The worst being that we no longer feel we can run to God for help with the problems caused by our sinful choices. The answer is always just give it up and repent already (Acts 3:19). 

Most of the time we hang onto sinful junk because we really want to maintain complete control of any consequences we might suffer. Control always comes at a high price in this life. God graciously gives us the abundant, joyful life Jesus promised when we make a practice of confessing our sin and repenting quickly (John 10:10). Choosing repentance always leads to peace, intimacy with God, a clean conscience and the ability to operate at maximum spiritual capacity. All of those blessings are worth giving up anything we have to give up.  

How Christians make a Difference in this World-

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We dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory- 1st Thessalonians 2:11-12 NIV

The who of Christianity is easy.

The who is Jesus. Jesus is the beginning and end of all things (Revelation 1:4-8, Revelation 22:12).  Jesus is the one who redeems us and saves us and empowers us to become a brand-new creation completely free from the bondage of our past sin (Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:12-14, 2nd Corinthians 5:22). 

Without the “who” of Jesus there is no Christianity.

Most Christians are also pretty clued into “the why” of Christianity. People need Jesus because all people are hopeless sinners. We are such a hot-mess we routinely do wrong even when we really, really want to do right (Romans 7:21-25, Jeremiah 17:19). 

Sigh.

All humans need the redemption, salvation and wholeness only Jesus can offer.  Understanding the “why” of salvation is critical. We cannot even get saved until we understand our own sinfulness and the futility of attempting to save ourselves (Ephesians 2:8-9, Isaiah 64:6). 

The “how” of Christianity becomes clear once we understand the “who” and the “why”. We become Christians by placing our faith and trust in the death and resurrection of Jesus. Once that’s done we living a life of repentance and worship (John 3:36, Acts 13:28-40, Ephesians 1:13-14)

It’s that easy. 

It’s the “what” of Christianity many believers struggle with. A lot of Christians don’t really have a firm grasp on “what” God wants from them once they are a Christian.  This is partially due to bad doctrine; most Christians have heard a lot of sermons and read a lot of well-meaning books instructing them to do “big things” for God.  Anything less than “big” is small. Though it’s never said out loud we all get the message: big is good and small is sad. Small is for losers.

Sigh.

I believe this whole philosophy of big is nothing more than a clever scheme of the enemy that keeps us from fulfilling our purpose as believers here on earth (2nd Corinthians 2:11, Ephesians 6:11). We have forgotten three critical truths: 

Little things done consistently in the name of Jesus are a very big deal to Jesus (Matthew 10:42, Matthew 25:31-36)

Little things are big things to the people around us who need to experience the love of Jesus through us (Romans 12:10, Romans 12:16, Romans 15:7, Galatians 5:13, Hebrews 3:13, Philippians 2:5, Ephesians 4:32)

Nowhere in Scripture does it say bigger is better.

Seriously. It’s just true.

Until we understand the “what” of Christianity we tend to feel spiritually purposeless and irrelevant to God’s plan for this world. This causes many to search for their significance in the secular realm. Secular pursuits are not wrong (for the most part). However, if they are not coupled with the “what’s” of the faith they will have no lasting impact on others—or eternity (1st Corinthians 3:10-15). One of God’s favorite “what’s” we tend to overlook in the church is the simple the act of comforting one another. 2nd Corinthians 1:3-4 says this: 

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

One of our chief responsibilities (what’s) as Christians is to be a help and comfort to the hurting people God places in our sphere of influence. Anyone can do this—and we are literally the most like Jesus when we are actively seeking to heal, comfort and help the brokenhearted around us (John 4, Luke 7:11-13, Matthew 9:36, Matthew 14:14, Mark 6:34, John 11). Furthermore, providing help and comfort to others is a powerful way to connect unbelievers with the heart of Jesus. 

There are three reasons we struggle in this area:  

We don’t want to get involved in another person’s stuff-

Comforting people means choosing awkwardness. Entering into the suffering and pain of others means we have to get close to people, hear stories that might make us feel uncomfortable, make judgment calls about right and wrong and just generally get kind of messy (Hebrews 10:34, 1st Corinthians 12:26). We live in a culture that prefers to keep pain at a distance and relationships neat, tidy and chaos free. Going deep into the weeds of someone else’s pain is not easy. Nor is it fun, but it is a command (Philippians 1:1-3). It is perhaps the single most critical aspect of being Jesus to others. Comforting the hurting is something God never wants us to shy away from (Romans 12:15). 

We have been conditioned to avoid strong emotion-

Hurting people are emotional by nature. Emotional people weep, rant endlessly about the unfairness of life and are just generally kind of irrational and illogical. Unfortunately, it has become trendy to classify even healthy displays of emotion as manifestations of mental illness. They’re not. Sometimes situations are so unjust and awful that it just makes perfect sense to “weep, mourn and wail” (Esther 4:3, Micah 1:8, Matthew 2:18). Anytime we feel uncomfortable with a strong show of human emotion we need to ask God to help us to adjust our thinking in a way that empowers us to help those struggling rather than avoid or shame people for expressing their pain.

Twenty-first century Christins tend to be time hoarders-

Helping and comforting others always requires a time commitment on our part and in our age of frenetic busyness we want to keep all our extra time for ourselves. But, here’s the thing: if we were all to cut out just a couple of hours of our television or scrolling the internet time we would have more than enough time for the people that need us to be Jesus to them.

Figuring out the “what’s” of our faith is critical to our spiritual health. When we know what we’re supposed to be all about we find personal fulfillment beyond our wildest dreams and we become the helpers our world needs.

What Does it Really Mean to Surrender Something or Someone to God?

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight- Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

Surrender.

One definition for surrender would be:

 The act of giving something up completely or letting go of control of an outcome. 

Some synonyms for surrender include: submission, relinquish, capitulation, yield and forfeit. 

For the record: surrender is not on the list of my favorite words. 

Seriously.

Surrender sucks.

Surrendering ourselves, our desires, our behaviors, our dreams, our loved ones or the outcome of situations to God is one of the hardest things God asks Christians to do (James 4:1-7, Luke 11:28). 

There is typically some confusion around the differences between making a commitment and surrendering.  Both are agreements we make with God but they are entirely different in their nature. A commitment is more of a partnership, therefore when we make a commitment to something we naturally assume we will have some control over the process. We also assume we will able to take personal pride in a positive outcome.  In surrender we relinquish complete control of the process to God and He gets all the glory for a good outcome (Psalm 32:8-10). Commitments always have an exit strategy if the process becomes too painful or the personal difficulties become too much to bear. 

There is no exit strategy in surrender. It’s do or die.

Surrendering our sin or someone we love to God means we concede we have reached the end of our ability to fix, manage or deal with the problem on our own. In surrender we get real and acknowledge we cannot change anything or anyone in our own power— no matter how desperately we might want to. We recognize the hard, painful truth we simply cannot make anyone do anything. We need God to do whatever needs to be done in us or our loved one or it’s just not happening.

Sigh. 

Because we are all gifted with freewill—AND sinful to the core (Joshua 24:15, 1st Peter 4:3, Ephesians 2:1, 1st John 1:9-10, Psalm 32:5, Psalm 51:5) surrender is always a painful and difficult process — regardless of how long we have walked with the Lord. Additionally, we are by nature a bunch of control freaks therefore, surrender is rarely a one and done. Typically, we have to take the habit, person, situation or sin to God over and over again until the battle is won.

Surrender looks different in different situations.

For some it might mean letting God work in the life of a loved one without running in and lecturing, making excuses for their behavior or enabling a sinful lifestyle. For others surrender means choosing to do something God’s way even when God’s way literally makes no sense (Judges 7, Joshua 6, Matthew 6:25-34, Acts 9:1-17).  For others it means finally being willing to let go of a life controlling habit or sinful coping mechanism even when we don’t know how we will survive without the comfort it provides.  

Surrender is always about trust and trust is universally hard for humans. This makes the choice to surrender our wants, needs, habits and loved ones to God painful and tough. Really tough (Hebrews 12:4, 1st Corinthians 10:13). All that being said, surrender comes with benefits and blessings we literally cannot get any other way.  Some of those benefits include:

Surrender forms deep connection with God- 

It is totally possible for a person to attend church, read the Bible regularly and live the life of a Christian without ever really connecting with God on an intimate level. People do it all the time. Surrender forces us to acknowledge there are simply some things we cannot do without God’s help. This naturally makes us more dependent on God, but it does more than just that. When we surrender we come face-to-face with how weak and frail we really are (2nd Corinthians 12:9). This knowledge drives us to pray about everything and prayer is the ONLY way to build authentic connection and real intimacy with God (Genesis 5:24, James 2:23). The joy, peace and wellbeing we derive from intimacy with God is alone worth the pain of surrender. 

When we surrender we are given a super natural source of wisdom- 

Surrender means we give up and hand control over to God. This act forces us to seek God for wisdom and understanding into our problems instead of leaning on our own limited understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6). When we ask God for wisdom rather than simply asking Him to bless whatever plans and ideas we have worked out on our own He blesses us with the inside scoop on how to deal with people appropriately and problem solve seemingly unsolvable problems (Matthew 7:7-8, James 1:5). The wisdom we gain in surrender empowers us to live every part of our lives victoriously.

We (eventually) get the joy that comes with victory over our flesh-

Giving up control is profoundly unpleasant.  Nobody likes giving up or giving in. Surrendering is essentially admitting failure. Nonetheless, it is the only way to overcome certain sins, bad habits and life-controlling behaviors. There are simply some things we can never do on our own. That said, the joy we experience when it finally dawns on us that we no longer feel any desire or compulsion to indulge in the garbage that was ruining our lives is totally worth the cost to our pride. 

And finally:

In surrender we gain real freedom. Surrender frees us from the need to control the outcome, our fleshly desires, our control freak tendencies and our pride. When we are free of those things we are free indeed (John 8:36). 

How do we Survive and Thrive in a World of Folly and Stupidity?

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Wisdom along with an inheritance is good, and an advantage to those who see the sun. For wisdom is protection just as money is protection, but the advantage of knowledge (wisdom) is that wisdom keeps its possessors alive– Ecclesiastes 7:11-12 NASB

Wisdom and folly. Those two subjects are the heart of the Book of Proverbs.

We all get folly.

Folly is easy.

Folly is stupidity and learned lunacy. Folly is making the decision to do the wrong thing because the wrong thing feels pleasant or appears to be advantageous, easy or expedient in the moment. Folly is making the choice to ignore the obvious, and then whining about the results of ignoring the obvious. Folly is rebelling against common sense or acknowledged facts in favor of feelings.

Folly is not a difficult concept to grasp (Ecclesiastes 10:3).

However.

Wisdom is more complicated and much harder to nail down, largely because wisdom is way more nuanced (Proverbs 8:11, Proverbs 3:19).  Some of the best practical definitions of wisdom are:

Thinking God’s thoughts after Him-

The sum of all learning and knowledge-

Common sense, good judgment- 

The ability to apply knowledge appropriately to a given situation- 

But, by far, my all-time favorite practical definition of wisdom is… 

Drumroll please…

Understanding the connectedness of life-

Wisdom is understanding every single action in life produces a reaction or consequence.  It’s accepting the reality that the reaction or consequence is not always equal to or observably related to the action (Hosea 8:7).  Wisdom is understanding the seemingly unconnected things in life really are connected. Wisdom is knowing anxiety is not a freak event or strictly a biological occurrence. It’s the direct result of something else: an unfinished project, a lie we told, control issues or a conversation we’re scared to have.  Wisdom is recognizing the link between pride and abject failure in our relationships and work (Proverbs 16:18, Proverbs 11:2). Wisdom is understanding how I live today will impact tomorrow, sometimes in seemingly unconnected ways (Proverbs 20:25).  Wisdom is knowing how I choose to manage my sexuality has the power to dramatically impact not only my marriage but also my finances, friendships, parenting outcome and reputation (Proverbs 5:1-14). Wisdom is knowing sin in one area of my life will inevitably impact productivity and blessings in other areas of my life (Proverbs 5:21-23).

Wise people understand nothing happens in a vacuum and everything is LITERALLY connected to everything else. There are no choices in life that are disconnected from our other choices. Wise people grasp the sad fact that we get to choose the sin but we don’t get to choose the consequences of the sin (Proverbs 1:31).

Sigh.

 Thankfully, one need not be smart or clever to be wise (Proverbs 17:28). Even dumb people can be wise. That being said, no one, no matter their I.Q. gets wisdom, unless they go after it (James 1:5, Proverbs 1:20-23). There are five primary ways we acquire wisdom, including:

Obeying the precepts found in the Bible-

The Bible defines wisdom and foolishness very clearly in the book of Proverbs (Proverbs 1-4). However, there is more wisdom in the Bible than what’s found in Proverbs. The Bible teaches through stories, psalms and commands what will happen when a person chooses to act wisely and what happens when a person chooses to behave foolishly. Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. Therefore, a wise life begins with making a commitment to Jesus (Proverbs 14:2). Once the commitment is made a person should seek to learn the Bible and apply it their life. Obedience to God produces an abundance of wisdom. Every. Single. Time.    

Reflection about life-

Some assume simply living life and attaining an education will make them wise. This is categorically wrong. There are lots of really foolish old people and the world is abounding with educated idiots. Self-reflection is a key to wisdom. We become wise and insightful when we take the time to honestly contemplate which actions led to our successes and failures (Proverbs 4:26, 2nd Corinthians 13:5, Ecclesiastes 12:9).  When we choose to think through what we did right or wrong in situations and then take responsibility for those actions and adjust our behavior accordingly next time wisdom becomes a natural part of who we are as people. 

Prayer-

It’s critical we know God isn’t just wise and knowledgeable. God IS wisdom. God IS knowledge. God is THE source of all understanding about all things (Proverbs 3:19-20).  Praying to the source of wisdom and knowledge does two things: first, prayer allows clueless humans to ASK God for wisdom about life. A prayer for wisdom is God’s favorite kind of prayer. He is always ready to give wisdom to anyone eager to ask for it (James 1:5). However, prayer is not just about asking God for stuff.  Prayer is primarily about connecting with and communing with God. We become like those we spend the most time with. Therefore, if we make connecting with the all-wise, all-knowing, totally-holy maker of the universe a priority in our lives we will become wise just as He is wise (Hosea 14:9, Proverbs 13:20). 

From other people- 

God graciously blesses those who seek wisdom with wisdom and then places those people in our lives as a gift (Proverbs 13:20, Proverbs 13:14). It is our responsibility to identify the wise people God places in our path and learn from them. As with any gift we can refuse the wisdom others have to offer but we do so at our own peril. 

And finally.

No one can acquire wisdom without humility. Period. It literally cannot happen.  In order to acquire wisdom we must understand and accept the inherent limitedness of our own personal wisdom. Wisdom means conceding that sometimes we get it wrong and most of the time we don’t know what we don’t know. Wisdom is all about having a realistic perspective of ourselves and humbly asking God to give us the insight, wisdom and understanding we lack. 

Then we are unstoppable in every good thing God calls us to (Proverbs, 9:12 Proverbs 21:22).